Any problem with this method?

[r4dyce]

Hey there. I frequently do small all grain batches using methods originally derived from Brooklyn Brew Shop kits. For those unfamiliar it breaks down like this:

Mash in a pot.
Dump out mash into a mesh strainer, catching the runnings
Sparge with heated water over the grains in the strainer.
Recycle the wort over the grains once.

My question is after the mash couldn't I just dump all the grains and liquid into the pot of sparge water? Wouldn't that effectively rinse the grains? I could give that a good stir and since I have the strainer I could then just strain everything into my boil pot and rock from there.

Maybe there's a simple reason why this doesn't work, I just don't know enough to say. To me it seems quite like boil in a bag but instead of the bag I'm just straining out the grains. Thoughts? Thanks!

 

[mongoose33]

Yes, you can do that.

I'm a little surprised about "recycle the wort over the grains." That defeats the purpose of a sparge which is to rinse residual sugars stuck to the grain. Any advantage to sparging is defeated by "rinsing" grain with wort; the idea is to get the sugars off there, not add them back.

A typical mash would go like this: mash the grains; drain off the "first runnings" of wort. Add the sparge water, stir; drain off the "second runnings" of weaker but still valuable wort. Combine the two in the boil kettle, and go from there.

 

[timdillon36]

The way i would do it is, mash in pan A and when done strain and drain into pan B. Then place strainer over pan A and pour the wort from pan B through the grain into pan B. Then pour your sparge water through the grain.

The reason to pour the wort back through the grain is a volouf step to use the grain to filter the wort again.

 

[shortyz]

BIAB is easier and you already probably have what you need.

 

[IslandLizard]

...derived from Brooklyn Brew Shop kits. For those unfamiliar it breaks down like this:

Mash in a pot.
Dump out mash into a mesh strainer, catching the runnings
Sparge with heated water over the grains in the strainer.
Recycle the wort over the grains once.

Wrong order

1. Dump out mash into a mesh strainer, catching the runnings
2. Recycle the wort over the grains once. This is to filter out the bits of grain that made it through the mesh. (called "vorlauf"). You should now have clear wort without grain. Repeat if necessary. These are your (clear) 1st runnings.
3. Sparge with heated water over the grains in the strainer.

For better, more thorough sparging you could dump the grains back into pot. Add sparge water, stir well. Then strain as you did for the 1st runnings, including "vorlauf," but catch the 2nd runnings in a different vessel, do not drain into the pot that already contains the clear 1st runnings. You do need a 3rd vessel (or pot) for this. This method is known as a batch sparge.

Combine 1st and 2nd runnings in your boil pot.

 

[Calder]

How big is your pot?

I assuming it is a 5 gallon (or smaller).

Get a large paint straining bag from the hardware store (about $4 for two bags - and they can be rinsed clean and reused).

Heat water to strike temp (about 10 F above mash temp - depends on water to grain ratio). Once at temp, line pot with bag and pour in grains. Mash for 30 minutes. Lift out bag with grains and leave to drain for a few minutes, and add drained wort to boil pot.

Meanwhile heat some extra water in a separate pan to 'sparge' the grains. Place drained grains (still in the bag) into the sparge water, and leave for about 10 minutes. remove bag, drain and collect wort. Add all collected wort to boil kettle.

Stir occasionally throughout.

 

[madscientist451]

I'm a little surprised about "recycle the wort over the grains." That defeats the purpose of a sparge which is to rinse residual sugars stuck to the grain. Any advantage to sparging is defeated by "rinsing" grain with wort; the idea is to get the sugars off there, not add them back.

There are all kinds of systems being used today that "recycle the wort", except they call it "recirculation".
A local brewery near here with a 20 bbl brew house recirculates the wort in the mash tun for 30 minutes after it sits there without recirculating for 30 minutes.
Here's an article about recirculating the wort in the mash tun:

https://learn.kegerator.com/recirculating-mash/

 

[mongoose33]

There are all kinds of systems being used today that "recycle the wort", except they call it "recirculation".
A local brewery near here with a 20 bbl brew house recirculates the wort in the mash tun for 30 minutes after it sits there without recirculating for 30 minutes.
Here's an article about recirculating the wort in the mash tun:

https://learn.kegerator.com/recirculating-mash/

Oh, sure, but not with the size factor the OP is using. To sparge then recirculate doesn't make sense.

 

[RM-MN]

How big is your pot?

I assuming it is a 5 gallon (or smaller).

Get a large paint straining bag from the hardware store (about $4 for two bags - and they can be rinsed clean and reused).

Heat water to strike temp (about 10 F above mash temp - depends on water to grain ratio). Once at temp, line pot with bag and pour in grains. Mash for 30 minutes. Lift out bag with grains and leave to drain for a few minutes, and add drained wort to boil pot.

Meanwhile heat some extra water in a separate pan to 'sparge' the grains. Place drained grains (still in the bag) into the sparge water, and leave for about 10 minutes. remove bag, drain and collect wort. Add all collected wort to boil kettle.

Stir occasionally throughout.

This method works well (except always calculate the strike temp of the water to hit your mash temp). Depending on the crush of your grain you may need a longer mash, up to 90 or longer is sometimes needed. Also you can skip the heating of the sparge water. Just put the sparge water in the pot, set the bag of grain into it and stir them up. You don't even have to wait the 10 minutes. As soon as the water and grains are mixed you will have the sugars dissolved into the water and can pull the bag out and squeeze out the wort it has trapped.