Author Topic: My all grain beer brewing  (Read 3754 times)

art b

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My all grain beer brewing
« on: September 30, 2013, 10:20:28 am »
Here is a guide to my ''brew/mash in a bag'' beer brewing

i made 5 gallons of wort yesterday, it will be fermented later this week..

pics to follow ...:mr green:


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Incursus

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« Reply #1 on: September 30, 2013, 10:52:20 am »


This will be the next step for me...well I'll give it a go anyway

Roadkill

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« Reply #2 on: September 30, 2013, 12:18:44 pm »
Quoting: art b
Here is a guide


Where ?

art b

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« Reply #3 on: September 30, 2013, 01:01:23 pm »
here is step 1 ...

this method is exactly as a brewery will  brew,
but on a small scale and without having to move liquid from one vessel to another too often,

select a grain bill...

here i have used

4kg marris otter barley
1 kg of caramalt a slightly roasted malt
1 kg of pale wheat

cost of grain around £6

the grains add different qualitys to the beer , taste, colour,head retention,mouth feel ...oh er missus ..




the home grown tomatoes were not used in this recipe ..

i used 100g of brambling cross hops, £2.00
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art b

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« Reply #4 on: September 30, 2013, 01:10:50 pm »
step 2

the mashing, this is basically like making a pot of tea...

the pot is filled with hot water,150 deg,
 and a 1m square of voile is used as a bag ,
held in place with elastic around the rim of the pot,

the grain is stired in ...it now starts to smell nice...



this is left to mash for 1hr - 90 mins..
[during this time we made some lamb pasties]






i use a piece of celotex to retain the heat and throw an old duvet over the pot,




this takes place on the kitchen floor near the hot water and inside to retain heat ,
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art b

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« Reply #5 on: September 30, 2013, 01:27:29 pm »
the neat trick with the brew in a bag technique ,
is that once the mash is done the bag is pulled and the wort that is left is boiled in the same vessel
 so there is no fluid to move around ,

so step 3

the bag is pulled and twisted to drain it a bit .



this is the used grain ,on the square of voile [net curtain]




 which i give to a lady down the road for her chickens in return for some free fresh eggs....

im livin the good life dream...

the pot is then put on a gas ring outside to bring up to the boil...

here it is ..before i pulled the bag out, its easier when its outside and at the right height,




this set up is all temporary ,as i only brew every now and then ... and so therefore a bit different each time...

this time it features a recyclin box and a slab..



note the windy conditions yesterday with the edges of the bag having a dance..

the gas ring is fed from a gas tap next to my boiler and a length of hose...
normal /most people use a gas bottle...

you can boil the pot on a hob if you wish ...but there is a fair bit of steam involved..
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Roadkill

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« Reply #6 on: September 30, 2013, 01:41:18 pm »
How do you choose what grains you're gonna use ?

Is there a system . . like - I what it a bit hoppy so use X ???


art b

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« Reply #7 on: September 30, 2013, 01:42:10 pm »
step 4

boiling ....
the wort is boiled for 1 hr ...during which time the hops are added,
some early to bitter the beer and others later to add aroma and other tastes.

gas ring in action.




i split 1 pack of 100g of hops into 2 and add half at the start of the boil and the other half 20 mins from the end
there are many of different options ,im just doing an easy option at the moment and getting good beer...



boiling wort with the 1st addition hops...the hops are contained in hop bags made from the bag offcuts...
they float around in the top of the boiling wort ..and smell great

 the white stuff is the hot break , which is protein, this settles out at the end of the boil...






20 mins from the end 2nd addition hops in the other hop bag,





the boil is completed and the wort is left to settle for 15 mins,

i add a finnings [irish moss] at this stage and stir the wort until it starts to whirlpool , this makes the debris in the pot settle into a cone the centre..

the wort look clearer and the hop bags are draining..


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Incursus

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« Reply #8 on: September 30, 2013, 01:47:27 pm »
Quoting: art b
the pot is filled with hot water,150 deg,


Fahrenheit I'm assuming


Quoting: art b
which i give to a lady down the road for her chickens in return for some free fresh eggs...


Cool I know a few chicken owners

art b

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« Reply #9 on: September 30, 2013, 01:48:40 pm »
Quoting: Roadkill

How do you choose what grains you're gonna use ?

