Hi folks. New here and I came by because I've done 2 BIAB AG recipes and have had fun with it. Both brews I made are doing well. A Belgian Wit that tastes great, and a best bitter that is still in the primary. The only issue is that my efficiency for both was in the low 60%.
So if anyone might offer some advice, it would be greatly appreciated.
So I'll explain with the last recipe:
Best Bitter
Recipe Type: AG (BIAB)
Yeast: Wyeast 1275 Thomas Valley Ale yeast
Batch Size (Gallons): 5.5
Original Gravity: 1.042
Final Gravity: 1.014
IBU: 25
Boiling Time (Minutes): 90
Primary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp): 14 Days at 64 Degrees
Secondary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp): N/A
7.5 lbs Maris Otter malt
1 lb Flaked corn
4 oz Victory malt
8 oz Crystal 60L malt
1 oz British Chocolate malt
1 tsp Burton water salts
Mash at 150F for 90 min
90 min boil
.50 oz Challenger, 60 mins
1 oz EKG 6.8%, 15 mins
Whirlfloc ½ tab @ 15 mins
.50 oz EKG 6.8%, 5 mins
1 oz EKG 6.8%, Dry hop
2 weeks primary @ 64F
So, 9.5 gallons of water to start with was a lot for my 10 gallon kettle, so I first mashed with 8 gallons. The other 1.5 gallons, I heated to 170F in a separate pot. After mashing the grains in the 8 gallons, I pulled and drained the bag. I then transferred the bag into the 1.5 gallons of hot water. I tea bagged it in that water for a while and even opened the bag a bit and worked the water through the grains with a spoon. Then I squeezed the bag well and dumped that into the original 8 gallons to make the 9.5 gallons that I boiled for 90 minutes.
In the end, it tastes like it's on its way to being a good tasting beer but the ABV is a bit low at 3.8% and the efficiency was only 63%.
I was told that I was using too much water in general, but when I filled the primary I got about 5.25-5.5 gallons which is what the recipe called for.(I left the trub in the boil kettle)
I was also told that mashing in 8 gallons of water was too dilute and that was effecting my efficiency. That I should mash with much less and top off later.
I will say boiling 9.5 gallons in a 10 gallon pot makes you nervous when the hot break is coming. But if I'm doing it right, so be it.
Any advice? Thanks
Stew
Post #2 made 12 years ago
Stew, I ran your numbers through the BIABacus. Everything looks fine to me.
You don't know what your ABV is yet, you did not report a FG reading, but if you get a 1.013 FG it would be a 3.8% beer. The BIABacus reports your efficiency to be EIK (efficiency into kettle) as 87.4%.
Did you get an OG of 1.042?
~richard
You don't know what your ABV is yet, you did not report a FG reading, but if you get a 1.013 FG it would be a 3.8% beer. The BIABacus reports your efficiency to be EIK (efficiency into kettle) as 87.4%.
Did you get an OG of 1.042?
~richard
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Post #3 made 12 years ago
Thanks Richard,
My OG was 1.042 and the FG looks to be 1.014.
So is a 3.8% ABV a good expectation for this recipe then? I am just learning how to use BeerSmith and my efficiency didn't show that high.
My OG was 1.042 and the FG looks to be 1.014.
So is a 3.8% ABV a good expectation for this recipe then? I am just learning how to use BeerSmith and my efficiency didn't show that high.
Post #4 made 12 years ago
A 1.013 FG is the best you can expect from that yeast. Your 1.014 is within the range of attenuation. Your yeast choice IS for the style.
Was this an ingredient kit?, just curious, then the grain bill should be to style also, i.e. the ABV also.
http://www.bjcp.org/2008styles/style08.php" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Was this an ingredient kit?, just curious, then the grain bill should be to style also, i.e. the ABV also.
http://www.bjcp.org/2008styles/style08.php" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Last edited by Mad_Scientist on 16 Feb 2013, 06:36, edited 2 times in total.
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Post #5 made 12 years ago
Welcome to the forum stew 
,
Firstly though, have a look at this Brewing Process and Terminology Chart and note especially, towards the bottom, the two terms EIK and EIF. These are two very different efficiency numbers. Understanding the difference between EIK and EIF is the other thing we need to make sure you are clear on so if the link doesn't make sense, let us know.
