jspatrick
Member
- Joined
- Feb 27, 2016
- Messages
- 8
- Reaction score
- 1
Howdy All,
First, since this is my first post, I'll quickly introduce myself! My name is J.P., I'm currently a graduate student living in Menlo Park just south of San Fran, and after brewing about 12 successful extract batches I've moved to BIAB AG.
Well...sort of. I've tried two BIAB batches and both have been disasters. In fact, I tried to do an AG version of this Citrus Bomb IPA which had gone beautifully as an extract recipe.
The AG version is having the following issues:
1. My efficiency is extremely low (~50%)
2. After several days in the fermenter, a sample taste has an incredibly bitter after-taste. It takes several seconds before the bitterness kicks in, and then it is awful. The antithesis of a clean finish.
3. The color and clarity seems off. The color is super light, and almost a little on the greenish side of yellow. Not the warm, "golden" color I expect. It's extremely hazy even after letting any grain material settle. I can hardly see my hydrometer in the sample tube.
Process has been as follows:
1. Heat to strike temp calculated in Beer Smith (Something like 160 degrees for the grain bills I used)
2. Add grain. Temp dropped to 152 based on a digital thermometer, so should be accurate.
3. Stir like crazy for 5 minutes.
4. Cover with a few blankets to maintain temp
5. Stir every 20 minutes through a small hole in the lid to try and keep the temperature even within the kettle
6. After 75 minutes, heat to 170. This took about another 10 minutes.
7. Rest for 10 minutes. So total time now is 95 minutes.
8. Lift the bag and trade off between [good] friends to keep it held for about 10 minutes to drip
9. Measure gravity and then proceed to boil as usual.
My hunch:
After doing some reading, I think I might be extracting a ton of tannin due to a high mash pH. I have a pH meter coming in the mail to check ($15 on Amazon, seemed worthwhile versus test strips).
It seems odd though since I have read several "how do do BIAB" articles and none of them mentioned adjusting the mash pH. Any a lot of the responses to the BIAB pros/cons threads have been things like "BIAB is great and my efficiency is 80%." I read this with a mix of skepticism and awe given my struggle. Nobody in the LHBS mentioned adjusting the pH (though they might have a different water supply). So a part of me wonders how my results could be this bad given the apparent lack of hoopla over mash pH adjustments.
My question:
Does this sound right? Could something else be going on here? Is that bitter aftertaste a tannin taste? I am going to give it another go with some 5.2 stabilizer, but I would love to hear if anything else jumps out before I waste any more days and dollars.
Thanks everyone!
First, since this is my first post, I'll quickly introduce myself! My name is J.P., I'm currently a graduate student living in Menlo Park just south of San Fran, and after brewing about 12 successful extract batches I've moved to BIAB AG.
Well...sort of. I've tried two BIAB batches and both have been disasters. In fact, I tried to do an AG version of this Citrus Bomb IPA which had gone beautifully as an extract recipe.
The AG version is having the following issues:
1. My efficiency is extremely low (~50%)
2. After several days in the fermenter, a sample taste has an incredibly bitter after-taste. It takes several seconds before the bitterness kicks in, and then it is awful. The antithesis of a clean finish.
3. The color and clarity seems off. The color is super light, and almost a little on the greenish side of yellow. Not the warm, "golden" color I expect. It's extremely hazy even after letting any grain material settle. I can hardly see my hydrometer in the sample tube.
Process has been as follows:
1. Heat to strike temp calculated in Beer Smith (Something like 160 degrees for the grain bills I used)
2. Add grain. Temp dropped to 152 based on a digital thermometer, so should be accurate.
3. Stir like crazy for 5 minutes.
4. Cover with a few blankets to maintain temp
5. Stir every 20 minutes through a small hole in the lid to try and keep the temperature even within the kettle
6. After 75 minutes, heat to 170. This took about another 10 minutes.
7. Rest for 10 minutes. So total time now is 95 minutes.
8. Lift the bag and trade off between [good] friends to keep it held for about 10 minutes to drip
9. Measure gravity and then proceed to boil as usual.
My hunch:
After doing some reading, I think I might be extracting a ton of tannin due to a high mash pH. I have a pH meter coming in the mail to check ($15 on Amazon, seemed worthwhile versus test strips).
It seems odd though since I have read several "how do do BIAB" articles and none of them mentioned adjusting the mash pH. Any a lot of the responses to the BIAB pros/cons threads have been things like "BIAB is great and my efficiency is 80%." I read this with a mix of skepticism and awe given my struggle. Nobody in the LHBS mentioned adjusting the pH (though they might have a different water supply). So a part of me wonders how my results could be this bad given the apparent lack of hoopla over mash pH adjustments.
My question:
Does this sound right? Could something else be going on here? Is that bitter aftertaste a tannin taste? I am going to give it another go with some 5.2 stabilizer, but I would love to hear if anything else jumps out before I waste any more days and dollars.
Thanks everyone!