I have had to switch tactics when it comes to brewing. Fallout over recent divorce has me now in a one-bedroom apartment and rethinking my process. I have brewed two batches of extract since the move (amonth ago), and am planning on incorporating the 'counter-top partial mashing' procedure that I found in a previous article from BYO magazine. I attached the link for anyone that might be interested:
http://www.byo.com/stories/techniques/a ... al-mashingI find it easier to brew a 2-3 gallon batch and 'top-off' to 5-gallons in the fermenter. Equates to a smaller pot/batch to boil; easier to handle in small space. My kegerator moved with me and it is now located in my bedroom...it takes up a little space but it is well worth it. I find kegging saves the nightmare of bottling in such a small space. I hate to bottle anyways, I cannot imagine trying to 'bottle' my beer in the small kitchen. If I were to do bottles in an aprtment I think I woould seriously consider bumping up to '20-oz' bottles vice the normal '12-oz' ones. Besides...the wait time of 4-weeks for the beer to bottle condition/ferment is too long. Kegging allows for 'boil to glass' in 10-12 days. That beats the traditional 5 weeks with bottling any day of the week! Cost for a general keg setup is about $200 up-front for CO2/5-ga. keg with attachments. I bought mine from Willamsbrewing.com after bottling my first three batches because I quickly come to hate the hassle of cleaning/sanitizing 48 bottles on brew-day. The keg only takes 15-20 prep-time and your ready to go...no-brainer! Just move the hoses when you're ready to move to new keg! And by the way...used kegs at your local brew store are only about $45 or so. Kegging is pretty much a one time fee/investment, and a cheap refrigerator can be found for $50-$100 on Craigslist to convert, etc.
I have found also that if I store two-gallons of bottles water in my fridge the night before I brew, it is chills my wort to the right temperature range (68-70F) for the fermenter, and I don't have to be concerned with 'ice-bath' to cool my wort.
There are lots of types of ale's/wheat beers/porters/stouts that do not require the cold temperature fermentation required of lager beers. I would think the average home brewer out there could stay plenty busy and satisfied brewing these, and not have to worry about the need for more space required for cold-fermentations. But if needed, I see no reason why a small kegerator could not serve that need as mine does.
As far as the cost-effective side of the house, I find that I can brew a batch of decent batch of beer for around $35-$45 which equates to around .75-.90 cents per beer. Thats about 50% savings on more expensive microbrews/imports, etc. You can brew for the same as you'll pay for cheaper domestics (MGD, Bud, etc.) but they don't compare in taste. So it is still worth it in this regard.
Overall, I am finding it is slightly more challenging and I have to once-again become a 'stove-top' brewer for a while...not hassle enough to go back to MGD!!!
" so having a kettle boiling outside on the fourth floor is way out of the question.