If Richard can post the file up (otherwise I can do it later), he'll probably ask you to fill in as many numbers as you can in Sections B, L & M.
PP
,Unfortunately, BeerSmith is not very intuitive and can be quite easy to misinterpret or set up incorrectly. If Mad_Scientist still has your recipe in the BIABAcus, maybe he can post it up here and you (and we) will be able to see much more easily if there is a problem. The file he posts probably won't have the hop bill and may only include the total weight of your grain bill as that is all we really need at this stage.BabyfaceFinster wrote:I am just learning how to use BeerSmith and my efficiency didn't show that high.
Firstly though, have a look at this Brewing Process and Terminology Chart and note especially, towards the bottom, the two terms EIK and EIF. These are two very different efficiency numbers. Understanding the difference between EIK and EIF is the other thing we need to make sure you are clear on so if the link doesn't make sense, let us know.
If Richard can post the file up (otherwise I can do it later), he'll probably ask you to fill in as many numbers as you can in Sections B, L & M.
PP
Last edited by PistolPatch on 16 Feb 2013, 06:55, edited 2 times in total.
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Post #6 made 12 years ago
See attached.
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Post #7 made 12 years ago
Hey wow, thanks for being so helpful guys. That BIABAcus is an awesome tool. I will report back over the weekend after filling in the chart. I have to go back to work tonight.
I haven't had too much experience but I did sort of design this recipe myself. I call it Foggy Old London Bitter. I reviewed a ton of posts on classic bitter styles and put this one together based on my likes and tinkering with BeerSmith. Although I like pale ales and bitters, I really don't like anything high in IBU's, so I really cut down on the bittering hops (even mild ones like EKG).
I haven't had too much experience but I did sort of design this recipe myself. I call it Foggy Old London Bitter. I reviewed a ton of posts on classic bitter styles and put this one together based on my likes and tinkering with BeerSmith. Although I like pale ales and bitters, I really don't like anything high in IBU's, so I really cut down on the bittering hops (even mild ones like EKG).
Post #8 made 12 years ago
Ok, I tried to fill it out the best I could. Some thing s were from memory because I didn't know to measure. The total 9.5 gallons should be pretty close to accurate. The 8 gallons that I heated for the actual mash was not measured gallon by gallon. Instead I have a wooden dowel that I marked by the gallon when placed in the pot. The other 1.5 gallons I measured out.
I did not measure the volume in the kettle after boiling. There was a lot of trub left behind. I added a whole tab of whirlfloc during boiling and after chilling I whirlpooled and waited. I got a nice separation of solids and the wort that I siphoned was very clear.
Total mash volume I assume is the volume of all the wort made?
Also Gravity into kettle is the gravity of the wort after mashing but before boiling?
I only took 2 spec grav readings on brew day. After mashing the gravity was 1.022. But now that I think of it, I did not correct for temp. That wort was pretty warm when I measured it. The OG after boiling and chilling down to 68F was 1.042.
Thanks for the help
I did not measure the volume in the kettle after boiling. There was a lot of trub left behind. I added a whole tab of whirlfloc during boiling and after chilling I whirlpooled and waited. I got a nice separation of solids and the wort that I siphoned was very clear.
Total mash volume I assume is the volume of all the wort made?
Also Gravity into kettle is the gravity of the wort after mashing but before boiling?
I only took 2 spec grav readings on brew day. After mashing the gravity was 1.022. But now that I think of it, I did not correct for temp. That wort was pretty warm when I measured it. The OG after boiling and chilling down to 68F was 1.042.
Thanks for the help
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Post #9 made 12 years ago
Good on you Stew,
I'll just go through in point form if that's okay...
'Mash volume' is how much volume is taken up with your grist and mash water. For example, delete the 6 L you have in Section W and you'll see 'Mash Volume' will go up.
'Sweet liquor' is the real term for how much "wort" you get going into the boil. "Wort" can be anything from your volume at the start of the boil right through to pitching.
And yes, 'Gravity into kettle', isthe gravity of the wort after mashing (and sparging, if you have). In other words, it is the gravity at the start of the boil.
