Decotion Mash Question

[Nike_Eayrs]

I have done some research on Decotion mashing and think it would be great for my next amber ale attempt. After looking at various methods, I am a bit confused. I batch sparge with a rubbermaid cooler. Do I remove wort and boil it to achieve the various steps, or do I remove grain? I know there are verying opinions on deoction mashing as well. Can anyone verify it helps build flavor? As always, I appreciate all the help. Cheers!

 

[funnycreature]

Best resources for your questions (IMHO) are:
http://braukaiser.com/wiki/index.php?title=Decoction_Mashing -> very technical
http://thebrewingnetwork.com/shows/...y-Session-10-22-06-Decoction-with-John-Palmer -> long but very informative.

Depending on what kind (how many steps) of decoction you are pulling you will make them more or less liquidy. As a rule of thumb you'll need 30-40% of your total volume for the decoction, mainly the grains. Listen to the podcast; it really de-mystifies decoctions a lot!

 

[rklinck]

For anything other than raising the temp to mash out temp, you should pull mainly grain. The enzymes largely stay in the liquid. If you pulled the liquid to decoct, you would end up denaturing the majority of the enzymes before you get full conversion.

I have done a decoction but it is just not worth the time for me. I did a three step decoction mash and it added 2+ hours to my brew day.

 

[blefferd]

Here is a good video set to show you the process.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f36/decoction-mash-video-59872/

I enjoy decoction mashes but they are extremly time comsuming.