Saint Aardvark
Well-Known Member
So right now I'm boiling the wort for my 3rd batch of beer. I thought I'd go partial-mash, following Death Brewer's excellent instructions. I'm making a dry Irish stout, with the recipe from my LHBS:
6.5 lb pale malt and 3 lb pale malt extract (partial mash)
1 lb Roasted Barley
1 lb Barley Flakes
1 oz Zeus (16%) @ 60 minutes
Wyeast 1084
Target gravity: 1.050
DB's method is dead easy (no pun intended), and I managed to make it even easier: I've got a 12 quart spaghetti pot with a strainer, and it turns out the paint strainger bag fits right inside. No need to excercise these weak forearms!
So after sparging, I've got about 4.5 gallons all together. I measure the OG, and correcting for temperature it's 1.047. At this point, I think to myself "Hell, why bother with the extract if I don't need to?"
I've downloaded a copy of StrangeBrew (GPL forever!), and here are the numbers it gives me:
Fermentables:
Name amount units pppg lov %
Barley (flaked)] 1.00 lb 1.032 2.2 11.8%
Canadian Two-Row 6.50 lb 1.036 2.1 76.5%
Light Malt Extract Syrup 0.00 lb 1.034 2.0 0.0%
Roast Barley 1.00 lb 1.029 450.0 11.8%
(Had to guess at the pale malt, as I didn't think to ask my LHBS...but the numbers all seemed pretty similar.)
Although it doesn't show above, StrangeBrew says I would've had 67% efficiency to get 1.047. That seems pretty darned good for my first try!
So I guess my questions are:
Thanks, everyone, and wish me luck!
6.5 lb pale malt and 3 lb pale malt extract (partial mash)
1 lb Roasted Barley
1 lb Barley Flakes
1 oz Zeus (16%) @ 60 minutes
Wyeast 1084
Target gravity: 1.050
DB's method is dead easy (no pun intended), and I managed to make it even easier: I've got a 12 quart spaghetti pot with a strainer, and it turns out the paint strainger bag fits right inside. No need to excercise these weak forearms!
So after sparging, I've got about 4.5 gallons all together. I measure the OG, and correcting for temperature it's 1.047. At this point, I think to myself "Hell, why bother with the extract if I don't need to?"
I've downloaded a copy of StrangeBrew (GPL forever!), and here are the numbers it gives me:
Fermentables:
Name amount units pppg lov %
Barley (flaked)] 1.00 lb 1.032 2.2 11.8%
Canadian Two-Row 6.50 lb 1.036 2.1 76.5%
Light Malt Extract Syrup 0.00 lb 1.034 2.0 0.0%
Roast Barley 1.00 lb 1.029 450.0 11.8%
(Had to guess at the pale malt, as I didn't think to ask my LHBS...but the numbers all seemed pretty similar.)
Although it doesn't show above, StrangeBrew says I would've had 67% efficiency to get 1.047. That seems pretty darned good for my first try!
So I guess my questions are:
- Do the numbers above seem reasonable? This is the first time I've ever used any software to help with calculations.
- I know I'll get a lower ABV (StrangeBrew says 4.6%) from the lower gravity; this is fine by me. Is there anything else I'll be changing or missing?
- and...holy crap, is AG really this easy?:rockin: (I know there's a lot to learn, lots of knobs to twiddle if you want to. But this just seems like too much fun!)
Thanks, everyone, and wish me luck!