As for looking at your efficiencies, which is what you want to explore, we are missing a few numbers on this brew. Taking too many measurements on a brew day can be time-consuming but, on your next brew, if you think you are having an efficiency problem try and take the following measurements...
1. Start of boil volume and gravity.
2. End of boil volume and gravity.
3. Volume into Fermentor and gravity.
4. Kettle trub and any dilutions.
This will give us a few double checks.
On the current spreadsheet, see how there is no value beside 'Kettle to Fermentor Loss (KFL) in Section L? If you want ot take a guess at that, then your 'End of Boil Volume Efficiency (EOBVE)' in Section P will populate. For example, if you type in 3 L, your EOBVE will be 87.4%. (Note that EOBVE should theortetically match 'Efficiency into Kettle (EIK)'
Because you took the third set of readings above, your 'Efficiency into Fermentor (EIF)' has populated and reads 74.9%. No problems there on this gravity brew.
It's hard to know if you have an efficiency problem from just one brew. A few brews with the 4 lots of measurements above will let you know if there is anything to worry about.
Brew on!!!
PP
P.S. In Section B, move your 1.042 on the left rather than the right. Not a big thing and it won't change any numbers but the right hand side is only if you want to increase or lower the gravity of the original recipe. You'd rarely use that field.
I'll just go through in point form if that's okay...
'Mash volume' is how much volume is taken up with your grist and mash water. For example, delete the 6 L you have in Section W and you'll see 'Mash Volume' will go up.
'Sweet liquor' is the real term for how much "wort" you get going into the boil. "Wort" can be anything from your volume at the start of the boil right through to pitching.
And yes, 'Gravity into kettle', isthe gravity of the wort after mashing (and sparging, if you have). In other words, it is the gravity at the start of the boil.
As for looking at your efficiencies, which is what you want to explore, we are missing a few numbers on this brew. Taking too many measurements on a brew day can be time-consuming but, on your next brew, if you think you are having an efficiency problem try and take the following measurements...
1. Start of boil volume and gravity.
2. End of boil volume and gravity.
3. Volume into Fermentor and gravity.
4. Kettle trub and any dilutions.
This will give us a few double checks.
On the current spreadsheet, see how there is no value beside 'Kettle to Fermentor Loss (KFL) in Section L? If you want ot take a guess at that, then your 'End of Boil Volume Efficiency (EOBVE)' in Section P will populate. For example, if you type in 3 L, your EOBVE will be 87.4%. (Note that EOBVE should theortetically match 'Efficiency into Kettle (EIK)'
Because you took the third set of readings above, your 'Efficiency into Fermentor (EIF)' has populated and reads 74.9%. No problems there on this gravity brew.
It's hard to know if you have an efficiency problem from just one brew. A few brews with the 4 lots of measurements above will let you know if there is anything to worry about.
Brew on!!!
PP
P.S. In Section B, move your 1.042 on the left rather than the right. Not a big thing and it won't change any numbers but the right hand side is only if you want to increase or lower the gravity of the original recipe. You'd rarely use that field.
Last edited by PistolPatch on 18 Feb 2013, 06:00, edited 2 times in total.
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Post #10 made 12 years ago
Thanks PP,
I can't even guess what the amount of trub left behind was. This next brew I'll be sure to measure those volumes and spec gravities.
I'm planning on my next brewday being next Saturday. I am making a recipe that was created by a guy named Biermuncher at the HomebrewTalk. His recipes are pretty popular and this one is his Centennial Blonde. I entered everything I could to this point in the spreadsheet which I attached here.
My only fear is that this is already a pretty low ABV beer. Maybe I should up the grains or add some DME to be sure of a good OG? Or maybe I'll wing it and hope for good efficiency.
This should be my last recipe with pre-crushed grains as my Barley Crusher is on its way. I did ask the supply house to double crush and it looks pretty good.
I can't even guess what the amount of trub left behind was. This next brew I'll be sure to measure those volumes and spec gravities.
I'm planning on my next brewday being next Saturday. I am making a recipe that was created by a guy named Biermuncher at the HomebrewTalk. His recipes are pretty popular and this one is his Centennial Blonde. I entered everything I could to this point in the spreadsheet which I attached here.
