The Hydra Immersion Chiller is advertised as the fastest immersion chiller on the market. I needed to check it out myself. Full disclosure, I purchased this immersion chiller on my own. This was not a gift from JaDed Brewing.
I take a lot of pride in keeping my brewing extremely simple. I own a fifteen-gallon stainless steel kettle from Bayou Classic, a burner, and a BIAB. Nothing against those owning and using a three vessel system. I just like to keep my set-up simple and easy.
For the longest time in the beginning I would use ice packs that my wife would receive in the mail when she would have medication shipped to the house. I would soak these ice packs in a bucket of StarSan and pray that it would cool my wort. It usually did the trick, but it took a long time.
I then graduated to a ten-foot immersion chiller that seemed to be a step up from the wife’s ice packs. However, I knew there was better, more quality products out there waiting for me. Additionally, I knew I was playing Russian Roulette with my beer. The faster you chill your wort, the less chance for infection.
The Advertisement
I heard JaDed Brewing’s advertisements on the Brulosophy podcast. At first I knew I should upgrade, but I just couldn’t pull the trigger with the cost. Christmas rolled around this past year and I finally took the leap and made a purchase of The Hydra from JaDed Brewing.
The Hydra was right for my brewery.
One thing that I was extremely impressed with was their advertisements on podcasts. They say, “if an immersion chiller is right for your brewery, then check out all the rad options JaDed Brewing has to offer.” The JaDed guys know there are a lot of options out there. I like how they don’t come across as being too pushy. Instead, they just say if this is right for you, then it’s there for you to order.
I talked to the JaDed guys at the last two HomeBrewCons in Minneapolis and Portland. I felt confident after talking to these guys that these were good people to do business with. I even e-mailed them about my purchase ahead of time. I gave them my kettle dimensions and they assured me The Hyrda was the right immersion chiller for me.
The following comes right from JaDed’s website:
- Super fast chill times (5 gallons from boil to 68 degrees in 3 minutes)
- Fastest of ANY chiller to reach 140 degrees (F) for the whole batch (45 seconds)
- Easy cleaning procedure
- No need for a food grade pump and hoses to achieve specified times
- All solder connections are lead free
- Solid brass garden hose connectors
- The coils are 8” high
- Fits in most all brewpots *you can customize your chiller too
Receiving my Hydra
I ordered my Hydra Immersion Chiller on a Thursday and received it on a Saturday. Talk about fast service! I did not pay extra for express shipping either. The guys at JaDad are just that good!
The day I received it was a day when I was out in my garage brewing a batch of beer. I walked into the house to grab some lunch while I started my mash. The FedEx guy brought multiple packages to our door that day. When I returned to my garage, I was surprised with a box with the word JADED printed on the side.
FedEx doing it right!
I like to think that the FedEx driver was a fellow homebrewer. Somehow he or she knew that I would be needing this today and decided to leave it along side all of my brewing gear in my garage, while dropping off more packages by our front door. Or the driver knew this cost me some decent money and wanted to keep it safe.
The Test
Since I now had this immersion chiller in my possession, I knew I needed to test it out. After all, I was brewing that day anyway. I brought my kettle into my laundry room to use my utility sink to cool down my wort.
Imperial Rye Brown Ale cooled to pitching temp.
In the past when I would use my old immersion chiller, I would let my wort cool for about a good thirty minutes or longer. I would go about my business of cleaning up my brewery while my wort was cooling. My days of waiting were over. My wort cooled to 64°F or 17°C in under ten minutes.
My fastest cooling time ever!
I am completely happy with my purchase.
I know these immersion chillers are a bit pricey. However, can you really put a price on the peace of mind you receive with fast cooling wort?
Former President of my homebrew club, Plainfield Ale and Lager Enthusiasts (PALE) in the western suburbs of Chicago, IL. I brew on my BIAB system with my incredibly patient and understanding wife, adorable 9 year old daughter, and 12 year old brew dog.