Just started out with BIAB and have a few brewdays under my belt. So far everything has been SMaSH, and I only have a sack (well 18kgs or so left) of Crisp's Maris Otter.
So not having researched too many recipes so far, and bearing in mind I have a fondness for IPA and also English bitters, what would be good hop and grain choices to add to the store cabinet. Although I would like to support my local brew shop, they're not that cheap so I really want to get a bulk order together and order online (plus of course online is a time saver).
So, there you have it. I'm going to get some more Amarillo hops anyway as I really like the floral nature of it, but I would initially like to try a variety within the constraints already mentioned before trying other styles I'm not so keen on. So what would fit the bill?
Post #2 made 10 years ago
Ow! The hardest question ever 
.
It is actually a really hard question to answer, perhaps impossible. I'll give you an answer though, one I am also giving myself, but my situation will be different to yours.
Obviously, like me, you have a grain mill. Mine is a work of art and can crush a whole bag of grain (25kg / 55 pounds) beautifully in about 7 minutes. A small brewery would be very pleased with my mill and maybe yours. Now though, I find it restrictive because I am forced to buy whole bags of base malt and half or full kilos of specialty malts. I have actually thrown out many kilos because I no longer had any idea of why I bought them in the first place or how old they were.
Given that I have a few local home brew shops that will crush properly for me, I now wonder, what was I thinking when I bought a mill and spent hours and dollars making it work? I do know what I was thinking but, despite my pretty massive store of malts and hops, I was always missing something before a brew day.
The difference in cost of an HBS (with some Home Brew Shops here in Ozland at least) weighing and crushing your grains for you (while you watch if you want) might add 30% to your malt bill (e.g. $10 versus $13) but you don't need a mill, you don't need to weigh and you don't need to store. Furthermore, with the right home brew shop, your crush will be fresher as they will have a far higher turnover than you and I.
Your Needs May Change
A few years ago, I used to do a lot of brew days here and we'd do two double-batches and the other brewers would take half the batches away. In those days, I could probably justify the mill and buying some base malts and a few specialty malts (I always seemed to have to order in something though
). If you had a few favourite beers and you and/or friend's consumption ensued you had a high turnover on those beers, then a mill and some bulk purchases might be in order.
But, But, But.
Yep, I know the mill and grains supposedly give you the flexibility to brew on the spur of the moment but, only if you are going to be brewing one of your favourites.
Malt Costs are Nothing on a Brew
The numbers in my head might be a bit old now, but to brew a $70 high quality 'carton' of beer here in Ozland, might cost you $8 in malt. Then some hops and gas/electricity. That is nothing. What is something though, is your time and labour. And, your time and labour brewing a 'craft' beer at home is significant; it's by far the biggest cost, so, ingredient cost is the last area to focus on, not having to do that is a luxury/advantage that only we have. It's important to 'get' that.
Time Best Spent
I don't think many home brew shops will sell you a few grams of hops, so it's not a bad idea to buy them (pellet form) and freeze them. Mind you, I also love amarillo and pre-bought a bloody kilogram of them one year, as they were, so often, in short supply. It just happened to be a crap season and the hops had no resemblance to the amarillo hops I had used for several years. What advice should I give you there? Any ideas?
....
Back to malts. Look, if I knew what I know now and other brewers had the same home brew shops available to them as I do, I shouldn't have bought a mill and I shouldn't have bought malts in any sort of bulk. It served me for a short time somewhat but, even then, the only time it did serve me was when I planned my next brews properly.
A Ramble I Know so...
As a general rule, I think you are better to spend your time thinking and planning your brews and then buying the malts, crushed, that are needed for those brews, even if it costs you double (which it shouldn't). A good all-grain shop should do that for you and, if being posted, vacuum-pack the malt bill.
So, lots of free advice above for you Esquid from a not so proud mill owner
.
Anyway, Maris Otter is a great Pale Ale malt. You'll want to be adding some sort of crystal malt to it for your brews but I have no idea which crystal would satisfy an IPA and an English Bitter because I'm not knowledgeable on that sort of stuff. I just Google it if I need to or look up the book, 'Brewing Classic Styles.'
Not sure if this was a useful or useless answer for you or anyone else Esquid
.
Hope at least some of it was
,
PP
.It is actually a really hard question to answer, perhaps impossible. I'll give you an answer though, one I am also giving myself, but my situation will be different to yours.
Obviously, like me, you have a grain mill. Mine is a work of art and can crush a whole bag of grain (25kg / 55 pounds) beautifully in about 7 minutes. A small brewery would be very pleased with my mill and maybe yours. Now though, I find it restrictive because I am forced to buy whole bags of base malt and half or full kilos of specialty malts. I have actually thrown out many kilos because I no longer had any idea of why I bought them in the first place or how old they were.
Given that I have a few local home brew shops that will crush properly for me, I now wonder, what was I thinking when I bought a mill and spent hours and dollars making it work? I do know what I was thinking but, despite my pretty massive store of malts and hops, I was always missing something before a brew day.
The difference in cost of an HBS (with some Home Brew Shops here in Ozland at least) weighing and crushing your grains for you (while you watch if you want) might add 30% to your malt bill (e.g. $10 versus $13) but you don't need a mill, you don't need to weigh and you don't need to store. Furthermore, with the right home brew shop, your crush will be fresher as they will have a far higher turnover than you and I.
