Brew In A Bag

Brew-In-A-Bag (BIAB)

After hearing about this method of all-grain brewing on the Brew Strong podcast (at thebrewingnetwork.com, and at basicbrewing.com) I decided to give it a try using a converted keg and propane burner from my neighbor as my mash tun and burner.  It made switching to all-grain simple and affordable.
The advantages of all-grain brewing:
• Grain is less expensive than extract
• Better control of the body and mouthfeel of your beer through mash temperature control
• Ability to use specialty grains that must be mashed to convert their sugars
• To be able to brew any recipe
• Better control of how your beer turns out
The advantages of BIAB:
• Least expensive way to convert to all-grain from extract
• Shorter brew day
• Less clean up
• The ability to change the temperature of the mash; easier multi-step mashes
Disadvantages of BIAB:
• Lower brewhouse efficiency due to no lautering
• Difficult to maintain a steady temperature for the mash
• Hot-side aeration complications