Help, pointers, tips on my first All Grain and Solo batch

[madmanmau]

I'm planning to do my first AG, so far I've done 6 o 7 DME-specialty grains batches with a friend and s far so good. I wanted to step it up the ladder and go all grain. It seems I've chosen a particularly difficult style to start (witbier-ish type...will this grain bills give me that?)...but I've got the grains all ready and hell to it...I want to get into it right away.

I'm from Mexico so I've got little to no selection in the HBS...also some of the grain bill or water numbers may seem odd, I usually think in Kg and liters...so ill be converting those figures to Lb and Gallons so it would make more sense to you and maybe I can get some pointers or advice in advance...I think I've got everything planned out soo I'l try t describe it as best as I can.....so, here we go:

I like to mix things out a little and made a recipe from several Blue Moon Clones out there and adjusted it to what my HBS had on stock.....


Ingredients:
Fermentables:

• 3.3 Lb of 2R
• 2.2 Lb of Pils
• 4.4 Lb of Malted Wheat
• 1.1 Lb of Flaked Oats

Hops

• 0.5 ounce Hallertau 4.1 AA 60min boil
• 0.5 ounce Hallertau 4.1 AA 30min boil
• 0.5 ounce Tettnanger 4.2 AA 5min boil

Other

• 0.375 ounce Crushed Coriander Seed 10min boil
• 0.5 ounce Sweet Orange Extract 5min boil
• 0.53 ounce Chamomille Flowers 5min boil

Batch Size: 5.28 gallons
Boil Water: 6.34 gallons

Mashing Process
Protein Rest 122°F 15min
13.75 quarts with a 1.25 Lb/quart ratio
Saccharification Rest 152°F 45min aproximately or until conversion is completed
add 10.1 boiling water (199°F for me) to get a a 2.16 Lb/quart ratio

Then start the sparge until I get my 6.34 gallons.....batch sparging of course...i dont have anything build yet to do fly sparge

Then...get to boil for 60 min, add hops as planned, cool it down to 68°F that is almost my running water temperature (a little colder).

I've used the calculator with a 65% efficiency since I probably will be low in that field since it is my first batch and this is what I got:



I have made no attempts to correct the water profile since I don't know my actual profile yet neither the target I should be aiming for....

At last since I read witbiers need at least a third of carboy head space so a blow off wont happen I plan on fermenting in 2 separate carboys....I've got those to spare at least 20 of them (another thing an uncle was experimenting with)....

First I planned to use just Safale T-58 but then I managed to get a free package of Dankstar Munich - wheat beer yeast. So I thought maybe I can get one carboy with T-58 and the other one with the Dankstar Munich to taste the difference between those 2 in the same batch. But not sure if i get the complete pack in each carboy or just half of it in each and save the rest for making a starter and freezing it.....any suggestion?

Also I've got planned racking to a secondary fermentor....I know wits are supposed to be hazy but thats just the only problem the other beers we've made had: TOO MUCH HAZE....cant really get irish moss or anything else with at a good price....also I thought since im using coriander-chamomille-orange...this flavor will blend much better in a second fermentation..

How well do you see my batch planned? Any thing I should correct or you recomend I correct or do different? Am I stepping it up too fast? Everything is up to review, well maybe the grain bill not so much LOL.....

I'll thank you in advance: Thanks hehe

 

[freisste]

Sounds alright. Did you mean a 5 minute boil for the tetnanger?

 

[madmanmau]

Sounds alright. Did you mean a 5 minute boil for the tetnanger?

Yeap...it was 5 min for Tett....I will correct it right away...thanks

 

[GrogNerd]

replace the 2row with Pilsner malt and that's pretty much Jamil's Witbier recipe from Brewing Classic Styles

 

[madmanmau]

replace the 2row with Pilsner malt and that's pretty much Jamil's Witbier recipe from Brewing Classic Styles

I wanted to do all pils and no 2 row but the price was really really expensive in my HBS, I've got just one store in the city, LOL...homebrewing is just starting.....also any other specialty grains are off the chart expensive.....I have been reading about how to make them from base 2 row or six row...maybe I'll give it a try for other batch that requires it.....counting this batch develops good enough as planed......LOL

Thanks again

 

[GrogNerd]

I wanted to do all pils and no 2 row but the price was really really expensive in my HBS, I've got just one store in the city, LOL...homebrewing is just starting.....also any other specialty grains are off the chart expensive.....I have been reading about how to make them from base 2 row or six row...maybe I'll give it a try for other batch that requires it.....counting this batch develops good enough as planed......LOL

Thanks again

2row will be just fine, I just saw the grain bill and it just looked so much like Jamil's recipe

I used Jamil's recipe for my Wit (also added oat, like yours), but used WLP001. kinda wishing I hadn't, it's very bland

 

[kh54s10]

Do you know what your boil off rate is? For my boil kettle I need 7 gallons preboil to end up with 5.25 6.34 gallons does not seem to be enough to me.

