First All Grain - Cream of 3 Crops

I just completed my first all grain brew using Bier Munchers Cream Of 3 Crops as the recipe. I made a couple of changes to the hops, using Willamette for 60 minutes and Cascade for 30 minutes. I also used some Dortmund water salts mixed with distilled water as the water around here is pretty hard and I figured a softer water would compliment this beer better. I hit a pre-boil SG of 1.042 out of 1.045 for a low 70 percent efficiency and and all in all I think it went pretty well. Much more sediment/trub than I expected post boil, is this standard? I thought I'd try the Wyeast Kolsh strain for the yeast also. Also topped off the boil pot to make 5 gallons as I lost almost 3 gallons to evaporation. I would like some input from the more experienced brewers here:

1. The original recipe called for 1 oz of Crystal hops for 60 minutes, and I used about .5 oz of Cascade for 30 minutes, does hop seem like a reasonable replacement?
2. Do most of you typically top off your boil to get your target quantity of beer?
3. Is sediment to be expected, I have loads of it?

Thanks,

I don't think you should have topped it off...and there is no way in hell you lost a full 3 ****in gallons to evaporation. U might have ruined the beer by topping it off...it is better to have a good 3 gallons than a terrible 5. Wait for other people to comment but i think its done for

If you would have measured the gravity and adjusted with water if the gravity was too high then that's OK. If the gravity was lower then by adding water you thinned it out even more which is a no-no. Do not worry though as this does not help the situation. On your next brew you will do much better as learning to brew beer is an ongoing process. Learn how to use your hydrometer and correct for temperature differential. This will help you make better beer.

All is not lost....how long did you boil?
I've lost 2 1/2 full gallons in a 90 minute boil! Guarantee it can happen.

What was the gravity going into the fermentor? I'm questioning your mash efficency! I'd like to see your brewhouse efficency. I'll bet it's higher than you think.

Post back in 20 days and tell us what you think of your beer! I'll bet it's pretty good....and will get better after that.

Don't give up....even if it does suck....which it won't....I'm just say'en.....

The recipe called for a 90 minute boil, and unfortunately I did lose all that wort to evaporation. I was brewing in my garage and the temperature was 95° or so and I think that coupled with putting 7 gallons in a 7.5 gallon pot lead to the high evaporation rate. I'm sure I lost some as the boil splashed wort out of the kettle, but it couldn't have been more than a couple of pints or so. Out of the MLT the gravity reading was indeed 1.042 (unless my hydrometer is calibrated incorrectly), and I cooled the sample down to 60° in my freezer before taking the reading. Post boil and after topping off (I actually topped off the kettle with 15 minutes to go in the boil to make sure the water addition would be sterile) the reading was 1.040 at 60°, so I think I'm gonna be OK.

I lose about a gallon every half hour with my keggle setup, so for a 90 minute boil aiming for 5.5 gallons, I will start out with 8.5 gallons pre boil volume.

OK. We either need to have some class on how to read and use a Hydrometer, or you need to dump a pint of wort on the floor so you can better judge that. If you started with 1.042 and 7 gallons, you boil down to 5 gallons...your gravity should be signifigantly higher...like in the 1.050 range? Dont' have beersmith here at work...but MORE not less.

BigKahuna said:

OK. We either need to have some class on how to read and use a Hydrometer, or you need to dump a pint of wort on the floor so you can better judge that. If you started with 1.042 and 7 gallons, you boil down to 5 gallons...your gravity should be signifigantly higher...like in the 1.050 range? Dont' have beersmith here at work...but MORE not less.

Click to expand...

I boiled down to 4 gallons and topped off with a gallon to make 5 gallons. Wouldn't the extra water dilute the original solution?

Sugar is not lost to evaporation so whatever your gravity points where originally will remain. At that point the SG and dilution (volume) simply vary in an inversely proportional relationship.

Now that you know your boiloff rate, you can sparge enough on the next batch so the boildown reaches your desired 5 gallons. This will actually increase your efficiency because instead of adding 1 gallon of 1.000 water, you'd be introducing 1 gallon of wort at about 1.015.

Bobby_M said:

At that point the SG and dilution (volume) simply vary in an inversely proportional relationship.

Click to expand...

WARNING!

Brew Nerd Content!

I transferred this to a secondary bucket a 4 days ago and decided to check on it this afternoon. It is clearing up nicely with the addition of the gelatin finings. I gave it a taste and all in all it isn't too bad, but there is a noticeable stringent / sharp taste to it. I used the Kolsh yeast and it was fermenting at 70° for the first 48 hours until I got the temperature controller for my freezer. It has been at 60° since. Would the higher initial fermenting temp be to blame for this?

Just leave it for awhile then taste in like 3-4 weeks. Its way to soon to start tasting your brew for off flavours.

Brutus Brewer said:

I transferred this to a secondary bucket a 4 days ago and decided to check on it this afternoon. It is clearing up nicely with the addition of the gelatin finings. I gave it a taste and all in all it isn't too bad, but there is a noticeable stringent / sharp taste to it. I used the Kolsh yeast and it was fermenting at 70° for the first 48 hours until I got the temperature controller for my freezer. It has been at 60° since. Would the higher initial fermenting temp be to blame for this?

Click to expand...

I tasted this again today and there is a noticeable skunky smell. The astringent/sharp taste is also still present and not subsiding. Should I dump it or ride it out and see what happens? I have some kegs coming soon, I could transfer it to a keg and give it a few months. Anyone know if/when the skunky smell will discipate?

I don't think anyone here would reccomend dumping a batch unless it was 100% contaminated. Age will mellow things tremendously. If you're gonna have the kegs to store it in I'd definitely do that. I think Kolsh is a lager yeast too so the temp might need to be lower than 60F. I've never lagered before though so I'm not speaking from experience or anything.

Frost said:

I don't think anyone here would reccomend dumping a batch unless it was 100% contaminated. Age will mellow things tremendously. If you're gonna have the kegs to store it in I'd definitely do that. I think Kolsh is a lager yeast too so the temp might need to be lower than 60F. I've never lagered before though so I'm not speaking from experience or anything.

Click to expand...

Kolsch is an ale yeast but it is best in the 60-65*F range.

Agreed, Kolsch is an ale yeast that is lower than the standard temps...