Back to brewing… When brewing beer it is important to cool the wort to “pitching temperature” as quickly as possible. This is the temperature where the ale yeast can thrive, usually around 70 degrees F. You want to cool the wort quickly to reduce the opportunity for bacteria to be introduced which could spoil your beer. The sooner the yeast can be added and the fermentation vessel sealed the less time the wort is exposed to potential bacteria. With a 2.5 gallon boil this was easily accomplished by setting the kettle directly into an ice bath. However, this method will no longer be practical due to the size and weight of a "keggle" with 5 gallons of wort. This means I am going to need a chiller.
The types of chillers available fall in to 2 basic categories: immersion and counter flow. I read as much as I could with special attention given to the opinions of actual users. There are pros and cons to both types but either will work. I decided to go with a counter flow chiller mostly because it seemed to be the more efficient method. Counter flow chillers range from kits to install a copper tube inside a garden hose to plate chillers. From what I could find, the plate chiller may be the most efficient and the compact package is definitely nice. They seem to be a popular choice but I decided against it due to concerns about potential blockages in the small passage ways. What I ended up getting is the “Chillzilla” counter flow chiller purchased through Northern Brewer. It is designed with a small copper tube for wort transfer inside of a larger copper tube where the cooling water flows in the opposite direction. So far it is the most expensive single item I have in my brewing system. But quickly reducing the boiling wort to pitching temperature is one of the most important steps in the brewing process.
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