My only fear is that this is already a pretty low ABV beer. Maybe I should up the grains or add some DME to be sure of a good OG? Or maybe I'll wing it and hope for good efficiency.
This should be my last recipe with pre-crushed grains as my Barley Crusher is on its way. I did ask the supply house to double crush and it looks pretty good.You do not have the required permissions to view the files attached to this post.
Post #11 made 12 years ago
Stew, we are in luck as we have already converted that Centennial Blonde recipe here in the Use this thread to convert recipes to suit your equipment... thread 
.
There could be a new BIABAcus Pre-Release coming out today so we better not post any more BIABacus files in this thread, after this post as we are only meant to put them in the above thread. I keep an eye on that thread so I will see you there if you have any questions on the file I'm going to post below
.
Be careful on your crush, do not go too fine - see here for why.
As you are copying this recipe for the first time, I would stick to the 1.040 of the original recipe. Nothing wrong with that.
I've had a look at your file and you have done a great job on it. I've checked it against the file we already converted and here's what I've done...
1. Sect B: Added in the recipe source. This is an important field. Down the track it will help you find the orignal recipe because you can forget these things. It also gives credit to the original desginer and it makes checking the integrity of the recipe easy.
2. Sect D: Have put in 20.83 L (5.5 Gal) as the EOBV-A of the oorignal recipe. This is something we worked out in the other thread. Very important number for hop scaling.
3. Sect E: Increased your mash time to 90 mins. 60 mins is too short if you want decent Efficiency into Kettle (EIK).
4. Sect F: Changed Whirfloc to half a tablet at 5 minutes. 1 tablet is too much for this size brew and 15 minutes is not the correct time for a whirfloc addition. (I only found that out about a year ago.) 5 minutes is correct.
5. Sect H: There's a discrepancy here between the two files. YOurs says Nottingham whereas the other file says US-05. I don't think Nottingham is correct for a blonde beer so I have changed it to US-05.
5. Sect O: I think it was in Sect O but I deleted an 'actual' gravity reading as it shouldn't be in there until you brew.
The way you have done the Maxi-BIAB section (the whole BIABacus actually) is very good. I would prefer to see you and anyone full-volume mashing whenever possible. Avoiding sparging saves a lot of time and mucking about.
If I was doing this brew, I'd probably fill my kettle up at the mash a bit more than you have (another 3 L) and this would leave you 2.75 litres that still needed to be added before the boil. Instead of sparging that, I would just put it in the 'Water Added Before the Boil' field. Doing this will only cost you an extra 70 grams of grain.
So, once again, nice job,
PP
.There could be a new BIABAcus Pre-Release coming out today so we better not post any more BIABacus files in this thread, after this post as we are only meant to put them in the above thread. I keep an eye on that thread so I will see you there if you have any questions on the file I'm going to post below
.Be careful on your crush, do not go too fine - see here for why.
As you are copying this recipe for the first time, I would stick to the 1.040 of the original recipe. Nothing wrong with that.
I've had a look at your file and you have done a great job on it
. I've checked it against the file we already converted and here's what I've done...1. Sect B: Added in the recipe source. This is an important field. Down the track it will help you find the orignal recipe because you can forget these things. It also gives credit to the original desginer and it makes checking the integrity of the recipe easy.
2. Sect D: Have put in 20.83 L (5.5 Gal) as the EOBV-A of the oorignal recipe. This is something we worked out in the other thread. Very important number for hop scaling.
3. Sect E: Increased your mash time to 90 mins. 60 mins is too short if you want decent Efficiency into Kettle (EIK).
4. Sect F: Changed Whirfloc to half a tablet at 5 minutes. 1 tablet is too much for this size brew and 15 minutes is not the correct time for a whirfloc addition. (I only found that out about a year ago.) 5 minutes is correct.
5. Sect H: There's a discrepancy here between the two files. YOurs says Nottingham whereas the other file says US-05. I don't think Nottingham is correct for a blonde beer so I have changed it to US-05.
5. Sect O: I think it was in Sect O but I deleted an 'actual' gravity reading as it shouldn't be in there until you brew.
