1st all grain 1 gallon batch

[Mark10409]

Hello,
I've done quite a few extract and partial mash kits. This morning I found a recipe for a Belgian Witbier in a 1 gal batch all grain. I am in the middle of steeping the grains now and Im thinking its not right. In the text it states that it should be like an "oatmeal" consistency, mine is no wheres thick as that. The recipe called out 2.7 gallons of water to start out with. At the time it seemed to be quite a bit for 1 gallon batch but I followed the recipe. I have attached the recipe. Is the 2.7 gallons wrong?

Thanks,
Mark

 

[chickypad]

Yeah that to me is a lot of water for a batch that size. Given that they are counting on 1.3 gal post boil, and if you take the typical grain absorption for BIAB, it looks like they are counting on 1.25 gals of boil off (which is about what I used to get in a 12 gallon pot). It's an extremely thin mash at over 5 qt/lb, there could be issues with conversion or pH if you didn't include some acid. Then again might be fine, did you teak a reading after the mash or boil?

 

[Mark10409]

Yeah that to me is a lot of water for a batch that size. Given that they are counting on 1.3 gal post boil, and if you take the typical grain absorption for BIAB, it looks like they are counting on 1.25 gals of boil off (which is about what I used to get in a 12 gallon pot). It's an extremely thin mash at over 5 qt/lb, there could be issues with conversion or pH if you didn't include some acid. Then again might be fine, did you teak a reading after the mash or boil?

Hi,
Well it said the recipe was calling for 61 gravity points right after steeping, I got 1.015 lol. After the boil I got 1.040, target was 1.047. I went ahead and put it in the fermenter anyways. Next time I will look for a tried and tested recipe Thanks for the reply.

 

[chickypad]

Your gravity pts would be 15 x the volume in gallons preboil. Do you know what volume you ended with? You must have boiled off a lot if both those readings are correct. At any rate, 1.040 is not bad it will just be a little lower alcohol. The thing to do is record your actual numbers like boil off, and with post boil volume and OG you can calculate your efficiency. Then you can match any recipe to your system. Everyone's will be slightly different so you need to know your own numbers.

 

[Mark10409]

Your gravity pts would be 15 x the volume in gallons preboil. Do you know what volume you ended with? You must have boiled off a lot if both those readings are correct. At any rate, 1.040 is not bad it will just be a little lower alcohol. The thing to do is record your actual numbers like boil off, and with post boil volume and OG you can calculate your efficiency. Then you can match any recipe to your system. Everyone's will be slightly different so you need to know your own numbers.

I ended up with about 1 1/2 gal. approx. I boiled it pretty hard. I guess I was surprised I even got 1.040, Thanks!

 

[chickypad]

I ended up with about 1 1/2 gal. approx. I boiled it pretty hard. I guess I was surprised I even got 1.040, Thanks!

Actually you did quite well then. You got 60 gravity pts out of 2 lb of grain, and the recipe was aiming for 61. Looks like that's over 80% efficiency. If you had used just a little less water you would have been right on. So now you know for next time.

 

[Mark10409]

Actually you did quite well then. You got 60 gravity pts out of 2 lb of grain, and the recipe was aiming for 61. Looks like that's over 80% efficiency. If you had used just a little less water you would have been right on. So now you know for next time.

Thank you for your help!

Mark

 

[Druman07]

There's a couple of good books out there that provide recipes for small batch 1 gal and normal batch. One i like is by Christensen. Typically the strike water is 1.25 - 1.5 qts per pound of grain and then 4-5 qts of sparge water. When you account of evaporation loss, and waste due to drub, you will come in around a gallon, and hopefully in the neighborhood of the target OG. Like mentioned above, too much water at the beginning dilutes the wort, and only boiling will get you to the OG you want to be at. If you start with the right amount of water life is a lot simpler.

 

[Mark10409]

Thank you for the tips! I will look for the book.

Mark