I now have a fermenter to do a 7.5 gal batch, my problem is I don't have a boil kettle big enough. I batch sparge and have two kettles to boil in. What would happen if I put first runnings in one, second runnings in another and put the hops 50/50 in each boil kettle. Would that cause a problem with bitterness or would it work ok? Thanks Kurt
boiling wort
- Thread starter KSch
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Pretty sure you're describing the Texas Two step method 
I would add my last few quarts from the mash tun to a separate pot, but only add hops to my main kettle. About 15 minutes from the end I would start boiling my 2nd runnings to sterilize, chill it in an ice bath, and then add it to the main batch in the fermenter. It always turned into beer and got me another 1/2 - 3/4 gallon into the batch.
I would add my last few quarts from the mash tun to a separate pot, but only add hops to my main kettle. About 15 minutes from the end I would start boiling my 2nd runnings to sterilize, chill it in an ice bath, and then add it to the main batch in the fermenter. It always turned into beer and got me another 1/2 - 3/4 gallon into the batch.I was doing 2.5 gal batches with 10 qts in my 12 qt BK and whatever was left into a smaller 6 qt pot. So for me it was a pretty small portion of the final volume that I omitted the hops from. If you're truly splitting half and half, you may find a difference in perceived bitterness in your final product. Do some searching on the Texas Two step process if you'd like, it may give some better advice for bigger batches.
In my mind I maybe lost a few IBUs by boiling in a higher gravity wort, but the volume was smaller so hop concentration per gallon was higher. Most bitterness is about how many alpha acids from the hops are isomerized. Topping off with thin wort made my brewhouse efficiency better than topping off with just water and I still liked the bitterness that I achieved. YMMV