The way you have done the Maxi-BIAB section (the whole BIABacus actually) is very good. I would prefer to see you and anyone full-volume mashing whenever possible. Avoiding sparging saves a lot of time and mucking about.
If I was doing this brew, I'd probably fill my kettle up at the mash a bit more than you have (another 3 L) and this would leave you 2.75 litres that still needed to be added before the boil. Instead of sparging that, I would just put it in the 'Water Added Before the Boil' field. Doing this will only cost you an extra 70 grams of grain.
So, once again, nice job
,PP
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Last edited by PistolPatch on 18 Feb 2013, 19:08, edited 2 times in total.
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Post #12 made 12 years ago
Sounds good. Sorry about the BIABacus posting. I do want to follow the guidelines appropriately.
I'll change those points in my recipe. I'm curious to compare volumes to what Beer smith says. I like to see where Beer smith falls short.
It looks like the general rule of thumb is to mash for 90 rather than 60 min just to be safe. Most of my beers with be below 1.050 OG brews. I just like my beer a bit lighter.
Birmuncher's original post called for Nottingham. Many latter posts discuss using US-05 as a better choice. I believe he uses either or dumps on top of any yeast cake of a similar american style yeast. The most recent posts favor 05 so if I can find some locally I'll buy a pack.
The only part I don't understand is when you state "2.75 litres that still needed to be added before the boil. Instead of sparging that, I would just put it in the 'Water Added Before the Boil' field. Doing this will only cost you an extra 70 grams of grain."
Do you mean hold back half the water I originally stated for the sparge, then pour that through the grain bag separately? I'm not sure what I should be doing with that withheld 2.75 liters.
I found during my last brew, 8 gallons of water is the most I can mash with and not get to the top of the kettle. When I began the boil last time there was so much wort. I was almost at the rim and had to keep the boil moderate or face splash/boil over. I know this recipe has less water and grains, but now I'm looking at selling my pot for a 15 gallon size.
Again much thanks. I have already directed a number of people over to this site after they posted issues with their BIAB technique.
I'll change those points in my recipe. I'm curious to compare volumes to what Beer smith says. I like to see where Beer smith falls short.
It looks like the general rule of thumb is to mash for 90 rather than 60 min just to be safe. Most of my beers with be below 1.050 OG brews. I just like my beer a bit lighter.
Birmuncher's original post called for Nottingham. Many latter posts discuss using US-05 as a better choice. I believe he uses either or dumps on top of any yeast cake of a similar american style yeast. The most recent posts favor 05 so if I can find some locally I'll buy a pack.
The only part I don't understand is when you state "2.75 litres that still needed to be added before the boil. Instead of sparging that, I would just put it in the 'Water Added Before the Boil' field. Doing this will only cost you an extra 70 grams of grain."
Do you mean hold back half the water I originally stated for the sparge, then pour that through the grain bag separately? I'm not sure what I should be doing with that withheld 2.75 liters.
I found during my last brew, 8 gallons of water is the most I can mash with and not get to the top of the kettle. When I began the boil last time there was so much wort. I was almost at the rim and had to keep the boil moderate or face splash/boil over. I know this recipe has less water and grains, but now I'm looking at selling my pot for a 15 gallon size.
Again much thanks. I have already directed a number of people over to this site after they posted issues with their BIAB technique.
Post #13 made 12 years ago
BFF, there is no problem with the file posting. Just had a re-read and saw that this is one of the 'exceptional' threads. The developers are just trying to make sure that all traffic gets directed to certain threads so as we all stay up to date. We have certainly done this so we are all good . The nbew release, PR 1.3 files are probably best kept contained though to the main threads.)
Lots of good questions above.
...
On the BeerSmith stuff, BIABrewer.info always supplies BeerSmith with help, BIAB numbers, suggestions etc. If you look back through some old threads you'll see that BIABrewer.info tried very hard with BeerSmith2 but, the purpose of BIABrewer.info is mainly education. In other words, any tools used on BIABrewer.info should involve them learning brewing rather than learning the tool. Maybe read this post?
