Go to advanced search

1. Topics

   1. Try again

      by soupdragon, 15 years ago in BIABrewer.info and BIAB for New Members

      First post

      ---

      

      Evening all
      
      5th BIAB in the fermenter.
      This is the 1st time I've used Protafloc. Must say I'm impressed, I got a much better hot break with it than the Irish Moss I used to use.
      Didn't rinse the bleach from my barrel properly for my last brew and it developed a medicinal taste. Got some Sodium Metabisulphite to use as a final rinse, this time I'm going to make sure it's clean and fresh before this one goes in. I don't want to dump another brew. My stock is seriously low, had to go and buy some...

      Last post

      ---

      

      ***FATALITY WARNING***
      Please see the mixing instructions in the post below
      
      Tom
      
      I just copied one of my recent posts from AHB.
      
      I generally use Bleach/White vinegar at the rate of 1.5ml each per litre to sanitise my fermenters and cubes. I don't rinse afterwards but just invert to drain for a minute.
      
      If worried about bleach carry over just do the sums, Bleach is about 5% Sodium Hyperchorite, you put about say 40ml in a 25 litre fermenter, empty it and let it drain say 2ml carry over you...
      4 Replies
      6771 Views
      soupdragon
      15 years ago
   2. Oxidizing hops for flavour

      by soupdragon, 15 years ago in BIABrewer Old Hands

      First post

      ---

      

      Hi all
      
      Read a post on another forum by Graham Wheeler about oxidizing flavour hops before adding them towards the end of the boil. Has anybody here tried it?
      I've given it a go in my 4th BIAB, it's fermenting away as I type and the smell escaping through the air lock is amazing. My only worry is that most of the flavour/aroma is being lost through the ferment :sad:
      With my next brew, I'll try dry hopping to see how that compares.
      Any views? :)
      
      Cheers Tom

      Last post

      ---

      

      I'll more than likely run out of beer before my next one is made and ready to drink :sad:
      Hey ho, live and learn.............
      
      Cheers Tom
      12 Replies
      15716 Views
      soupdragon
      15 years ago
   3. Boil my sparge

      by soupdragon, 15 years ago in BIABrewer.info and BIAB for New Members

      First post

      ---

      

      Hi all
      
      I only have a 15 ltr stock pot as my boiler and have been doing partial mash/partial boils, with the addition of extract in the fermenter, to get my 5 gallons of beer. I had a thought last night that might enable me to brew all grain without the need for a bigger boiler.
      
      Simply put I'd mash in my bag as usual and dunk sparge in another bucket. I'd then only boil the 1st part of the sweet wort for the normal 90 mins with just my bittering hops. After the boil I'd transfer the hopped...

      Last post

      ---

      

      I'll probably end up doing a 30 min boil as it'll take at least that long to cool the 1st part of the mash.
      
      Cheers Tom
      7 Replies
      10181 Views
      soupdragon
      15 years ago
   4. Mash out or use more water in mash?

      by soupdragon, 15 years ago in BIABrewer.info and BIAB for New Members

      First post

      ---

      

      Hi all
      
      For my next brew I'll be mashing in a 20 litre bucket. Would I get a slightly better yield from my 2.75kg of grain by mashing with the maximum volume that my boiler can handle ( 15 ltrs to the brim ) OR by holding a few ltrs back and adding boiling water as a sort of combined dunk sparge/mash out?
      The figures I'd be working to are approx......
      
      2.75 kg grain
      17 ltrs for full mash and no dunk sparge/mash out OR
      12.5 ltrs for main mash then 4.5 ltrs boiling water for dunk sparge/mash out...

      Last post

      ---

      

      Something for the future maybe but for now I'm determined to squeeze a bit more out of my poor old 15 ltr pot. If I can that is :)
      
      Cheers Tom
      10 Replies
      10750 Views
      soupdragon
      15 years ago
   5. 3rd one on the go

      by soupdragon, 15 years ago in BIABrewer.info and BIAB for New Members

      First post

      ---

      

      Right, that's the 3rd BIAB on the go..........
      
      2.5kg Pale Malt
      250g Caramalt
      30g Amarillo @ 90mins
      30g Chinook @ 15mins
      1.5kg Liquid Extract added in fermenter and topped up to 5 gallons
      s-05 used this time as I believe it lets the flavour of the hops through better than s-04
      
      Didn't quite hit the target of 1.045 tho, not enough water for my sparge dunk :( Must remember to use more next time.......
      I wonder how many more brews it'll take for me to finally accept that I'm now brewing good beer?...

      Last post

      ---

      

      I've actually managed to get one of my work mates into home brewing after tasting mine. He's well happy with it and he's got his missus supping it too :thumbs:
      Good stuff...........
      
      Cheers Tom
      4 Replies
      6023 Views
      soupdragon
      15 years ago
   6. I've done it again

      by soupdragon, 15 years ago in BIABrewer.info and BIAB for New Members

      First post

      ---

      

      Hi all
      
      Just gone and done it again. 2nd BIAB is in the fermenter :)
      No stunning recipe tho just 2kg Pale malt with 200g of Crystal then boiled with 30g of Target for 90 mins. 30g of Bobek chucked in for the last 15 mins then another 30g of Bobek once cooled to 80c then finally 1.5kg of dried extract added in the fermenter and topped up to 5 gallons.
      I'm really impressed how this voile stuff takes out the break material. There was a ton of gunk along with the hops once I'd tipped into the...

