[Matt] sent in a set of YouTube videos walking us through his LEGO Mindstorms controlled brewery.
[Matt] is using a RIMS brewing setup that recirculates and heats the mash to extract more starch from the grain. This results in a Maillard reaction in the mash and creates a richer, maltier flavor.
To control his RIMS setup, [Matt] is using a LEGO Mindstorms brick with a few LEGO temperature sensors attached to his plumbing. The LEGO provides all the temperature and pump control for a proper RIMS setup, perfect for the homebrewer who doesn’t want to bother with an Arduino or other microcontroller board.
As a small aside, the astute Hackaday reader will note our beer hacks category is woefully underpopulated. It’s nearly summer now and the perfect time to start brewing. If you’ve got a beer hack, be sure to send it in.
After the break you can see all of [Matt]’s RIMS/LEGO brewery videos, or you can check out his YouTube channel.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8GbAQcJekE&w=470]
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wx_NwaWyUg&w=470]
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XI1gDL_nrVQ&w=470]
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mkr98ma2k-M&w=470]
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NgklKKwmSto&w=470]
This is an awesome post. There are a lot of active forums for beer making, but not a lot of people documenting the process in a way that makes it easier to understand RIMS systems. I’d love to see some more videos from Matt on how this all works!
Good for someone who doesn’t want to mess with an Arduino? More likely just good for someone who already has one of these LEGO Mindstorms sets — last time I checked the price for those was upwards of $300 USD. The money you’d save with an Arduino would probably be enough to pay someone else to build and program it for you!
I think people miss the point. Lego, used to make beer. It would still be awesome if it cost 1000$.
Lego-beer. There is probably a lego kit to be made here.
Maybe there will be a LEGO bioreactor/fermentor next!
Looking great!