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First BIAB and it's great so far!

Post #1 made 14 years ago
by bing09
I brewed the nutcastle recipe from the brewing classic styles book last weekend. I just put it in the keg and had a little taste and it was right on! I am officially hooked on the BIAB technique! The only problem I had with the technique was during the mash...the temp fluctuated alot during the 90 minutes. I did a mini mash since I'm now doing smaller scale recipes around 2-3 gallons. All in all it was a good experience and don't plan on switching back any time soon.

Post #2 made 14 years ago
by wizard78
Congrats bing09, glad it went well and we have another convert.
Keep us posted on it's progression.
Cheers
[center]"All right, brain. You don't like me and I don't like you, but let's just do this and I can get back to killing you with beer."
[/center]
[center]Homer Simpson[/center]
[center]K.I.S.S., B.I.A.B.[/center]

Post #3 made 14 years ago
by hashie
Well done Bing09 on your first BIAB experience.

When you say you had "the temp fluctuated a lot during the 90 minutes", what do you mean?
Did it drop a lot or was it a bit all over the place.

When I make a brew (90+ so far) I no longer bother checking or stirring. I get the temp right, insulate and leave for 90 minutes. I then give it a good stir and check the temp at the end of the mash to see what if any temp drop there has been.
"It's beer Jim, but not as we know it."

Post #4 made 14 years ago
by PistolPatch
Nice thread and congratulations bing :thumbs:

If you have a pot that has a thick bottom (especially if the pot sits on a chunky bit of metal) what you might find is that you apply heat, while stirring of course, but after you reach your target temperature and turn the flame off, the temperature continues to creep up by a few degrees. This can take a while to get used to and can have you scratching your head :scratch: :). There is more radiant heat coming off the kettle bottom and surrounds in this instance than you would guess.

If this wasn't your problem then ignore the paragraph above bing :lol:

Enjoy your beer mate :yum:
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Post #5 made 14 years ago
by bing09
I use a cheap aluminum pot since I am doing a small batch (it holds about four gallons of water)...because I already had that lying around the house. With that being said, I mashed in at 152 F and noticed that the temp kept going up while I was stirring and checking the temp. It went up to around 160 F or a little higher for awhile. I then realized if I moved it off of that burner it wouldn't keep getting residual heat from the burner being hot. After say 15-20 minutes I checked the temp again and it had fallen to around 148 F if I remember right. I would apply heat and it would keep fluctuating like that during the first half of the mash. I then decided to experiment with the smallest burner and just turn that on low every once in a while and the temp would stay fairly constant. I think what I should do next time is wrap it with a blanket and not worry so much and have a homebrew while I'm waiting!!!

Post #6 made 14 years ago
by CSchenk
Hello Bing,

You might want to try placing your stock pot in the oven. If it fits, you can maintain your temperature very easily. Just heat to your strike temp, add the grain and stir, and then place in your preheated oven. I've been thinking about doing this on my small batches. If it fits, it will be much easier than trying to insulate a small volume of water.

CS

Post #7 made 14 years ago
by bing09
Good idea I will try that on my next batch. Do you need to heat the oven the entire mash time or does it hold the temp well enough if you get it up to your mash temp and turn it off?

Post #8 made 14 years ago
by bing09
The beer tastes very similar to Newcastle...with some subtle flavor flaws. Also it was very cloudy and had more body than the newcastle commercial version. Overall I am very pleased with my first BIAB experience. I'm going to try a Munich Dunkel next at 1.5 gallons.
Last edited by bing09 on 16 Jan 2011, 10:24, edited 1 time in total.

Post #9 made 14 years ago
by CSchenk
I'd play around with it and see what works best for your oven, but I'm guessing either would work. If you planned on leaving it on the whole mash, one thing to look into is how closely your oven maintains temperature. If it varies, + or - 5 F that could really change your mash. I'd try setting the oven a few degrees lower than your target mash temperature. My guess is you'd only loose a degree or two at most over the 90 min.

I havn't tried this idea yet, but if you, please let me know how it goes.
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