My name is Russ and I live about 20 miles outside of Atlanta GA. I am new to the forum but have been brewing for a while, mostly partial mash. I brew some kits and have recently developed my own recipes. I always keg my beer and have a pretty awesome Keezer I built from a 7 Cu Ft freezer with a 2x6 collar and 3 taps. That said I tried my first BIAB on March 2nd. Here's a copy of my post from the Northern Brewer forum.
The Good: I love the mash process. It's so easy. Did a 90 minute mash at 152º with a mashout at the end raising temp up to 170º for 10 minutes.
The Bad: Pulling out the bag is a little weird. Not that heavy but for my 11 gallon batches I will need to rig up a little hook/pulley in the garage over the brew pot to hold the bag while it drains. I also used the no-squeeze method. I started with 11.75 lbs of double crushed grains and 9 gallons of strike water. My absorption rate calculation was a bit off so at start of boil I still had 8 gallons for a 5.5 gallon batch.
The Ugly: On to the boil......so now I got 8 gallons ready to boil and I'm wondering how long it's going to take. I usually boil off about 1.5 gal in a 60 minute vigorous boil. So I cranked up the burner and went to work. At 45 minutes in I was going to add second hop addition and Irish Moss, but I stopped boil for a second to see exactly how much wort there was. There was still 6.5 gallons so i fired back up and let it go for another 15 added in the hops and moss and then another 20. Finally got to about 5.5 gallons after an almost 90 minute boil. I cooled to 73º took a gravity reading and WOW!!! It was 1.058 well I didn't really want a high gravity Irish Red....but we'll see what it tastes like in a few weeks.
If I brew this same batch again I think I will use less grain and a gallon less water. I know exactly what I can do to drain the bag next time so that won't be an issue. One of the guys over on the NB forum recommended this forum and especially the Excel tool for calculating water, brew time etc. Pre-calculating everything is my biggest issue and if that spreadsheet is as good as he said I don't think I will have any issues next time.
I'm really excited about BIAB........Leave it to the Aussies to invent something so cool.
Post #2 made 11 years ago
Welcome Dog 
,
Great post
. Just running through quickly...
When you are double-batching, the pulley set-up really helps. I used to double batch without it for a few years and it wasn't too bad but I also think my bag back then was slightly coarser so it drained more quickly.
...
This site here aims to make you very conscious of why you make any brewing decision. For example...
Don't double-crush your grain without knowing why you are doing so. Ignore the stuff you read on other forums. Read this instead and if the logic/sense is unclear, ask questions.
...
Any type of all-grain boil should be 90 minutes. I won't go into why here.
...
The BIABacus is what you are after on all the volume and gravity calculations. It has a lot of quite revolutionary stuff in it that actually applies to all types of all-grain brewers. It can be a bit assaulting when you first open it up as a very considered decision was made to put as much info on one page as possible. This works really well for the brewer at the end of the day but not so much on a first glance.
Just look at Sections ABCD and K to begin with. The red writing in this post should lead you to PR1.3K but make sure you have a browse of that post first over a beer. A good saying we have here is, "Slow down to speed up." Ten minutes of having a quiet beer and reading can save fifty posts.
...
Make sure you are aware of the stickies in the new BIABrewers section. You will be very well looked after in any of those threads.
PP
,Great post
. Just running through quickly...When you are double-batching, the pulley set-up really helps. I used to double batch without it for a few years and it wasn't too bad but I also think my bag back then was slightly coarser so it drained more quickly.
...
This site here aims to make you very conscious of why you make any brewing decision. For example...
Don't double-crush your grain without knowing why you are doing so. Ignore the stuff you read on other forums. Read this instead and if the logic/sense is unclear, ask questions.
...
Any type of all-grain boil should be 90 minutes. I won't go into why here.
...
The BIABacus is what you are after on all the volume and gravity calculations. It has a lot of quite revolutionary stuff in it that actually applies to all types of all-grain brewers. It can be a bit assaulting when you first open it up as a very considered decision was made to put as much info on one page as possible. This works really well for the brewer at the end of the day but not so much on a first glance.
Just look at Sections ABCD and K to begin with. The red writing in this post should lead you to PR1.3K but make sure you have a browse of that post first over a beer. A good saying we have here is, "Slow down to speed up." Ten minutes of having a quiet beer and reading can save fifty posts.
...
Make sure you are aware of the stickies in the new BIABrewers section. You will be very well looked after in any of those threads.