I have a stick marked off in gallons. I drain the mash tun and find the amount of wort collected. I then sparge with about half the remaining needed. I measure again and add sparge water to the tun at just a little more than I need to get to my preboil amount. I measure as I finish collecting the sparge until I reach my preboil amount. I try not to leave too much water in the tun.

Set up a checklist of every step you will need to make so that you don't forget anything. Note the times so you do them when they are supposed to be done.

I doubt that you really need to use 2 carboys. I would just use one with a blow off tube attached.

Personally I would just leave the beer in primary for 3 weeks and skip the secondary. I find this timing will clear almost any beer. A Wit will not get totally clear anyway without using clearing agents.

 

[madmanmau]

Do you know what your boil off rate is? For my boil kettle I need 7 gallons preboil to end up with 5.25 6.34 gallons does not seem to be enough to me.

I have a stick marked off in gallons. I drain the mash tun and find the amount of wort collected. I then sparge with about half the remaining needed. I measure again and add sparge water to the tun at just a little more than I need to get to my preboil amount. I measure as I finish collecting the sparge until I reach my preboil amount. I try not to leave too much water in the tun.

Set up a checklist of every step you will need to make so that you don't forget anything. Note the times so you do them when they are supposed to be done.

I doubt that you really need to use 2 carboys. I would just use one with a blow off tube attached.

Personally I would just leave the beer in primary for 3 weeks and skip the secondary. I find this timing will clear almost any beer. A Wit will not get totally clear anyway without using clearing agents.

Hi thanks for all the advice! I will get to your points in order....

I calculated my boil rate using this http://sigginet.info/brewing/tools/boil-off-calculator/

I accept it...I was lazy lol. My kettle diameter is around 31.5 cm and the boil would be aproximately 60 min...it gave 0.83 gal ...I rounded to 1.06 gallons so it would be a round number in liters and easier for me when measuring it.

The check list is a neat idea...I will make sure of making one once you've helped me with all the pointers....I will also make sure to get a stainles steal scrap from work to make the measurement stick...I've seen this one a couple times (videos) and just forgot about it.

Every carboy I've got is 5 gallons, since the batch is slightly bigger I wont whink it will hold up nor have any air space....
The reason for the second fermentation is just a precaution, I don't have an autosiphon yet....they are around $40 at the only HB in town lol.....just around the same price range in the national stores..plus shipping.
I plan on using a device made with hose and a T coupling i saw in the DIY section a while ago....and later make an autoshypon of my own (Im an engineer so I can get around lathes and stuff and think it wont be such a problem) So..the point is I'm a little scary about the Tdevice and how much sediment it will suck from the first fermentor; I am aware unless filtered or using products a wit wil never be clear, and it does not need to be.....I'm not aiming for a Kristallweizen LOL....
Thanks a lot for all your coments!:rockin:

 

[GrogNerd]

31.5 cm is about the diameter of my boil kettle and I use an aluminum ruler

if you can work in inches and US quarts/gallons then your kettle is close enough to 2qts per inch

easy enough to measure & *2 for quarts /2 for gallons

 

[madmanmau]

if you can work in inches and US quarts/gallons then your kettle is close enough to 2qts per inch easy enough to measure & *2 for quarts /2 for gallons

I can work my head around working in inches but also...1 quart is roughy 1 L
1 quart= 0.946 liter....
I think I will be too worried about the time schedule of my first batch and keeping everything sanitized (I'm a little sloppy) to focus myself on other measurement system...maybe for the next one Grog LOL
But that is a great measurement I will keep in mind for my ruler-measurement-device....
Also I have not said this.....I'm lacking the hydrometer...I'm going to get one tomorrow and then I will be all set to brew on sunday (hopefully)....

 

[GrogNerd]

the process of mashing really doesn't have to be sanitized. just clean. the boil will sanitize everything up to that point. after that, well, you've done everything after the boil and it's really not that much more than that. you are just adding the steps to make your own extract.

and if you've ever made non-instant oatmeal, well, then you've mashed before, just on a smaller scale

relax, don't try and rush it, don't worry if you're an degree or 2 of measurement off on anything, and as long as you don't TRY to ruin your beer, you'll be OK

"relax, don't worry" hmmm... I've read that somewhere before, seems like pretty good advice for a homebrewer, don't you think?