      Last post

      ---

      

      Hi PP
      
      Bobek=Styrian Goldings
      I thought I'd stick with s-04 for my 2nd BIAB to see what the addition of the crystal and the late hops do for flavour and body. It was just something I threw together and is no effort to brew a particular beer.
      I'll be doing a hoppy IPA ish brew next but I'll use s-05 to let the hops shine through :) Maybe 100% Amarillo or Chinook? Got 100g of each to play with and am open to suggestions. I'm waiting patiently for Nelson Sauvin to come back in stock to give them a...
      4 Replies
      5523 Views
      soupdragon
      15 years ago
   7. High hopped pale ale

      by soupdragon, 15 years ago in Creating Your Own Recipes

      First post

      ---

      

      Hi all
      
      I'm looking to formulate a nice refreshing ( 4.2% ish ) pale ale with a really heavy hop flavour. My initial thoughts are, for a 23 litre brew.......
      
      2 kg Pale malt
      1.5 kg Dried Extract
      15 g Target for 90 mins
      30 g Amarillo for 15 mins
      30 g Amarillo for 5 mins
      35 g Amarillo at 80c steep for 20 mins
      Safale us-05
      
      The dried extract is there due to limited boiler size :sad:
      I also have 100g of Chinook and about 70g of Bobek to play with.
      
      Cheers Tom

      Last post

      ---

      

      I use a 15 litre stockpot for mashing and boiling and just about have the capacity to mash 4-5 kg of grain but not full volume as a BIAB so would need to sparge and would end up with 20 odd litres of wort. The max I can boil is about 13 litres so I mash the 2 kg in my bag then boil with the full amount of hops then add the dried extract and top up to 23 litres in the fermenter. Sounds like maxi-BIAB to me :)
      
      Sorry to detract from your original intent which was to get advice on your recipe.
      
      I...
      6 Replies
      8192 Views
      soupdragon
      15 years ago
   8. How do you Reduce Hot Break?

      • 1
      • 2
      • 3

      by soupdragon, 15 years ago in BIABrewer.info and BIAB for New Members

      First post

      ---

      

      Hi all
      
      My next brew will be a BIAB as I'm trying to simplify my method and hopefully track down a background flavour that is present in all my beers, regardless of type. I'm certain it's not infection by the way. I read an article on eHow about a flavour that hot break material can impart on the beer once it starts to break down in the fermenter. The author didn't describe the taste but said that using several layers of cheese cloth as a filter will filter the break out before it gets to the...

      Last post

      ---

      

      The brew has been in the barrel for about 3 weeks now and I can honestly say that my off flavour has been bannished.
      :champ: :salute: :clap: :thumbs:
      Phew and good on ya Tom!
      52 Replies
      44280 Views
      PistolPatch
      15 years ago
   9. I've lost my BIAB cherry

      by soupdragon, 15 years ago in Brew Day Stories and/or Pics

      First post

      ---

      

      Hi all
      
      Well I've gone and done it. My 1st BIAB is finally done and is conditioning in barrel :P
      The whole process was just so easy, from start to finish, no problems at all. My extraction was a little low but that's something I can work on. My voile square really worked well, I was so impressed how well it took all the break material out after I'd tipped the brew into my fermenter. The yeast cake was actually a nice creamy colour rather than the muddy brown that I've been getting with my old...

      Last post

      ---

      

      Thanks all :P
      
      Congrats to both of you, soupdragon and Mysticmead!
      
      Brewing in a bag is a wonderfully simple and easy process which I personally enjoy much more than other traditional methods.
      
      When you think of how the monks started brewing all those billions of years ago, I sometimes wonder if all the additional complications of modern man really have added that much to the quality of the final brew? Why make things more complicated than than they need to be? If it's simple, more people...
      5 Replies
      7527 Views
      soupdragon
      15 years ago
   10. How fine a crush?

       • 1
       • 2

       by soupdragon, 15 years ago in BIABrewer.info and BIAB for New Members

       First post

       ---

       

       Hi all
       
       Will finally be doing my 1st BIAB next weekend. My question is, although there's not a lot I can do about it. How much lower should I expect my extraction to be from std crushed grain rather than the fine grind that I've seen mentioned on here?
       
       Cheers Tom

       Last post

       ---

       

       Not a thing complicated about it. Boil some of your mash until you lose about half the liquid volume (stir constantly), stir that back into your mash, take temperature, repeat until you hit your desired temperature. Not hard, just more work. Nothing I'd do for every beer, but if you are looking for some caramel goodness in your beer, a decent way to do it. And that decoction smells sooooo good. As I said, I did mine to bring the mash for second runnings back up into mash temperature range for...
       35 Replies
       31247 Views
       soupdragon
       15 years ago
   11. Water displacement by grain?

       by soupdragon, 15 years ago in Stove-top BIAB (also known as Mini-BIAB)

       First post

       ---

       

       Hi all
       
       With me planning my 1st BIAG at the weekend I'd better try and get things planned out before hand so......
       With my 15ltr stockpot I plan on using 2kg of grain so how much space should I allow for displacement in the pot? I don't want to be topping up once I've got the mash on so what starting volume of water should I aim for that would then fill my pot once I've added my grain? Would 12ltrs be enough or could I get away with 13 and not risk overflowing the pot?
       
       Cheers Tom

       Last post

       ---

       

       Yep, it's quite wide. I've yet to get my bungee strap to secure it around the top of my stockpot though. It would be just my luck if the whole lot fell into the fermenter :headhit:
       
       Cheers Tom
       12 Replies
       15953 Views
       soupdragon
       15 years ago

Go to advanced search