If you want the volumes in BeerSmith2 to match the BIABAcus, then you will have to learn BeerSmith2 extremely carefully. In other words, you will have to study in great detail the BeerSmith2 Guide for BIABrewers and any sub-links. It will take you hours as there are many traps to fall into. I don't like writing that but it's just the way it is. In comparison, the BIABacus can be driven almost without instruction and very safely. And, it has a built-in intelligence never seen before.
...
90 minute mash versus 60 min. This thread, Mash Gravity Figures Needed for BIABacus shows a definite 'Efficiency into Kettle (EIK) advantage of doing a 90 minute mash and a mash-out.
...
Nottingham versus US-05 - Good decision. I would never use Nottingham on that brew but maybe it is great? One important thing I find is that I like to taste someone else's brew before I copy it. Otherwise, I usually work from the book, "Brewing Classic Styles" and tweak from there if I want to. BCS uses US-05 in it's Blonde Ale.
Most recipes on the net can't be copied anyway as they lack the most critical information. There are recipe sites with thousands of recipes where not a single one can be duplicated. It's quite fascinating. Read this thread for a bit more info here although there are lots more threads.
...
5.75L versus 3L + 2.75L. What I'm saying here is that often, BIAB Brewers, sparge for the wrong reason. Often a simple dilution is easier. The problem when you sparge is that it can be messy and always involves at least a second vessel even if it is just your kitchen kettle.
Pure BIAB means you have a kettle large enough to put all the water and grain you need for a brew in at the beginning. This is ideal. What I am saying is that, if you can get most of the water in, that is great as well.
Open up your BIABacus file, make a note of the total number of grams required. Now in Section W, move the 5.75 L you have in 'Water Used in a Sparge' down to 'Water Added Before the Boil'. How much did the grams go up by? (About 150 grams).
My previous answer with the 3.0 L and the 2.75 L would have reduced the 'extra grain cost' to about 70 grams. Ignore that because from your post above, you can't fit that extra 3 L in. So ignore that advice and let's go back to the last paragraph...
There's 5.75 L you can't fit in your kettle. What I am saying is don't muck around heating it up and pouring it through the grain bag in a bucket etc etc. If that's easy to do it, then fine. But, if not, just add it as a dilution as there is very little 'Efficiency into Kettle (EIK)' cost to it. (A lot of new BIAB brewers mistakenly think there is). In other words, pour 5.75 litres of water (hot or cold) straight into the kettle somewhere after you pull the bag and before the boil starts.
Good on you Bff for directing BIAB brewers here. There's some pretty wild and whacky advice out there
.
Let me know if the 5.75 L thing makes sense. Having a bit of a play with it in the BIABAcus should help.
All the best,
PP
. The nbew release, PR 1.3 files are probably best kept contained though to the main threads.)Lots of good questions above.
...
On the BeerSmith stuff, BIABrewer.info always supplies BeerSmith with help, BIAB numbers, suggestions etc. If you look back through some old threads you'll see that BIABrewer.info tried very hard with BeerSmith2 but, the purpose of BIABrewer.info is mainly education. In other words, any tools used on BIABrewer.info should involve them learning brewing rather than learning the tool. Maybe read this post?
If you want the volumes in BeerSmith2 to match the BIABAcus, then you will have to learn BeerSmith2 extremely carefully. In other words, you will have to study in great detail the BeerSmith2 Guide for BIABrewers and any sub-links. It will take you hours as there are many traps to fall into. I don't like writing that but it's just the way it is. In comparison, the BIABacus can be driven almost without instruction and very safely. And, it has a built-in intelligence never seen before.
...
90 minute mash versus 60 min. This thread, Mash Gravity Figures Needed for BIABacus shows a definite 'Efficiency into Kettle (EIK) advantage of doing a 90 minute mash and a mash-out.
...
Nottingham versus US-05 - Good decision. I would never use Nottingham on that brew but maybe it is great? One important thing I find is that I like to taste someone else's brew before I copy it. Otherwise, I usually work from the book, "Brewing Classic Styles" and tweak from there if I want to. BCS uses US-05 in it's Blonde Ale.
Most recipes on the net can't be copied anyway as they lack the most critical information. There are recipe sites with thousands of recipes where not a single one can be duplicated. It's quite fascinating. Read this thread for a bit more info here although there are lots more threads.
...