 

[madmanmau]

and if you've ever made non-instant oatmeal, well, then you've mashed before, just on a smaller scale

relax, don't try and rush it, don't worry if you're an degree or 2 of measurement off on anything, and as long as you don't TRY to ruin your beer, you'll be OK

"relax, don't worry" hmmm... I've read that somewhere before, seems like pretty good advice for a homebrewer, don't you think?

I wil definitely try my best not to ruin it, that I promise
"Relax, sit back and enjoy the ride" I will surely try to be doing it also!

I will post pics on sunday If get to brew that day...I just figured out it is a holiday......you know "family stuff to do". Drinking mostly hahahah
Thanks for everything!

 

[spam_and_eggs]

Good luck with your brewing! I'm doing my first AG batch today. Fingers crossed nothing really bad happens

 

[madmanmau]

Little update....muy más tan es leaking heavily...i was oxidizing it since it es aluminum and around 120 degrees it atarted running off.....hope to fux it today and brew tomorrow.....fingers crossed lol

 

[GrogNerd]

you are trying to say, "my mash tun" and your auto-correct is set to Spanish

and trying to say, "fix it" pero ¿qué es esta "fux" en Español??

 

[madmanmau]

you are trying to say, "my mash tun" and your auto-correct is set to Spanish

and trying to say, "fix it" pero ¿qué es esta "fux" en Español??

LOL you got it as it was meant to be. I was posting while having dinner at a taco stand....was real quick and didnt read it to check...I will be disassemble the mash tun now..

 

[madmanmau]

Well, apparently I got a stuck spurge really bad on sunday. Really bad one......had to step the temp a little bit to help it ad poke the grain bed a little. I got almost everything out and the the efficiency was not as bad as I expected...got FG 1.049 adjusted to hidrometer calibration.....

Got everything in the 2 fermenters and the morning after I got really big bubbling one one and nothing in the other one but there was definitely showing activity....lets see in a couple week how everything turns out.

 

[madmanmau]

Well guys...I'm coming back to you with the results of this recipe.
Feed back: Is just a plain witbier, little acid notes from the pils and wheat malts, excelent head retention, really melow and subtle hop flavor from and just a hint of orange at the end. It's hazy just like I expected from the wheat and it haz a the right color for a wit too.

I really now it is not the best but just a like a proud parent i'm here to show it to you the results..I know it is not the best glass to serve it but that was just what I had on hand.

 

[RonPopeil]

Well guys...I'm coming back to you with the results of this recipe.
Feed back: Is just a plain witbier, little acid notes from the pils and wheat malts, excelent head retention, really melow and subtle hop flavor from and just a hint of orange at the end. It's hazy just like I expected from the wheat and it haz a the right color for a wit too.

I really now it is not the best but just a like a proud parent i'm here to show it to you the results..I know it is not the best glass to serve it but that was just what I had on hand.

nice work!

the thing with all grain is if you follow the process then you get out what you put in. meaning you used a basic grain bill to get a basic beer. so if you're saying that this beer resembles a benchmark commercial beer then you should be very proud. :rockin:

 

[madmanmau]

nice work!

the thing with all grain is if you follow the process then you get out what you put in. meaning you used a basic grain bill to get a basic beer. so if you're saying that this beer resembles a benchmark commercial beer then you should be very proud. :rockin:

Thanks Ron!
I do think it resembles a commercial beer, not much complexity, simple flavors, but I really won't complain about it. I was expecting something like it to be the resoult.....next time I'm going to step it up a bit and do a big stout....let see how that goes.

 

[GrogNerd]

the best glass to serve the beer is one that holds the beer

good job & good luck with future brewing!

 

[madmanmau]

the best glass to serve the beer is one that holds the beer

good job & good luck with future brewing!

Thanks Grog! I will be around for a while

 

[madmanmau]

By the way... I got a little crazy "dry flowering" with hibiscurs flowers since those are "really mexican"....50g for 2.5gallons.....made a tea with that and dropped it on the secondary.

It got a pink color and great aroma....bottled that yesterday. I will get back with that pick too.

 

[GrogNerd]

Thanks Grog! I will be around for a while

my name, Grognerd, is based on the French word, "grognard"

in Spanish, it is "gruñon"

me llama el gringo gruñon