My First All Grain

Alright, I don't know if I am doing this to soon, but WTH. I just finished bottling my second batch and it is a extract kit, my first (turned out and tastes very good!) was an extract w/specialty grain. Now I am jumping right into AG and it is not a kit...am I going to fast?

Anyway, I received my order for two grain bills from Michigan Brew Supply. They were very fast and the reason I went with them is 1 their selection and 2 they offer by the ounce which is important to me since I will be doing 1.25 gallon batches. I am using Brewtarget for my software and have come up with some recipes, these are the first two I picked to start this long and winding road. Which one should I do first? I do not have a traditional cooler mash tun YET, so I am mashing stove top and lautering/sparging through a 10 inch strainer.

Cream Ale

Estimated OG: 1.050
Estimated FG: 1.012
Estimated ABV: 5.2
Estimated IBU: 18.3
Estimated SRM: 4.5
60 Min Boil
1.25 gallon batch size

1.69 lb Briess 2-Row Brewers Malt
7 oz Flaked Corn
4 oz Briess Caramel Crystal 10L Malt
4 oz Briess Carapils Dextrine Malt
.07 oz Northern Brewer (60 min)
.09 oz Northern Brewer (30 min)
Safale US-05 Yeast

Single step infusion for 60 min @ 152 F

Smash Style Beer

Estimated OG: 1.053
Estimated FG: 1.012
Estimated ABV: 5.5
Estimated IBU: 31.6
Estimated SRM: 5.3
60 Min Boil
1.25 gallon batch size

2.75 lb Maris Otter
.170 oz Cascade (60 min)
.240 oz Cascade (10 min)
.240 oz Cascade (1 min)
Safale US-05 Yeast

Single step infusion for 60 min @ 152 F

I'd say you are definitely not going too fast. Once you get comfortable with the process, I can see you doing 3 of those small batches at once with no problem.

I can see room for improvement in 2 of the things you mention. First, is controlling the mash temperature. You might try putting your mash in a oven preheated to 170F then turned off to keep your temperature steady. Or, you could fashion some insulation for your pot with Reflectix.

The other issue is filtering/lautering. A paint strainer bag will give you much cleaner wort than your strainer. Even better would be a bag made from polyester voile, like wilserbrewers bags.

killer
you made the step
I hope you learned ll about yeast, grains and water while extracting and can bring that into the all grain world
if not, you still have some to learn and do not forget to study it

Now is the time to fully take detailed notes, to compare back to
your world just opened up like seing the sky the first time

There is no such thing as moving too fast in brewing! My first batch was AG...good luck and keep brewing!

StateRoad84 said:

Alright, I don't know if I am doing this to soon, but WTH. I just finished bottling my second batch and it is a extract kit, my first (turned out and tastes very good!) was an extract w/specialty grain. Now I am jumping right into AG and it is not a kit...am I going to fast?

Anyway, I received my order for two grain bills from Michigan Brew Supply. They were very fast and the reason I went with them is 1 their selection and 2 they offer by the ounce which is important to me since I will be doing 1.25 gallon batches. I am using Brewtarget for my software and have come up with some recipes, these are the first two I picked to start this long and winding road. Which one should I do first? I do not have a traditional cooler mash tun YET, so I am mashing stove top and lautering/sparging through a 10 inch strainer.

Click to expand...

Get a paint strainer bag and learn about BIAB and you may never get a cooler mash tun. Get a Corona grain mill and you may not need to worry overmuch about keeping the temperature stable for the hour long mash because if you mill fine it will be over long before that.

Congrats on jumping in. After my 3rd batch (mini-mash), I built a mash tun and HLT and went all grain. If your going to stay on the stove, I would suggest looking at BIAB.

No one answered your other question. I say do the smash first.

bleme, thanks for the suggestion to use the oven for temp keeping. I figure if I set it to warm and then shut it off it should hold the temp of the mash pot within a couple degrees. I have a 2 gallon igloo cooler that I am going to use for a mash tun. My local Lowes has the fittings I need to convert it, I am also going to get another 2 gallon cooler to use as an HLT. That is the route I would like to go, but I will also consider BIAB. I am learning a lot about yeast, grain, hops and water. I am trying to keep things simple right now and focus on the processes. I am using bottled water right now as I have some plumbing work to do ahead of my water softener and then send in a sample to Ward. I am considering going with distilled water and adjusting with salts for specific profiles????

ericbw said:

No one answered your other question. I say do the smash first.

Click to expand...

My first two were hop forward. My wife wants a malt forward, so I have to go with the Cream Ale. "Happy Wife, Happy Life"

StateRoad84 said:

I have a 2 gallon igloo cooler that I am going to use for a mash tun. My local Lowes has the fittings I need to convert it, I am also going to get another 2 gallon cooler to use as an HLT. That is the route I would like to go, but I will also consider BIAB.

Click to expand...

Even with a cooler mash tun, I think polyester voile makes a better filter than the stainless options. It filters finer so there are less floaties in your wort and the increased surface area makes stuck sparges impossible.

EXAMPLE

Awesome, go for the cream ale. One thing to keep in mind, though, is that there isn't too much leeway with a simple recipe like that, so any off flavor will be very hard to hide. Don't be discouraged if your version doesn't come out as good as a lot of commercially available ones. I've been brewing for years and my most recent brew of the Centennial Blonde still came out with a few issues.

there is much to learn, it is like becoming a chef, you must learn your individual ingredients and how they affect a beer.
the SMaSH brewing style is a great way to do that.
I tried to brew a different style each time when I stated so I had littel to compare to from beer to beer, that is why the SMaSH method is so good, you have 1 malt and 1 hop and you learn those flavors, that is info you just cannot read, it is on your tongue forever.

good luck

Awesome brew day! I hit all my SG targets within 2 points. Brewtarget said my pre-boil SG should be 1.032, actual was 1.033. Brewtarget said my OG should be 1.050, actual was 1.051. As long as I did everything right and my ferment temp can stay constant I should have a pretty good result...fingers crossed

Update.
Pulled an FG sample (first sample) at 9 days: 1.012. I'm gonna pull another on Tuesday and bottle on Thursday, which will be 14 days. Starting to settle and clear a little. Oh, and more importantly...it tastes really good!

Good luck, in my opinion all grain is superior to extract beer.