First all grain batch- learned a lot

[mattgw86]

So I've made several partial boil extract batches, some good, some so-so. I figured it was time to move up to all grain, so I picked up a turkey fryer and a cooler to build a MLT with. I went down to my new LHBS and got the following ingredients for my first all grain, a simple IPA:

10.25lb 2-row
10oz Caramel 60L

.75oz Cascade (90min)
.50oz Magnum (90min)
1.00oz Mount Hood (60min)
1.00oz Cascade (15min)

I seriously overestimated the amount of heat my cooler and grains and ended up mashing in around 158. Over the course of the hour and my repeated opening of the cooler to check the temp, it came down to 154.

I think I'm gonna look for something better than the stainless braid I have, as I had quite a bit of chunks in the boil. Probably not going to affect anything, but I can be a little obsessive about things like that. I also need to alter my design a little so I don't leave so much liquid in the cooler.

I forgot to take an initial gravity reading before my boil and I also either missed my volume or my boil off is faster than I thought. I ended up with around 4 gallons, but the gravity was pretty high, so I topped it up to 5 and hit pretty close to the OG ( I got 1.056 and the recipe said 1.057).

I think I had some issues with my boil, as it seemed the foam just wouldn't stop. If I turned the flame down it would settle down to a rolling boil, but if I turned the flame back up it would foam and try to boil over. I'm guessing this is just me learning my new equipment, because I had plenty of hot break material left in the pot.

My next purchase will be some kind of wort chiller, as the ice bath thing isn't very fun and is kinda messy. I did get the wort down to around 72° in about 30 minutes. I know I should have made a starter, but I just pitched a vial of WLP 001 straight into the fermenter. I'm guessing it's gonna increase my lag time, but overall probably not gonna hurt it too badly. It is now in my temperature controlled freezer set to 65°.

overall, I learned a few good lessons and I'm hoping this one turns out good. I'm gonna dry hop on 2 oz of Cascade, so I think it should be pretty tasty. I need to make a few refinements to my equipment and process, but I'm still really enjoying this hobby. Time to start planning the next batch.

 

[Stauffbier]

I'm doing my first AG batch next week, but I'm doing mine BIAB. I will be buying a coleman extreme 70qt to make a MLT out of soon. As far as a stainless braid goes, I think I'm going to make a copper manifold instead! Let us know how this batch comes out!

 

[BrewKnurd]

I seriously overestimated the amount of heat my cooler and grains and ended up mashing in around 158. Over the course of the hour and my repeated opening of the cooler to check the temp, it came down to 154.

Next time I would advocate adding cold water if you overshoot temp. Don't want to risk denaturing your friendly enzymes.

 

[bricks]

I did my first all grain today. Using an immersion chiller I was able to chill my wort to 68° in about 15 minutes. You will enjoy using a chiller when you get one.

Good luck in your future brews!

 

[Stauffbier]

Make your own wort chiller! It's a lot cheaper.. I made mine out of 1/2" by 50' copper coil and it cools my wort down to about 70F in 15 mins or so...

 

[cheezycow]

Always helpful to take all measurements and extensive notes for your first few so you can dial in your equipment..Big help when you run into problems. Don't get to hung up on efficiency its all about the consistency.

 

[mattgw86]

Little update- Got home from work last night and the airlock was bubbling away. I'll check the gravity in about a week. Also, I think I'm gonna get some kind of clear carboy for the next batch. I'd really like a better view of my fermenting wort.

 

[brew2enjoy]

Little update- Got home from work last night and the airlock was bubbling away. I'll check the gravity in about a week. Also, I think I'm gonna get some kind of clear carboy for the next batch. I'd really like a better view of my fermenting wort.

Good to hear. I am doing my first all grain tomorrow and I am pretty pumped! I have been using a 6 gallon better bottle for primary fermentation and it works great. Plus there is no danger of broken glass. I would highly recommend them.

 

[mattgw86]

Thats what I was thinking. I can just about get two better bottles for the price of one glass carboy. Then I can ferment multiple beers at the same time.

 

[kh54s10]

Thats what I was thinking. I can just about get two better bottles for the price of one glass carboy. Then I can ferment multiple beers at the same time.

Definitely! I now have 2 Better Bottles and a bucket. Last week all 3 were in use.

As to chunks in your boil; I have a braid in my MLT. I used one for a water heater. Did you do a vorlauf procedure?

On one of mine it ran clear after about a quart, on another it took almost 5 quarts before it ran clear.

 

[mattgw86]

I may not have given it enough time to clear. I only ran 1-2 quarts through. I'll give it another shot though.

 

[mattgw86]

Just took a gravity reading. 1.014. I put it back in the ferm freezer and set it to 40 to crash cool. Once its clear, I'm gonna dry hop for a week or 2 on 2 ounces of cascade hops then force Carb in my new kegging set up. This is also the first time I really enjoyed my hydrometer sample, even with all the suspended particles and yeast.