When did you make the switch?

So i'm fairly new to brewing and have been doing the Extract brewing. I think i have this down pretty good and thinking of making the switch from extract. Some have said stick with extract for a bit more, but wanted to get opinions. I have all the equipment to make the switch, just curious when people made the swtich?

Thanks!

doornumber3 said:

So i'm fairly new to brewing and have been doing the Extract brewing. I think i have this down pretty good and thinking of making the switch from extract. Some have said stick with extract for a bit more, but wanted to get opinions. I have all the equipment to make the switch, just curious when people made the swtich?

Thanks!

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Some people stay with extract for brewing, while others may never use extract at all. I don't think there is any sort of timetable for people to change their method, as people brew what they want in the way they want.

I have have good friend who never once made an extract batch, and he's a mighty fine brewer. I have other friends who brew only with extract, and make good beer as well. It really doesn't matter.

If you have the equipment do it now. Its easier than you think. I actually think it is easier to do high quality beer with all grain, even if you don't pull it off perfectly.

I started going ag after 2 batches. If you think you are making good beer now and want to take on the initial expense and added complexity of ag then go for it. The reason a lot of people may say to hold off is because ag will not make your beer better. If your current process ids flawed ag will be as well.

Thanks Yooper!. I'm thinking of changing just because I really want to experiment with some things and different flavors, and I think it's a bit harder to do with the extract.

Thanks everyone, i have the equipment already so I'm going to give it a shot. Maybe next weekend if i have a full day to do it. Figure it'd be nice to try both anyways and see what i like better.

If you've already got the equipment, why not give AG a try for a batch or two? I did one store extract kit, one extract brew with my own recipe, one BIAB, made a mash tun and AG since. You can always go back to AG if you don't like it.

I did AE & E/SG for some 2 years before moving up to Partial Mash. That was 4 brews ago. I'm using the same set up I've been using the whole time,save for adding a 5G paint strainer bag for PB/PM BIAB. Works well efficiency-wise,but the fine crush makes for cloudy beer. Have to start using the super moss I bought from now on.

doornumber3 said:

Thanks everyone, i have the equipment already so I'm going to give it a shot. Maybe next weekend if i have a full day to do it. Figure it'd be nice to try both anyways and see what i like better.

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Little tip I wish I had been told: take the time to calibrate your kettle. Find out the boil off rate and put some notches on a stick to indicate the volume. This way if your OG is off you can add water or boil longer so that you still hit your numbers.

Erroneous said:

Little tip I wish I had been told: take the time to calibrate your kettle. Find out the boil off rate and put some notches on a stick to indicate the volume. This way if your OG is off you can add water or boil longer so that you still hit your numbers.

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I will admit, never done this, would like to. Can you give a quick rundown of how? Or maybe a link? Thx

I started on AG, (apart from "helping" my dad with extract when i was 15 or so) I have been keeping track of my boil off rates and I lose about 1 gallon in an hour boil off, good information to know.

First you want your dip stick. Buy a decent diameter dowel rod from hd our lowes and from a measuring cup you trust add a quart at a time and mark it on your rod. I ended up taking a solo cup, adding water until it read 273 grams if I recall the weight correctly, and marking a line.

When you're done with that empty to about 3 gallons, turn your burner on and time for 30 minutes. Then use your rod to see how much boiled off, multiply by 2 (or go a full hour) and you're good.

In practice, if you collect 7 gallons of wort at 1050 and your boil off rate its 2 gallons/hour and you want the final to be 1065 then 50*7=350, 350/65=5.4. You would need to add 0.4 gallons to do a 1 hour boil because 7-2=5, 5-5.4=-0.4

I started AG and it's not as hard as noobs think it is. I think if you want to and have the equipment than go for it.

I did about 6 partial boil extract batches, then decided to make the jump.

In my (admittedly very limited) experience, if you can extract brew, you can AG brew. For me the biggest hurdle was the initial expense of all the new equipment, but part of that was due to cheaping out when I first started out (too small a boil kettle, brewing on the stove-top). If you're comfortable with your sanitization, transfer, and chilling procedures, and can afford the initial price tag, then go for it!

