Getting a second opinion on a brewhouse supplier quote

Why quotes are hard to compare

Brewhouse suppliers quote in their own format. One lists a 5 hl brewhouse with four fermenters. Another lists a 5 hl brewhouse with six fermenters, a bright tank and a glycol chiller. A third lists only vessels and leaves control panels, piping and installation as extras. The headline price tells you almost nothing until the scope is lined up.

Founders without a brewing background also find it hard to judge which specifications matter. Our brewery equipment buying guide explains the main pieces. This guide is about reading a quote line by line.

Line up the scope

Make a simple table with one column per supplier and one row for each item:

• Hot liquor tank, mash and lauter tun, kettle and whirlpool.
• Heat exchanger for wort cooling and how it is cooled.
• Number, size and pressure rating of fermenters and bright tanks.
• Glycol chiller, its capacity and the ambient temperature it is rated at.
• Heating source: steam boiler, electric or direct fire.
• Mill, grist case and grain handling.
• CIP unit and pumps.
• Control panel and level of automation.
• Piping, valves and hoses.
• Installation, commissioning, training and spares.

Every blank in that table is a cost you will pay later, either to the same supplier or to someone else.

Check cellar capacity, not just brewhouse size

Output depends on how many fermenters you have and how long each beer spends in them, not on brewhouse size alone. Ales commonly need around two to three weeks in tank and lagers often four to six. A 5 hl brewhouse feeding four fermenters will be capped by those four tanks long before the brewhouse runs out of capacity. Check that the cellar matches your sales plan and the styles you want to brew.

Then look at your sales plan. If you expect to sell mostly lager, which can sit in tank for a month or more, you need more fermenters or conditioning tanks than a brewery selling mostly ale. If you plan to package, add bright tanks so packaging days do not block fermenters. In consulting work we often see founders buy a larger brewhouse than they need and too few tanks to keep it busy. The money would have done more in the cellar.

Ask each supplier to state, in writing, the monthly output their proposed layout supports for your mix of beers. Their answers are often revealing.

Specifications that matter

• Steel grade and thickness for product contact surfaces, plus the quality of welds and internal finish.
• Jacket design on fermenters and how many cooling zones each has.
• Pressure rating of fermenters and bright tanks, which affects carbonation and spunding options.
• Chiller rating at Indian ambient temperatures. A chiller sized for a mild climate can struggle on a hot rooftop.
• Documentation: drawings, piping and instrument diagrams, manuals and material certificates.

Ask for a general arrangement drawing showing how the equipment fits your floor. Check ceiling height for tall fermenters, door widths for delivery, floor loading for full tanks and drainage falls for cleaning. A brewhouse that will not fit through the door is a surprisingly common discovery.

Commercial terms

Read the payment schedule, delivery terms and warranty carefully. Find out whether the price includes freight, insurance, customs clearance and local taxes. Find out too what happens if delivery is late. Ask whether a factory acceptance test is offered before shipping. Hold back a meaningful part of the payment until commissioning is complete and agreed criteria are met, if the supplier will agree. Our brewhouse commissioning checklist helps define those criteria.

Ask for references from breweries with similar equipment that have run it for a few years. Then call them. Ask about after-sales support, spares and how faults were handled.

What a second opinion looks like

An experienced brewer reviewing your quote will line up scope, flag missing items, check cellar capacity against your sales plan, question specifications and point out commercial terms that carry risk. They will also tell you whether the brewhouse suits the beers you want to make, which a supplier has little reason to question.

The reviewer should have no commercial tie to any supplier on your list. Ask directly. A second opinion from someone earning a commission is not a second opinion. For a broader view of the full project budget, see our guide to microbrewery costs in India.