Your Needs May Change
A few years ago, I used to do a lot of brew days here and we'd do two double-batches and the other brewers would take half the batches away. In those days, I could probably justify the mill and buying some base malts and a few specialty malts (I always seemed to have to order in something though
). If you had a few favourite beers and you and/or friend's consumption ensued you had a high turnover on those beers, then a mill and some bulk purchases might be in order.But, But, But.
Yep, I know the mill and grains supposedly give you the flexibility to brew on the spur of the moment but, only if you are going to be brewing one of your favourites.
Malt Costs are Nothing on a Brew
The numbers in my head might be a bit old now, but to brew a $70 high quality 'carton' of beer here in Ozland, might cost you $8 in malt. Then some hops and gas/electricity. That is nothing. What is something though, is your time and labour. And, your time and labour brewing a 'craft' beer at home is significant; it's by far the biggest cost, so, ingredient cost is the last area to focus on, not having to do that is a luxury/advantage that only we have. It's important to 'get' that.
Time Best Spent
I don't think many home brew shops will sell you a few grams of hops, so it's not a bad idea to buy them (pellet form) and freeze them. Mind you, I also love amarillo and pre-bought a bloody kilogram of them one year, as they were, so often, in short supply. It just happened to be a crap season and the hops had no resemblance to the amarillo hops I had used for several years. What advice should I give you there? Any ideas?
....
Back to malts. Look, if I knew what I know now and other brewers had the same home brew shops available to them as I do, I shouldn't have bought a mill and I shouldn't have bought malts in any sort of bulk. It served me for a short time somewhat but, even then, the only time it did serve me was when I planned my next brews properly.
A Ramble I Know so...
As a general rule, I think you are better to spend your time thinking and planning your brews and then buying the malts, crushed, that are needed for those brews, even if it costs you double (which it shouldn't). A good all-grain shop should do that for you and, if being posted, vacuum-pack the malt bill.
So, lots of free advice above for you Esquid from a not so proud mill owner
.Anyway, Maris Otter is a great Pale Ale malt. You'll want to be adding some sort of crystal malt to it for your brews but I have no idea which crystal would satisfy an IPA and an English Bitter because I'm not knowledgeable on that sort of stuff. I just Google it if I need to or look up the book, 'Brewing Classic Styles.'
Not sure if this was a useful or useless answer for you or anyone else Esquid
.Hope at least some of it was
,PP
Last edited by PistolPatch on 27 Mar 2016, 21:41, edited 1 time in total.
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Some suggestions for grains/hops etc
Post #3 made 10 years ago
I have a mill at home and it is great. If you store your malt in dry, airtight containers it will last for at least 12 months with no dis wrangle difference to the flavour of the beer. My last stocktake I had over 20 different kinds of malt on hand so even if I don't have exactly the same malts as suggested in a recipe I usually have a reasonable substitute.
As a good jumping off point to cover a range of styles in addition to your Maris otter I would add the following:
Pilsner as a base malt where you don't want the biscuit flavour, great in lagers, saisons and wheat beers.
Munich/Vienna add a bit of colour and more malt flavour and can be used up to 100% of a grain bill for a smash.
Wheat good for head retention in smaller quantities (10-20%) or over 50% in wheat beers.
In the interim order specialty malts as you need them and you will get a feel for what you use regularly. It is almost never worth having a whole sack as it will take you a decade to get through and the malt will be chicken feed before you get to it.
I normally brew 40L VIF batches every 3-4 weeks and use 8-10kg of grain each time so I find I get through it in a reasonable time frame.
If you no chill you can also brew when you have time and then ferment when you can. It means less things need to line up for a brew day to be worthwhile and can make it easier to brew bigger batches and share different beers with fellow brewers.
Really the kind of beers you like brewing will guide the ingredients you need on hand.
In terms of hops it comes down to personal taste. Most people would love big stocks of citra, simcoe and mosaic but it can be very hard to come by.
Hops that I find always come up well are cascade and probably my personal favorite styrian goldings.
Find a home brew shop that at least keeps them in the fridge and you will know they care about their product.
Would agree that brewing classic styles is a great jumping off point for most beers. The recipes are tried and true.
As a good jumping off point to cover a range of styles in addition to your Maris otter I would add the following:
Pilsner as a base malt where you don't want the biscuit flavour, great in lagers, saisons and wheat beers.
Munich/Vienna add a bit of colour and more malt flavour and can be used up to 100% of a grain bill for a smash.
Wheat good for head retention in smaller quantities (10-20%) or over 50% in wheat beers.
In the interim order specialty malts as you need them and you will get a feel for what you use regularly. It is almost never worth having a whole sack as it will take you a decade to get through and the malt will be chicken feed before you get to it.
I normally brew 40L VIF batches every 3-4 weeks and use 8-10kg of grain each time so I find I get through it in a reasonable time frame.
If you no chill you can also brew when you have time and then ferment when you can. It means less things need to line up for a brew day to be worthwhile and can make it easier to brew bigger batches and share different beers with fellow brewers.
Really the kind of beers you like brewing will guide the ingredients you need on hand.
In terms of hops it comes down to personal taste. Most people would love big stocks of citra, simcoe and mosaic but it can be very hard to come by.
Hops that I find always come up well are cascade and probably my personal favorite styrian goldings.
Find a home brew shop that at least keeps them in the fridge and you will know they care about their product.
Would agree that brewing classic styles is a great jumping off point for most beers. The recipes are tried and true.