IMHO, getting to control and study the complete process is very fun and rewarding, much more so than extract brewing.

Erroneous said:

First you want your dip stick. Buy a decent diameter dowel rod from hd our lowes and from a measuring cup you trust add a quart at a time and mark it on your rod. I ended up taking a solo cup, adding water until it read 273 grams if I recall the weight correctly, and marking a line.

When you're done with that empty to about 3 gallons, turn your burner on and time for 30 minutes. Then use your rod to see how much boiled off, multiply by 2 (or go a full hour) and you're good.

In practice, if you collect 7 gallons of wort at 1050 and your boil off rate its 2 gallons/hour and you want the final to be 1065 then 50*7=350, 350/65=5.4. You would need to add 0.4 gallons to do a 1 hour boil because 7-2=5, 5-5.4=-0.4

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Word. Thx.

Even doing PB/PM BIAB has been quite rewarding,as it lets me experiment with more different colors & flavor complexities. Not to mention different yeasts for various styles.

doornumber3 said:

So i'm fairly new to brewing and have been doing the Extract brewing. I think i have this down pretty good and thinking of making the switch from extract. Some have said stick with extract for a bit more, but wanted to get opinions. I have all the equipment to make the switch, just curious when people made the swtich?

Thanks!

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I started out brewing all grain last May. Took a few brews to get the process and all. Brewed a wee heavy that took first place too. That being said I just made my first extract batch on Friday and had to have my HBS owner to guide me through the steps. It's just not my thing I guess. I like the control I have in all grain.

The main reason I ever tried extract brewing at all was because I didn't have the money to afford the necessary equipment for AG. After about 5 or 6 batches of the same old extract tasting beer, I was able to save some money and get enough things together to take the plunge. Quite honestly, IMO, there's simply no comparison betweeen extract and AG beer and as been pointed out out in a previous post, AG brewing isn't at all as difficult as everyone who hasn't tried it, thinks it is. Initially you're a little nervous but if you think about it, whats so hard about soaking some grains in hot water, draining off the liquid and boling it with hops?

Keeping a good,steady mash temp for one. I think that's the important thing about mashing. That,& water to grain amounts.

started with extract and steeping then a couple years in went all-grain.
I actually went back to extract for several years because of the ease and less time required.

now the cheapest extract i can get is $4lb delivered I'm almost completely allgrain and a partial-extract/partial-boils if weather is bad

The only problem I'm having with PM atm is protien haze from the fine crush. Another thread is talking about Palmer's book saying protien rests & irish moss are bad for head retention & body. I hope not,cause I just got a small jar of five star super moss to help clear the haze up that comes at fridge time pretty bad. AE didn't give this much haze,if any. The PM beers look like weissebeirs by the next day in the fridge. A conundrum to be sure?...

Thanks everyone. What would you say the actual time difference is between extract and all grain.

I'd say the difference is an hour or so dealing with the mash & sparge. Then getting to the boil for a full hour.

doornumber3 said:

So i'm fairly new to brewing and have been doing the Extract brewing. I think i have this down pretty good and thinking of making the switch from extract. Some have said stick with extract for a bit more, but wanted to get opinions. I have all the equipment to make the switch, just curious when people made the swtich?

Thanks!

Click to expand...

I have yet to commit to start all-grain (waiting for the summer), but it was when I went to the local homebrew stores and saw much more emphasis on grain than liquid or dry extract.

BIAB is really easy. All you really need to worry about is temperature control, which can make a big difference when mashing. When friends ask me about switching to All-Grain with the least equipment, I say just buy a good thermometer. I made two extract batches then switched to BIAB partial mash for about a year. After that, I switched to all-grain using a 10 gallon cooler tun and I couldn't be happier.

Yeah,after doing 4 PB/PM BIAB batches,I must say that mash temp control is Number one. I open up my thinsulate lined winter hunting coat on the island across from the stove with two pot holders on the open back of the coat. Place the BK/MT on that,swing the hood over the lidded kettle & wrap the sides around it. Then wrap the sleeves around that & tie off once. During the one hour mash,5lbs of grains mashing in 2G of water will actually gain a degree. It steams when the lid is removed. This is the only way I could come up with to maintain mash temp. But it works.

