How to Mash 6-Row Malt?!?!

Okay I TRIED searching, and all I found were people who use 6-row in recipes and obviously already know how to use it...

I recently made a Cream Ale with 2-Row and it was great. But I did some mor reading on the "official style" and learned that most use all 6-row or a combination of 2 and 6.

But then I read that 6-row is less "modified" and requires step-mashing... I have a basic understanding of that, but don't know which temperatures I should "step" at, nor do I have any idea how to be that specific...

I use a big cooler with a false-bottom as a mash-bucket, and am not sure if this equipment is suitable for using 6-Row.

So can you guys tell me A) if I should even bother with 6-row, and if so, B) how does one mash 6-Row with the afore-mentioned equipment?

Hopefully this will help someone ELSE when they go to search for the same topic! (Honestly I typed the title of this thread into Google and got zilch.)

Any modern 6-row should be well modified, the step mash might be useful in a non adjunct beer for a variety of reasons involving excess FAN. It has a slightly grainier taste that some prefer, for my money a combination of pilsner and normal 2-row tastes better.

I've seen recipes using 6-row but it was for pre-prohibition pilsner and I think it was for the corn or rice used in the beer. I've done a blond ale with a combo of corn and rice and it turned out fine.

I batch sparged an IPA with 6-row as my base malt. Came out great. No sweat.

In equal weights, six row has more husk than two row. More husk, better filteration, lessening chances of a stuck mash. But more tannin extraction at high pH and temps. The six row around here is modified. The only stuff that is partially modified that I know of and use are Weyermans Floor Malt and Budvar, when I can get it. Neither will convert adjuncts on their own. That's one reason six row is tossed in. Depending on the style of beer. The recipe may call for step mashing. Usually Lagers are step mashed. The step mash mimicks the decoction mash process used in brewing Pilsner, without boiling the grain. The temp/rest ranges are determined by what you want to brew. If your plate worked with two row, it will work with a mixture. If your gonna dump a few pounds of corn or rice in, pay special attention to sparging and run off rates. There's a lot of info on what you're asking, on this site. Seek, and ye shall find..Noonan's book on brewing lager has a lot of info on what you're asking.

Well I'm making a cream ale with flaked maize - 20% of my grist is corn. I read that 6-row is better when using adjuncts, so that's why I was thinking of using it. Of course if it's already well modified, then yeah I can just batch sparge, which is probably what I'll do then.

Thanks guys.

If you are getting 6 row from a domestic maltster, it is going to be highly modified and not require extra steps. When I was working at Bell's in the late 80's we used Briess 6 row as our house base malt (I wish I had asked why) and did nothing but simple infusion mashing.

any experience with Mexican 6row?

6 row was used exclusively along with cluster hops and rice or corn to produce a golden lager. 6 row by itself made a dark, tannen rich beer that just didn't compare to the European pilsners. That's why American beers used rice and corn plus, it just so happens that 6 row has more enzymes to convert rice and corn. Budweiser is a mixture of 6 row, 2 row, and rice. The cheaper beers were all 6 row so the addition of the 2 row does improve the flavor of American Lagers. Now here's the part where everybody says that American Lagers don't have any flavor!!