Maximum amount of adjunct (corn) possible in 2 row mash?

I would like to make an ale that will be both cheap, creative, and "old time" to be served at our wedding.

We have several really nice beers and wines in the make now, and i have an open 6.5 gal that i would like to make a two grain beer in.

The only grains that i want to use are 2 or 6 row malt, and corn. To further the fun and conversation around this beer, i would like to use whole kernal corn which i will sprout, mill, cereal mash, then add to standard mash.

Therefore, i need to know how much enzyme & conversion power is left in my 2 or 6 row mash after it has converted itself, and how much corn i can add and get as much conversion on the added corn as possible.

I know that my beer may taste awful. it might even end up being a malt liquor by makeup. none of that matters. i just want to have yet another interesting beer (even if it's awful) to serve at the wedding. besides, trust me, i have enough relatives and friends that won't care how bad it is, as long as it "does the trick".

all grain
-5 gallon recipe
-- how much corn (lbs)?
-- 2 row or 6 row? (6 row has more conversion power, right?)
-- how much base malt (lbs)?
-- corn mash at 170F?
-- hops??


Remember, i want the ABSOLUTE MAXIMUM ammount of corn that can be used.

thanks!

Around 40% corn is the accepted limit as I understand it, but as long as you have enough diastatic power in your base malts you can make it as high as you want. Just calculate it as a weighted average (on the recipe below, for example, ((6lbs 6-Row * 160 Lintner) + (5 lbs Corn * 0 Lintner) + (1 lb Victory * 50 Lintner))/12 lbs Total Grain = 84.2 degrees Lintner). As long as you have at least a 40 degree average it should convert.

I'm not sure what style you are going for, but here is a simple APA on a stepped mash schedule that would work:

Size 5.5 gal
Boil: 60 min
OG: 1.057
FG: 1.014
ABV: 5.6%
IBU: 40

Grain:
6 lbs -- Brewer's 6-Row Malt (50%)
5 lbs -- Corn, Flaked (41.7%)
1 lb -- Victory Malt (8.3%)

Stepped Mash Schedule (You could probably get away with a single infusion mash, though):
Protein Rest: 122F ST for 30 minutes (0.75 qts / lb)
Mash In: 149F ST for 30 minutes (1.5 qts / lb)
Mash Out: 168F ST for 10 minutes (2.7 qts / lb)
Fly Sparge with about 1 gallon of 168F water or batch sparge

Hops:
1 oz -- Galena @ 50 min
1 oz -- Willamette @ 5 min

Yeast:
Wyeast Nothwest Ale (1332) -- 3L simple starter (or 1L w/ Stir Plate)

Primary 7 days @ 70F; Secondary 14 days @ 70F; Bottle w/ 4.5oz priming sugar for 30 days.

Jnco_hippie said:

i would like to use whole kernal corn which i will sprout, mill, cereal mash, then add to standard mash.

Click to expand...

If you are malting the corn then you can use it up to 100% of the grist bill. Malted corn will have self-conversion enzyme content. You only need to cereal mash unmalted grain like flaked corn (wheat, rye, barley, etc) and corn meal.

Jnco_hippie said:

Therefore, i need to know how much enzyme & conversion power is left in my 2 or 6 row mash after it has converted itself, and how much corn i can add and get as much conversion on the added corn as possible.

I know that my beer may taste awful.

Click to expand...

Modern 2-row is almost equal to 6-row in diastatic power. It's capable of converting its own weight in starchy adjuncts. Awful? Perhaps but the beer will be quite bland. As zzARzz posted, roughly 40% adjunct (corn, rice or both) is what the typical American mega-brewer uses in their mass market brews. Barley malt is used for many reasons not the least of which are flavor, body and the husks, which are necessary to create a suitable mash bed for lautering. So if you decide to use all corn or a much larger percentage than 40% the addition of some rice hulls to the mash will likely be a good idea.