I started brewing in September 2011. I did about 25 extract batches between then and February and I switched to all grain then. With the help of reading these threads on here and watching youtube videos of AG start to finish, it was fairly painless. I still learn something new every time though.

doornumber3 said:

So i'm fairly new to brewing and have been doing the Extract brewing. I think i have this down pretty good and thinking of making the switch from extract. Some have said stick with extract for a bit more, but wanted to get opinions. I have all the equipment to make the switch, just curious when people made the swtich?

Thanks!

Click to expand...

After two batches...

I went straight into all grain thanks to HBT and YouTube....

I switched after two batches. I do my mash in a rectangular cooler and batch sparge. I don't remember how long it took me to do extract. But I average 6 and a half hours from milling the grain until I am completely done and cleaned up. I don't know how long it takes others, but I usually have some homebrews that slows my process down a little. But I also have my friends helping me clean up and do some of the work. I'd say the mash and sparging added about 3 hours to my process.

I went from brewing with kits to developing a recipe, with help, picking out the extract and other ingredients and then went to AG, all in about 8 months. The most important thing is understanding your process. The guy who taught me how to brew has been brewing for 20 years, only uses extract and makes fantastic beer. What I like about AG is the control you have in tweaking your recipe to get the beer you want. I tend to make the same beer over and over until I get what I want. I don't think as fine control over the recipe is possible with extract.

The single most important item you can get for AG brewing is a grain mill. My mash efficiencies were all over the place, depending on where I bought the grain, even after I corrected some process issues. One LHBS let me mic the gap on his grain mill. It was set at .055, WAY TO WIDE. Got a grain mill, crushed at .039, great results. Then crushed at .035, super results.

The second most important thing is to fly sparge. I was batch sparging and was consistently in the low 70's on mash efficiencies, even after I got the grain mill. Just started fly sparging and am in the low 80's. Didn't think fly or continuous sparging would be worth the extra equipment but I was surprised it did.

Bazaar said:

I say just buy a good thermometer.

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Anyone recommend a particular thermometer?

I was doing partial mashes on my second batch, went Brew in a Bag my fourth, and converted an Igloo cooler for my seventh. I do still use BIAB sometimes, especially for 3 gallon non-high-gravity batches.

mgr_stl said:

Anyone recommend a particular thermometer?

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I have a Thermopen. It's probably overkill for many, but I've bought probably a dozen thermometers over the last 10 years or so. I would have saved money just buying the Thermopen in the beginning.

The only other thermometer I would recommend was one I got at Target. It was a Taylor, with a long cord and a decent temperature probe. It was actually accurate within 2 degrees, and worked great for over a year. It was about $20. For mashing, you really need something accurate. Even a 2 degree difference is a bit too much if you're not sure if it's low or high. If you want to mash at 150, for example, 148 might be too low for the results you want.

mgr_stl said:

Anyone recommend a particular thermometer?

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This is pretty close to a Thermapen, from what I've heard, and it's pretty cheap. I'm sure the Thermapen takes much faster readings, but the CDN is a good starting point.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B0021AEAG2

mgr_stl said:

Anyone recommend a particular thermometer?

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I get this thermometer from work which gets them for under 20: DeltaTRAK.

I use my floating thermometer lashed to one kettle handle in my paint strainer bag during the mash. It allows the lid to go on all the way wraped up in my winter hunting coat to maintain temps. I got a dial thermometer for the sparge water kettle.

I'm planning on doing half a dozen extract batches to get the "fundamentals" down pat.... Then make the jump.

I switched to AG after one Extract Batch.

Time wise: I'd say Mashing/lautering/sparging adds about 1:45-2:00 to my brewday.

I'm on a pretty solid 5-6 hours from getting out my stuff to having yeast pitched and everything cleaned up. I think I can get a little quicker yet with better organization. Would definitely be faster if I wasn't boiling on my stove.

Just did my first partial mash with the BIAB method this weekend after 3 extract kits. It was an oatmeal stout and it only had 4lbs of grain so it was very manageable. Not sure when/if I'll go all grain but doing a PM a good experience and super easy. The only additional piece of equipment I needed was a $6 large mesh bag.