Benefits of 90 minute boils?

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cweston

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I can see two benefits...

1. In AG brewing, allows one to collect more sparge runoff and boil it down to the taregt batch size (since 90 minutes of boil = more wort evaporation than 60).

2. Increases hop utilization -- use less bittering hops.

If neither of these are really an issue, is there any benefit to the longer boil? Seems like #1 is likely only an issue for big beers.
 
With wheat beers there is an advantage in getting more break from the higher level of proteins. Some beers may or may not benefit from the extra melanoidin generation (or so I've read), though this seems minimal to me.
 
Brewby said:
I had read some where that boils over an hour start to caramelize the wort and make it darker.
Yep, this is the melanoidin reference I made above. The phenomenon is much more prominent in concentrated boils as opposed to full-wort boils. In some cases it's not a bad thing, but often it results in a darker wort than intended.
 
Longer boils will result in a better hot-break and less chill haze. That's what I read about this (might have been the "Bavarian Helles" book). I have done 60 min AG boils before, but once I read that it is strongly recommended to boil an AG wort for at least 90 min, I started to extend my boils to 90 min.

Kai
 
recently i've been boiling anywhere from 90-120 minutes. i usually start the boil after i've gotten a gallon or so of the wort collected... by the time i get the full 7.5 or so gallons it's been boiling a good half hour to forty minutes, and i've had tons of hot break. i usually boil it down to about 5.5 gallons... i've noticed clearer beers, but i've only been drinking them at cellar temps recently. i've got a few bottles in the fridge to see how they 'chill'
 
You want to have hot break occur prior to your first addition of hops so that your hop resins are not taken up with the othe break material when it coagulates. Therefore, 90 minutes gives you a thirty minute boil prior to your first hop addition.
 
Brewpastor said:
You want to have hot break occur prior to your first addition of hops so that your hop resins are not taken up with the othe break material when it coagulates. Therefore, 90 minutes gives you a thirty minute boil prior to your first hop addition.

Good answer!!! :mug:

Longer boil = better hot break

Better hot break = clearer beer

My beers have turned out much better since I started doing 90 minute boils on all of them.
 
If you start making hop additions at the beginning of the 90 minute boil, most of the flavor imparted by that particular type of hop will be lost. The bitterness will remain, and your utilization will be better. I suppose that could be a plus or a minus, depending on what type of flavor you were going for.
 
90 minute boil?

I wish my boils were that short:p

Fly sparging and the amouns of grain I use because I like high OG beers my boils are normally atleast 2 hours lately and I have had a 5 hour boil already
 
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