Is there a system . . like - I what it a bit hoppy so use X ???



the grains are used for colour ,texture and taste ,,
each variety of beer has a different recipie

so pale ales,lagers and stouts are very different ...light grain and roasted,smoked,dark grain..

the hoppyness [cool word] of a beer is made by the addition of the hops,,, some for bittering and others for flavours ,,ie citrus,flowery  etc..

nb
 you guys can make a hop tea [or dry hop] to add to kits to change the flavour , as kits lose there hoppy flavours as a rule during the reducing process,
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art b

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« Reply #10 on: September 30, 2013, 01:51:29 pm »
Quoting: Incursus
Fahrenheit I'm assuming



yup...

 i get away with water from the combi boiler,
 topped up with a couple of kettles of boiling water ...


it actually has to start of at 160 .[strike temp]
 to allow for the cold grain tipped into it..to bring it down to 150
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Incursus

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« Reply #11 on: September 30, 2013, 02:01:33 pm »
Quoting: art b
make a hop tea



art b

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« Reply #12 on: September 30, 2013, 02:03:56 pm »
step 5 ...

 so the hard work is done and a few hrs have passed around 5 ..

but during that time most of it is time spent waiting so i set an alarm on the phone and get on with life or working..[weekday brews]

i drain the very hot wort into a 5 gallon food safe cube ...

[a pic from earlier in the year...]




this is the sealed and the contents made to make contact with all the sides...which means the contents and the cube are pasturised and can be stored for up to 2 years...
 before fermenting. this is idea came from Australia as they have very little spare water for cooling

i tend to leave them for 2 days chilling to allow debris to drop out ...grain dust and hop particles,,

i have now figured that the cube of hot wort
 will fit back into the pot filled with cold water this allow it to cool quicker and helps it to clear [cold break]






so the one pot i have is ,

 the mash tun ,
the boiler ,
the cooler

this method is a lot less expensive and quicker than the traditional 3 vessel system.... and there is very little to wash up...
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art b

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« Reply #13 on: September 30, 2013, 02:11:58 pm »
last step ...fermenting

i syphon the wort ..[its still just sugary water] with hoppy flavouring,
into the fermenting bucket add yeast , usually an safale 04 or 05 ale yeast around £2.50
which i rehydrate for i hour to get it multiplying

here it is fermenting in the fermenting cabinet set at 19 deg






so all in all its a bit of messing around ,
but makes great beers for less than £10
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« Reply #14 on: September 30, 2013, 02:18:50 pm »
How big's your Mash Tun ?

EDIT -

Explain, again, how your Fermenting cabinet works (for a laymen)

art b

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« Reply #15 on: September 30, 2013, 02:28:20 pm »
a cople of links

compare this faffing about ...[skip through]


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ynRScefrReQ

to this biab method..


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DnrYVb11wHw
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art b

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« Reply #16 on: September 30, 2013, 02:32:23 pm »
the youtube brewing vids are the new milf porn for me


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o6WVul6IEKk
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« Reply #17 on: September 30, 2013, 02:33:27 pm »
Next questions -

Can you ferment in your mash tun

and

Once barreled (assuming you add CO2) how long will a beer last in the barrel for ??

art b

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« Reply #18 on: September 30, 2013, 04:14:46 pm »
Quoting: Roadkill
Next questions -

Can you ferment in your mash tun

and

Once barreled (assuming you add CO2) how long will a beer last in the barrel for ??





yes,
 you can ferment in any thing ...including the chilling cube...


i have kept beer in a keg for 4 months ..

probably as long as its got co2 protecting it..

but most beers will degrade after 12 months ,unless there very strong flavoured and have a high alcohol content ... like an imperial stout which can take 5 years to mature ..

...and you dont open the tap too often...
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« Reply #19 on: September 30, 2013, 04:24:01 pm »
Am toying with the idea of doing a 50 or 100 litre batch and filling 2/4 kegs.

I don't see me needing to keep it longer than 6 months.  

art b

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« Reply #20 on: September 30, 2013, 04:39:43 pm »
Quoting: Roadkill
How big's your Mash Tun ?  

EDIT -

Explain, again, how your Fermenting cabinet works (for a laymen)




the pot is 76 litres.... wanna borrow it ...

a good bit for fermenting larger brews is a [blue ]plastic mango barrel [with a screw on lid ..obtainable from indian restaurants ...[an ebay ]

the cabinet is insulated and has a temp controller and a heat source [i use a 60w lamp]

ive seen them made around an larger  fv ,

 by fitting celotex/polystyrene  around the fv and putting in a heat source [tube heater or light bulb]
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art b

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« Reply #21 on: September 30, 2013, 04:44:01 pm »
Quoting: Roadkill


Explain, again, how your Fermenting cabinet works (for a laymen)





heres my small version




heat controller ..

ebay around £14


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art b

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« Reply #22 on: September 30, 2013, 04:46:03 pm »
rehydrated yeast, kept warm in the airing cupboard for 12 hrs
and a cube of wort waiting to meet each other ..


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art b

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« Reply #23 on: September 30, 2013, 04:50:41 pm »
im actually only on my 4th all grain brew...

 so its been a learning curve,
no major mishaps and every time the beer has been a success,

the 1st one came out with too much wort leading to a weaker beer [ we drank some of it at rk's bbq]

in fact some of you have tried alll 3 of my previous brews...

heres a pic of the spare gallon before it cleared..


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art b

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« Reply #24 on: September 30, 2013, 04:55:00 pm »
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