Evan!
Well-Known Member
You may know that I never really got away from Papazian's stepped, direct-fired kettle mashing technique (133f for 30 mins, 149-155f for 60 mins, 158 for 20 mins or until starch test is negative). I've had crappy results in the past with single-infusion mashing in the cooler. I couldn't stand the lack of temp control, and the last time I did it, my efficiency (which is normally 80%+) dropped down to the low 60's. I mean, hell, I even have a sweeeet 10 gallon picnic cooler outfitted with a domed stainless false bottom and spigot that was given to me, but I still usually mash in the kettle and then dump it in the cooler to drain and sparge.
This weekend, though, I decided I was going to try it out again and see if I couldn't get some good results with the single infusion thing. So I did...and I gotta say, the whole "set it and forget it" thing really appeals to me. Anyway, I did 2 batches like this, with a little mini-decoction at the end to make up for the slight temp drop over 60 minutes. The hefe ended up at 73% efficiency and the Munich Helles ended up at like 86%. Not sure what the difference was, except maybe all that wheat malt not converting as well in the hefe. But anyway, I gotta say, I just might try this more often. I'll probably still direct-fire with some batches, but if I can consistently get 75-80% with single infusion, even if I have to do a 10 minute decoc at the end, I'm all about that. No transferring, no babysitting the mash...not bad!
This weekend, though, I decided I was going to try it out again and see if I couldn't get some good results with the single infusion thing. So I did...and I gotta say, the whole "set it and forget it" thing really appeals to me. Anyway, I did 2 batches like this, with a little mini-decoction at the end to make up for the slight temp drop over 60 minutes. The hefe ended up at 73% efficiency and the Munich Helles ended up at like 86%. Not sure what the difference was, except maybe all that wheat malt not converting as well in the hefe. But anyway, I gotta say, I just might try this more often. I'll probably still direct-fire with some batches, but if I can consistently get 75-80% with single infusion, even if I have to do a 10 minute decoc at the end, I'm all about that. No transferring, no babysitting the mash...not bad!