PP
Last edited by PistolPatch on 11 Mar 2014, 18:58, edited 1 time in total.
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Post #3 made 11 years ago
Pistol,
Thanks for the advice. Interesting read about the double-crushing. Looking at the spreadsheet and I agree it's a bit intimidating but also someone worked pretty hard to develop that..... that's definitely a bit more than Excel 101. Do you know if it can be set to default for US measurements?
Thanks for the advice. Interesting read about the double-crushing. Looking at the spreadsheet and I agree it's a bit intimidating but also someone worked pretty hard to develop that..... that's definitely a bit more than Excel 101. Do you know if it can be set to default for US measurements?
Post #4 made 11 years ago
No worries Dog,
In the early days, stux had it so you could put in US or metric units but we found the ridiculous scenario that any macros written into the file would work on some platforms/computers/Excel versions and not others. From memory, they definitely didn't work in OpenOffice or LibreOffice so we made a rule, no macros, drop-down lists etc.
In reality, it is just as inconvenient for metric users and US users. Both parties often find recipes in the opposite system. It isn't as hard or time-consuming as you think though and the rest of the BIABacus means that it is much, much faster than other software to use anyway.
As for the complexity underneath the BIABacus, several formulas had to be split in two because they actually exceed the 'nesting' capabilities of Excel.
,
PP
In the early days, stux had it so you could put in US or metric units but we found the ridiculous scenario that any macros written into the file would work on some platforms/computers/Excel versions and not others. From memory, they definitely didn't work in OpenOffice or LibreOffice so we made a rule, no macros, drop-down lists etc.
In reality, it is just as inconvenient for metric users and US users. Both parties often find recipes in the opposite system. It isn't as hard or time-consuming as you think though and the rest of the BIABacus means that it is much, much faster than other software to use anyway.
As for the complexity underneath the BIABacus, several formulas had to be split in two because they actually exceed the 'nesting' capabilities of Excel.
,PP
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Post #5 made 11 years ago
Thanks. I did the conversions and put my Irish Red recipe in there that I brewed 2 weeks ago and no worries it was pretty easy. I'll be kegging it this weekend and tapping in about another 2 weeks. I'm really hoping it will be good. I didn't realize 90 minute boils were the norm for BIAB, so really my absorption rate calculations were spot on and the BIABacus matched it as well. I'm a huge fan of upper English browns and I'm drinking one of my own recipes right now. It's a bit on the bland side but still pretty smooth with no off flavors. I will post my recipe later to see if I can get some suggestions on how to make it a bit tastier or better yet maybe someone here has a good BIAB recipe to share.
Post #6 made 11 years ago
OK so I tapped that keg on Friday 3/28 after 7 days in the keg and it still was not ready. I added a cup of gelatin (was very cloudy) and as of last night it was awesome. Clear, no haze and very tasty. It's definitely a do-over in a 10 gallon batch.
Who was it here that says we need more patience? I can sure tell you that is true. I don't know how many times I get 3/4 of the way down on a keg only to realize it's at the peak of flavor and I've drank 3 gallons of OK beer when if I'd just been more patient I could have had 5 gallons of awesome beer.
Anyway on to a Blond Ale this weekend......summer's on the way
Did I say I was hooked on BIAB
Who was it here that says we need more patience? I can sure tell you that is true. I don't know how many times I get 3/4 of the way down on a keg only to realize it's at the peak of flavor and I've drank 3 gallons of OK beer when if I'd just been more patient I could have had 5 gallons of awesome beer.
Anyway on to a Blond Ale this weekend......summer's on the way
Did I say I was hooked on BIAB
My first BIAB batch, The Good, Bad and Ugly
Post #7 made 11 years ago
I'm looking at blonde ale recipes for myself. Would love a peak at yours.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
-George
"I ride for the same reason dogs stick their heads out of car windows."
"I ride for the same reason dogs stick their heads out of car windows."
Post #8 made 11 years ago
Here is the recipe: http://www.brewmasterswarehouse.com/rec ... highlights
My local HBS has some great recipes. I have created my own but so far they are nothing to brag about.
My local HBS has some great recipes. I have created my own but so far they are nothing to brag about.
Post #9 made 11 years ago
thanks!
-George
"I ride for the same reason dogs stick their heads out of car windows."
"I ride for the same reason dogs stick their heads out of car windows."
