Converting recipe size and method - need help

[MajorJC]

I found a recipe that I want to brew and I went to BrewHaHa, my LHBS, and asked Mac how to convert a recipe from 3 gallon to 10 gallon batch and he told me it was simply a matter of multiplication. So I multiplied my grain bill by 3.3 and bought my grains.

Now I'm making preparation for my brew and I notice that the original recipe was for BIAB and I will be using a mash tun with fly sparge or batch sparge, I haven't decided which one yet. The brewhouse efficiency in the recipe is 65% and I'm expecting to get a lot higher than that. I wish Mac had bagged my grains separately so I could re weight and decrease my amounts, but he ground them all together and put them into two large paper sacks. One paper sack contains only Briess 2 row and the other sack contains the remainder of the Briess 2 row and all the rest of the grain bill mixed in.

So I'm thinking that I need to change my recipe volume based on the higher efficiency. Is this as simple as doing the brew based on 10 gallon batch and then adding hot liquor until my OG is down to the 1.082 that is called for in the recipe?

I'm thinking this Imperial Stout may be too big of a beer for me to attempt on my first All Grain Brew. Can I Freeze this grain for use at a later date? Should I freeze the hops also?

 

[MajorJC]

Here is the original grains:

7.25 lb American - Pale 2-row
1 lb American - Caramel/Crystal 20L
1 lb . American - Smoked Malt
0.625 lb German - Carafe II
0.5 lb Flaked Barley
0.094 lb United Kingdom - Black Patent

Total 10.469 lbs

Here is what I bought:

24.15 lb . Briess 2 Row
3.3 lb . Crystal 20
3.3 lb . Smoked Malt
2 lb . Carafe III
1.65 lb . Flaked Barley
0.31 lb . Debittered Black

Total 34.71 lbs

 

[Sadu]

With an imperial stout, I would probably just brew it and see what happens. This is such a wide style range, you can miss or exceed your gravity by 20 points and still come out with an awesome beer.

35lb is a lot of grain though., and not an ideal first brew if you've never done all-grain before.

- Healthy yeast, lots of it, lots of aeration
- Control those fermentation temps, don't let it get too warm
- allow plenty of time on brewday and maybe brew with a buddy to help lift things around

Or, go get some ingredients for a blonde ale or pale ale or regular 5% stout which is a much much easier place to start. Those imperial stout grains will keep for several months at room temperature if you keep them airtight. Put the hops in the freezer, yeast in the fridge.

The main reason why a RIS isn't a great place to start is that they can take 6+ months to be drinkable. You want something you can rip into nice and quickly.

 

[MajorJC]

Or, go get some ingredients for a blonde ale or pale ale or regular 5% stout which is a much much easier place to start. Those imperial stout grains will keep for several months at room temperature if you keep them airtight. Put the hops in the freezer, yeast in the fridge.

The main reason why a RIS isn't a great place to start is that they can take 6+ months to be drinkable. You want something you can rip into nice and quickly.

Ok, I plugged my numbers into Brewers Friend with only using half of the Briess 2 Row.

https://www.brewersfriend.com/homebrew/recipe/view/695457/backyard-laboratory-stout

That will make it a 5% stout. Thoughts?

HOME BREW RECIPE:
Title: Backyard Laboratory Stout

Brew Method: All Grain
Style Name: American Stout
Boil Time: 60 min
Batch Size: 12 gallons (fermentor volume)
Boil Size: 14.5 gallons
Boil Gravity: 1.045
Efficiency: 80% (brew house)


STATS:
Original Gravity: 1.054
Final Gravity: 1.016
ABV (standard): 5.02%
IBU (tinseth): 52.41
SRM (morey): 37.9

FERMENTABLES:
12 lb - American - Pale 2-Row (53.2%)
3.3 lb - American - Caramel / Crystal 20L (14.6%)
3.3 lb - American - Smoked Malt (14.6%)
2 lb - German - Carafa III (8.9%)
1.65 lb - Flaked Barley (7.3%)
0.31 lb - United Kingdom - Black Patent (1.4%)

HOPS:
2 oz - Galena, Type: Pellet, AA: 12.6, Use: Boil for 60 min, IBU: 41.93
1 oz - Perle, Type: Pellet, AA: 8.2, Use: Boil for 30 min, IBU: 10.48

MASH GUIDELINES:
1) Infusion, Temp: 150 F, Time: 60 min, Amount: 7 gal
2) Fly Sparge, Temp: 160 F, Time: 60 min, Amount: 7.5 gal
Starting Mash Thickness: 1.25 qt/lb

YEAST:
Imperial Yeast - A09 Pub
Starter: No
Form: Liquid
Attenuation (avg): 69%
Flocculation: Very High
Optimum Temp: 64 - 70 F
Fermentation Temp: 66 F

 

[Sadu]

Yeah looks OK but 14% crystal malt is a bit too much for my liking. See what others say but this would be a show stopper for me. I'd normally go with about 5% in a stout.

 

[doug293cz]

With your original grain bill, 100% conversion efficiency, 1.5 gal boil off, 0 undrainable MLT volume, single batch sparge, and 10.5 gal post-boil volume, I get an estimated OG of 1.087. This is not that much over your original target. There is a very high probability that you will get less than 100% conversion, and your OG will be lower than the above estimate.

I'd just go with the grain you have.

Brew on