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bennspriggs

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Hi, this is my 2nd home brew. First was a simple kit lager.
This is a golden ale.
I am worried some mistakes were made.
1. Recipe makes 21 liters - I mistakenly made 22.5 liters.
2. I squeezed the crystal malt grains for extra liquid.
3. When I put in the yeast, it mostly sunk into liquid, but some has clumped together on top. Should I have stired or whisked in?

OG = 1.046

Any feedback would be fantastic!
Thank you!
 
1: I'd like to be closer to my volume, but the deed is done.
2: effects of this are debatable.
3: the yeast will figure it out.


you should be fine
 
amandabab said:
1: I'd like to be closer to my volume, but the deed is done.
2: effects of this are debatable.
3: the yeast will figure it out.

you should be fine

Thanks for you quick response.
Appreciate it!
Ill repost with result.
 
You should be fine... Having a larger amount (22.5 vs 21) isn't really that bad, it does lower your OG and therefore your final ABV percentage. You really shouldn't squeeze your grains because it can pull tannins from them that you don't really want in a non-barrel aged beer, but it shouldn't be too much of an issue. The yeast for ales tends to be top fermenting, so clumping together on top is pretty normal. Did you ensure that you aerated your wort enough before you pitched your yeast? If you did, then you should be fine.

Mouse
 
You really shouldn't squeeze your grains because it can pull tannins from them that you don't really want in a non-barrel aged beer, but it shouldn't be too much of an issue.

Mouse

Not only not much of an issue, NOT and issue at all. Squeeze every drop out.

What was the expected OG that the kit is claiming? Even w/the extra water you are probably close and I'll bet you didn't mix your top off water as well as you think. I'm guessing you used top off water as most kits are like that.
 
Extracting tannins is about PH levels and temperature not squeezing the grain.

So far I would think that it is going well. Make sure you keep it at a good temperature range in the ferment.
 
I read a comic book once where the Incredible Hulk squeezed the tannins out of a bag of grain at room temperature.

Actually, no I didn't. The theory is that squeezing can release tannins through pressure. Think about that...

So if you squeeze, just make sure you don't squeeze with enough pressure to emulate an increase to 180 degree temperature. Most of us shouldn't have any problem with that. But if you were exposed to gamma-radiation or were born on the planet Krypton, you might want to watch yourself.
 
Hey all. I squeezed till a mashy residue started to show and I stopped. The this recipe was not from a kit and so no OG was provided.. I guess ill have to wait and see how it tastes at the end. Sounds like I haven't gone too badly. Fingers crossed!
 
I don't know where you guys are getting your information, but squeezing the grains *will* extract tannins from the grains (just like squeezing a tea bag). This will lead to astringency in your beer. Since the OP said this was a kit, then he most likely was talking about the steeping grains, while they *can* add astringency, the small amount of grains should not cause much of a problem (which is what I said in the first place).

Mouse
 
I don't know where you guys are getting your information, but squeezing the grains *will* extract tannins from the grains (just like squeezing a tea bag). This will lead to astringency in your beer. Since the OP said this was a kit, then he most likely was talking about the steeping grains, while they *can* add astringency, the small amount of grains should not cause much of a problem (which is what I said in the first place).

Mouse

A little unsure on where the tannins would be created from by just squeezing the grains. Everywhere I have read (and seen) on shows and articles by brewers say that unless you are squeezing with enough force to drive the temperature up or change the PH level of the mash you will not create any Tannins.

Possibly if tannins have already been created you would extract more of them, but it shouldn't create them. It would be nice to get a chemists opinion on this.
 
mamies said:
A little unsure on where the tannins would be created from by just squeezing the grains. Everywhere I have read (and seen) on shows and articles by brewers say that unless you are squeezing with enough force to drive the temperature up or change the PH level of the mash you will not create any Tannins.

Possibly if tannins have already been created you would extract more of them, but it shouldn't create them. It would be nice to get a chemists opinion on this.

You are not creating tannins. You are extracting the ones that are already there.
 