5.75L versus 3L + 2.75L. What I'm saying here is that often, BIAB Brewers, sparge for the wrong reason. Often a simple dilution is easier. The problem when you sparge is that it can be messy and always involves at least a second vessel even if it is just your kitchen kettle.
Pure BIAB means you have a kettle large enough to put all the water and grain you need for a brew in at the beginning. This is ideal. What I am saying is that, if you can get most of the water in, that is great as well.
Open up your BIABacus file, make a note of the total number of grams required. Now in Section W, move the 5.75 L you have in 'Water Used in a Sparge' down to 'Water Added Before the Boil'. How much did the grams go up by? (About 150 grams).
My previous answer with the 3.0 L and the 2.75 L would have reduced the 'extra grain cost' to about 70 grams. Ignore that because from your post above, you can't fit that extra 3 L in. So ignore that advice and let's go back to the last paragraph...
There's 5.75 L you can't fit in your kettle. What I am saying is don't muck around heating it up and pouring it through the grain bag in a bucket etc etc. If that's easy to do it, then fine. But, if not, just add it as a dilution as there is very little 'Efficiency into Kettle (EIK)' cost to it. (A lot of new BIAB brewers mistakenly think there is). In other words, pour 5.75 litres of water (hot or cold) straight into the kettle somewhere after you pull the bag and before the boil starts.
Good on you Bff for directing BIAB brewers here. There's some pretty wild and whacky advice out there
.Let me know if the 5.75 L thing makes sense. Having a bit of a play with it in the BIABAcus should help.
All the best,
PP
Last edited by PistolPatch on 18 Feb 2013, 23:40, edited 2 times in total.
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Post #14 made 12 years ago
Thanks PP.
I promise I won't monopolize your time anymore with this thread and I really appreciate your help. I have a bit more time this week to focus on brewing because it is a vacation week. I plan on fitting in both a brewing and bottling session while still allowing for "Family time"
I have put some time into your link posts and several others related to the "washing machine" topics and such. So I have come away with a few understandings:
1. Full water mash is better than Maxi BIAB + sparging.
2. Due to kettle size, if you can't do a "true BIAB" and must hold back water, then a sparge step will give you a higher efficiency than a pre-boil dilution.
Now wait for #3
3. Although a sparge step technically gives a bit more efficiency (and requires a few less grams of grain for the same FG) than adding the left over water before boiling, the gain is minimal and generally not worth the mess and hassle.
4. Although the BIABacus shows both metric and standard units, you must enter data in metric.
5. There is no added benefit to leaving your bag in for a "mash out" step versus pulling the bag at the end of the mash and then heating to boiling.
I'm not sure if this one is right
This has been quite a learning experience in a few short days.
It is funny that I have never had conversation with folks from the other side of the world (NZ and Australia) until I got into two of my current hobbies. Brewing beer is one, and the other is designing, building and using outdoor brick pizza ovens. For some reason there are a lots of people from your neck of the woods that love pizza ovens. Great minds think alike I guess.
I promise I won't monopolize your time anymore with this thread and I really appreciate your help. I have a bit more time this week to focus on brewing because it is a vacation week. I plan on fitting in both a brewing and bottling session while still allowing for "Family time"
I have put some time into your link posts and several others related to the "washing machine" topics and such. So I have come away with a few understandings:
1. Full water mash is better than Maxi BIAB + sparging.
2. Due to kettle size, if you can't do a "true BIAB" and must hold back water, then a sparge step will give you a higher efficiency than a pre-boil dilution.
Now wait for #33. Although a sparge step technically gives a bit more efficiency (and requires a few less grams of grain for the same FG) than adding the left over water before boiling, the gain is minimal and generally not worth the mess and hassle.
4. Although the BIABacus shows both metric and standard units, you must enter data in metric.
5. There is no added benefit to leaving your bag in for a "mash out" step versus pulling the bag at the end of the mash and then heating to boiling.
I'm not sure if this one is rightThis has been quite a learning experience in a few short days.
It is funny that I have never had conversation with folks from the other side of the world (NZ and Australia) until I got into two of my current hobbies. Brewing beer is one, and the other is designing, building and using outdoor brick pizza ovens. For some reason there are a lots of people from your neck of the woods that love pizza ovens. Great minds think alike I guess.