Post #10 made 11 years ago
That Blonde Ale was awesome. Floral notes, crisp and clean no aftertaste. I like it so much I'm brewing a 10 gallon batch next time. I had an issue with my spiggot drain doo-hickey falling off and I got a huge amount of trub in the fermentor so only ended up with 4 gallons in the keg, which I drained tonight. That sucking sound of the very last beer is one of the most depressing sounds I have ever heard :(
Post #11 made 11 years ago
Nice report and lol on the sucking sound SD!
That is great that you are so pleased with the recipe
.
Next step is for us to try and turn it into a high integrity recipe that anyone can copy. This will require your input as the original recipe leaves out a lot of critical details.
Have a read of this thread and then see if you are able to answer some of the following...
1. Any idea on what your Volume of Ambient Wort was? That's the key volume number we need in any recipe.
2. Any idea on the Alpha Acid percentage of the hops you used? (These can vary greatly from year to year. Knowing this number goes a long way to helping us brew next year what we brewed this year.)
In the original recipe it talks about mashing and boiling for 60 minutes. With BIAB, mash for 90 minutes and for any type of all-grain, for safest quality, boil for 90 minutes.
Good stuff!
PP
That is great that you are so pleased with the recipe
.Next step is for us to try and turn it into a high integrity recipe that anyone can copy. This will require your input as the original recipe leaves out a lot of critical details.
Have a read of this thread and then see if you are able to answer some of the following...
1. Any idea on what your Volume of Ambient Wort was? That's the key volume number we need in any recipe.
2. Any idea on the Alpha Acid percentage of the hops you used? (These can vary greatly from year to year. Knowing this number goes a long way to helping us brew next year what we brewed this year.)
In the original recipe it talks about mashing and boiling for 60 minutes. With BIAB, mash for 90 minutes and for any type of all-grain, for safest quality, boil for 90 minutes.
Good stuff!
PP
Last edited by PistolPatch on 15 May 2014, 17:32, edited 1 time in total.
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Post #12 made 11 years ago
I hate that sucking/sputtering sound. Especially when it comes 3 days after tapping the 5G keg. So depressing!
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Post #13 made 11 years ago
1. Any idea on what your Volume of Ambient Wort was? That's the key volume number we need in any recipe.
Should have been exactly 5 gallons trub and all
2. Any idea on the Alpha Acid percentage of the hops you used? (These can vary greatly from year to year. Knowing this number goes a long way to helping us brew next year what we brewed this year.)
No Idea on this I know it was 2 oz of Glacier pellets at 60 and 30 minutes.
Should have been exactly 5 gallons trub and all
2. Any idea on the Alpha Acid percentage of the hops you used? (These can vary greatly from year to year. Knowing this number goes a long way to helping us brew next year what we brewed this year.)
No Idea on this I know it was 2 oz of Glacier pellets at 60 and 30 minutes.
Last edited by Scalded Dog on 20 May 2014, 08:32, edited 1 time in total.
Post #14 made 11 years ago
Thanks for getting back to us SDScalded Dog wrote:1. Any idea on what your Volume of Ambient Wort was? That's the key volume number we need in any recipe.
Should have been exactly 5 gallons trub and all
2. Any idea on the Alpha Acid percentage of the hops you used? (These can vary greatly from year to year. Knowing this number goes a long way to helping us brew next year what we brewed this year.)
No Idea on this I know it was 2 oz of Glacier pellets at 60 and 30 minutes.
. This site is all about giving good info so here is one suggestion. If you really liked the brew, make careful notes right now.Have a look at Glacier hops here. See how the AA% can range from 3.3% to 9.7%? This means if next year is a crappy crop you will need to use more hops to get the same result. What I will assume is that at time of writing the AA% of the Glacier they are selling is 5.7% but it's a sure bet the recipe won't change next year if the AA% are a few percent higher or lower.
Finally, you say above, "it was 2 oz of Glacier pellets at 60 and 30 minutes." Just be careful of that because if you look back in a year, you will think it meant 4oz's whereas it doesn't. There was one ounce at 60 and one at 30.
The great thing about all-grain is that you usually get a great beer. There's many people though that give up on brewing because the education and tools they have been given to use often lead them up a very bad path of advice either very quickly or, more often slowly. Imagine in a year's time for example, you were fighting an infection from a source you would never hear about apart from this site and then brewed this beer with twice the hops you needed?
Happens every single day
,PP
Last edited by PistolPatch on 20 May 2014, 22:01, edited 1 time in total.
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