Sorry I should have rephrased that to be that you dissolve the tannins into the solution by having a higher PH which changes the component a small amount or by having a warmer solution.

Using that theory squeezing the bag would have a similar effect as to leaving the bag drain for a longer time. If anyone has any information to why squeezing extracts more tannins I would like to know. It might possibly help me brew better
 
Possibly if tannins have already been created you would extract more of them, but it shouldn't create them. It would be nice to get a chemists opinion on this.

Tannin isn't being created by squeezing the grains. Tannin already exists in the hulls before they are even modified. Squeezing the grains extracts them from the hulls. The same is true for mashing at too high of a temperature.

Mouse
 
CA_Mouse said:
Tannin isn't being created by squeezing the grains. Tannin already exists in the hulls before they are even modified. Squeezing the grains extracts them from the hulls. The same is true for mashing at too high of a temperature.

Mouse

I'm going to jump on this thread for a similar question about what I did to my specialty grains in my last brew:
I didn't squeeze them, but stirred them. Instead of putting them in a grain bag and tying it off and dunking to steep, I read somewhere else that you can get better (use/flavor/extraction?) out of them by having them in a lower volume of water (than recommended by the kit - Palmer says 1-3 qts per 1 lb of grain; I went down the middle with 2 qts for 2 lbs, or 1 gal total) and having them loose. So I put a 5 gal paint strainer bag in the bottom of my kettle, put the elastic cord around the top, and put the grains in loose after bringing the temp up to 155. S far so good, I think. But then I think I made a couple of dumb mistakes. First, the temp dropped to about 140 after adding the grains (makes sense since they were room temp, and smaller vol of water), so I turned the burner back on. And of course, although I turned it off by 155, the temp got up to about 165ish... Rookie mistake! Second, I stirred the water with the grains in it. I didn't squish/press any of the grains directly or purposefully, but just used a normal stirring motion multiple times during the steep. Afterward, I then lifted out the bag, let drain, then discarded.

Do you think either the slightly higher temp for a bit or the stirring of the loose grain would extract much tannins, from y'all's experience? Sounds like the temp might be the more important factor, based on the above discussion and what I've read. Should I have just left the burner off and let the temp cool from 140 while steeping, or is it important to try to keep it at 155 the whole 25 minutes? Thanks for any comments...
(I'm sure the best answer will be had once I taste it!)
 
I don't know where you guys are getting your information, but squeezing the grains *will* extract tannins from the grains (just like squeezing a tea bag). This will lead to astringency in your beer. Since the OP said this was a kit, then he most likely was talking about the steeping grains, while they *can* add astringency, the small amount of grains should not cause much of a problem (which is what I said in the first place).

Mouse

From what I understand this is what used to be thought would happen but has since been disproved. You need a combination of heat and a certain Ph to extract the tannins. Many BIAB brewers squeeze the crap out of the grain bag with no ill effects.
 
Squeezing will not increase tannin extraction since the tannins that are soluble will already be dissolved and the insoluble portion doesn't become more soluble by squeezing it. It is rising temp and especially rising pH that increases the amount extracted. Think of it this way, commericial breweries often grind the grain completely (giving 100% of the surface area of the husk exposed to sparge water) and have thousands of lbs of grain in a batch exerting magnitudes more pressure on the grain bed than what you can generate by squeezing with your hands. They don't have problem with excess tannin extraction because they control temp and pH.
 
Hey everyone. Just wanted to say the brew is finished and just tried the first bottle. It is exactly the flavour I was hoping for! 100% spot on!! One issue... It's flat...
I have only opened one bottle so far. I used carbonation drops and its been sitting in my pantry for two weeks. Absolute Slightest fizz.. Any thoughts here?.. Should I re carbonation drop them?..
 
You won't be extracting tannins by squeezing. There is, in fact, a lauter system that is used by some huge breweries and now available to craft breweries that does whole mash extraction via squeezing. Rather than try to explain the process, here is a link to the company that is making the stuff for craft breweries.

http://www.iddeas.com/products/brewing_systems/combo_brewhouse.html
 
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