Post #15 made 12 years ago
BabyfaceFinster,
There's a pizza oven on here from down under
I expect you saw it already http://www.biabrewer.info/viewtopic.php ... ven#p23042
There's a pizza oven on here from down under
I expect you saw it already http://www.biabrewer.info/viewtopic.php ... ven#p23042
Last edited by GuingesRock on 19 Feb 2013, 05:14, edited 2 times in total.
Guinges
Post #16 made 12 years ago
Finster,
I have brewed Centenial Blonde several times, and it was profiled in a Popular Mechanics article on 10 excellent homebrews. It is indeed an excellent beer. I've brewed it with both us-05, and nottingham, and I think that I prefer the us-05 if it is available, but the beer should be very similar with both yeasts I think. This is a very drinkable beer with a low alcohol content. I'll take another look at the Biabacus when I can.
trout
I have brewed Centenial Blonde several times, and it was profiled in a Popular Mechanics article on 10 excellent homebrews. It is indeed an excellent beer. I've brewed it with both us-05, and nottingham, and I think that I prefer the us-05 if it is available, but the beer should be very similar with both yeasts I think. This is a very drinkable beer with a low alcohol content. I'll take another look at the Biabacus when I can.
trout
Last edited by 2trout on 19 Feb 2013, 09:20, edited 2 times in total.
"All I know is that the beer is good and people clamor for it. OK, it's free and that has something to do with it."
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Post #17 made 12 years ago
That is a hot rod of an oven. Nice brick work. It is just another passion of mine. Burn wood, make crazy fire, char food...is goodGuingesRock wrote:BabyfaceFinster,
There's a pizza oven on here from down under
I expect you saw it already http://www.biabrewer.info/viewtopic.php ... ven#p23042
plus even better!Here's mine:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=in3oCcP5IZU Sorry to go off topic.
I went to the health food store in town today. They are not a LBS but they have some basic stuff to get you by. Thought they would have 05 yeast but they only had 04 and a bunch of wine yeasts so I'll stick with the Notty this time.
One thing I noticed looking over the Centennial Blonde BIABacus. The total water and grain bill looks low enough that everything should fit in the kettle for a true BIAB mash. Total mash volume is around 9.5 gallons so it should work and no need to hold back any water. Even more exciting.
Last edited by BabyfaceFinster on 19 Feb 2013, 11:42, edited 2 times in total.
Post #18 made 12 years ago
Really great video BabyfaceFinster. If you have time, would you post that again, maybe with a little story about it, on the members stories pictures and videos thread.
I’ve been trying to keep that thread active, but I’m running out of pictures of myself It's great to see behind the scenes of the peeps, and get a glimpse of their lives. Thanks for posting the video.
I’ve been trying to keep that thread active, but I’m running out of pictures of myself
It's great to see behind the scenes of the peeps, and get a glimpse of their lives. Thanks for posting the video.
Last edited by GuingesRock on 19 Feb 2013, 18:12, edited 2 times in total.
Guinges
Post #19 made 12 years ago
Nice job Bff and apologies for the slow reply.BabyfaceFinster wrote:...I have put some time into your link posts and several others related to the "washing machine" topics and such. So I have come away with a few understandings:...
I reckon you have read really well and that your understandings are excellent
. On the one where you weren't sure, number 5, you were correct in being confused on this. Good on you!I think I know exactly why you got confused on this one. 'The Commentary', would actually give this impression. That's based on a very old thread I wrote years ago. I get embarrassed every time I see it still up here
.Here's what we know now. The Mash Gravity Figures Needed for BIABacus thread is telling us already that a 90 minute mash is better than a 60 minute mash. It is also telling us that a mash-out is better than not doing one.
What we don't know yet though is whether it is the extra time or the extra temperature that a mash-out requires that makes the difference. The reality is that it is probably a bit of both but we really don't know yet for sure.
Enjoy your brewing week and make sure you post your video to hashie's thread, Pizza anyone? hashie will reply. I want you to do this so I can check that he is not dead.
PP
Last edited by PistolPatch on 20 Feb 2013, 22:25, edited 2 times in total.
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