jiggs_casey
Well-Known Member
I did a 10 gallon batch of an light lager today. It is also the 2nd recipe I have used Beersmith with. I had issues with low numbers the first time I used Beersmith but found a way to fix it mid brew. Being that I had issues with low numbers last time, I didn't worry too much about it this time. I thought, up until just a few minutes ago that the program was just flat out incorrect. That doesn't appear to be the case.
The ingredients for todays brew were delivered Saturday morning. In that box was 7 lbs of 'flaked' rice. I have never used flaked rice so, I don't really know what it looks like. Basically, it just looked like milled rice.
Fast forward to this morning. I had prepared for a long day so, I went to work as soon as I got up. The recipe called for 10lbs, 1.3oz of 2-row and 5lbs 4.6oz of flaked rice. In my pre-coffee haze, I dumped the whole 7 lbs of 'flaked' rice along with the two-row into my mash tun. I didn't realize this until halfway through the mash. Not a big deal, it just means that I blew the style and I'll have a higher ABV. So, I continued on. My pre-boil gravity should have been 1.037. Needless to say, I was a little concerned when it came out to 1.021! So, I did the math to see how much DME I needed to boost it to 1.037. I only had about half of what I needed. I added it anyway and was able to get my post-boil to 1.030. Still, a lot lower than what I wanted.
It looks like the rice was the culprit today. It wasn't flaked. It was simply milled! I should have gone with my gut and just not used it. I have used Minute Rice quite a few times for cream ale and should have just stuck with it. When I take the rice completely out of the equation. Beersmith says my pre-boil should have been 1.023. Very close to what I had today. It appears that I didn't get any conversion from the rice because it wasn't truly 'flaked'.
At this point, there really isn't anything I can do. I guess I still have a 10 gallon, low ABV smash. I'll have to send an email to the supplier to let them know that what they're selling is just milled rice at $1.50 a pound!
The ingredients for todays brew were delivered Saturday morning. In that box was 7 lbs of 'flaked' rice. I have never used flaked rice so, I don't really know what it looks like. Basically, it just looked like milled rice.
Fast forward to this morning. I had prepared for a long day so, I went to work as soon as I got up. The recipe called for 10lbs, 1.3oz of 2-row and 5lbs 4.6oz of flaked rice. In my pre-coffee haze, I dumped the whole 7 lbs of 'flaked' rice along with the two-row into my mash tun. I didn't realize this until halfway through the mash. Not a big deal, it just means that I blew the style and I'll have a higher ABV. So, I continued on. My pre-boil gravity should have been 1.037. Needless to say, I was a little concerned when it came out to 1.021! So, I did the math to see how much DME I needed to boost it to 1.037. I only had about half of what I needed. I added it anyway and was able to get my post-boil to 1.030. Still, a lot lower than what I wanted.
It looks like the rice was the culprit today. It wasn't flaked. It was simply milled! I should have gone with my gut and just not used it. I have used Minute Rice quite a few times for cream ale and should have just stuck with it. When I take the rice completely out of the equation. Beersmith says my pre-boil should have been 1.023. Very close to what I had today. It appears that I didn't get any conversion from the rice because it wasn't truly 'flaked'.
At this point, there really isn't anything I can do. I guess I still have a 10 gallon, low ABV smash. I'll have to send an email to the supplier to let them know that what they're selling is just milled rice at $1.50 a pound!
