Cedar Rapids Brewing Society

True. Never thought of a smaller basket diameter. Plus there is likely a domed bottom.

It is a flat bottom. The Stout domed bottom kettles have a noticeable welded on bottom piece that you can see. The thermometer on the lid I assume is mainly for mash temp without having to remove the lid. A side mounted probe would get in the way of the basket.

Matt F wrote:It is a flat bottom. The Stout domed bottom kettles have a noticeable welded on bottom piece that you can see. The thermometer on the lid I assume is mainly for mash temp without having to remove the lid. A side mounted probe would get in the way of the basket.

I also did not see an element port, and with that I would put my temp probe in the bottom of the kettle and since I am thinking electric and a recirculating mash there would also be a PID to control the temp. So for me personally this kettle needs too much custom work. I do love their kettles

Another kettle option. They also have kettles with a port for electric elements. All Tri-clamp too.
http://www.bru-gear.com/

czubak wrote: I also did not see an element port, and with that I would put my temp probe in the bottom of the kettle and since I am thinking electric and a recirculating mash there would also be a PID to control the temp. So for me personally this kettle needs too much custom work. I do love their kettles

I've only done two brews on my homemade setup, but I did experiment with and without the recirculation (with water) and with it the accurate thermometer that I stuck in to the pot seemed to indicate that a slow recirc like I have makes the temperature much more stable. It seems to also be the case when brewing but I have not tried it without on an actual brew.

I am VERY tempted to try a step mash with it. The club's Munich Helles April entry is tempting, unless I eff up the lagering again. But I'm tempted to do a 3 step mash with the PID and recirc. I wouldn't have ever even attempted that with the cooler.

It's sooooo nice to use that system indoors.. not really any less time, but it's so much easier...

Fred