First AG - 95% efficiency - Am I the son of god or calculation mistake

[mattd2]

However what I am seeing on close inspection is quite a bit of suspended minute particulate matter.
Now my assumption is that these are tiny fragments of grain that are small enough to pass through the grain bag wall, are not being picked up by a "proper" lautering process and are not heavy enough to settle into the trub.

So as a disclaimer I have only done 1 BIAB and that was my first all grain and my first boil as I have been up to now just usings coopers cans:cross:

But I calculated my eff to be around 85-89% (my volume measurement wasn't the most accurate meathod). What LHBS do you go to? I got mine from Hauraki Homebrew and used their crushed grain.
I have noticed that that beer also has those tiny tiny tiny fleks of something in it, only really can see them if held up to the light. Beer taste great though, 186x better than even a 2 can coopers with no extra dextrose! Now I just need to get a bigger pot (current is just a Warehouse 4.5 gallon I got for $18!) because I dont see 3 gallons of that beer lasting very long

 

[lone_wolf]

So as a disclaimer I have only done 1 BIAB and that was my first all grain and my first boil as I have been up to now just usings coopers cans:cross:

But I calculated my eff to be around 85-89% (my volume measurement wasn't the most accurate meathod). What LHBS do you go to? I got mine from Hauraki Homebrew and used their crushed grain.
I have noticed that that beer also has those tiny tiny tiny fleks of something in it, only really can see them if held up to the light. Beer taste great though, 186x better than even a 2 can coopers with no extra dextrose! Now I just need to get a bigger pot (current is just a Warehouse 4.5 gallon I got for $18!) because I dont see 3 gallons of that beer lasting very long

Yes! exactly, when you hold the beer up to the light the flecks become visible. I've sourced my grain from haurakihomebrew and brewshop.co.nz. I'm not sure I've noticed a difference in texture to be honest.

 

[Rover]

I also get those flecks. I really don't think it effects the end product though. As long as you are fermenting your brew long enough, I don't think it matters. For crying out loud, you're getting 90+% efficiency, think about how much $$ you'll save!

 

[mattd2]

Yes! exactly, when you hold the beer up to the light the flecks become visible. I've sourced my grain from haurakihomebrew and brewshop.co.nz. I'm not sure I've noticed a difference in texture to be honest.

Thanks for the link to www.brewshop.co.nz, I think this will be were I'll get ingredients from now as I can't find any reasonable priced brewshops in Tauranga!
Cheers

 

[Sizz]

Sweet Jeebus! I hate to be the bearer of bad news but something can't be right. The only way you're getting those high efficiencies is if you're squeezing a lot of the fluid out of the grains, not measuring volumes correctly, or using more grain than you think. The efficiency calculations are assuming the grains are soaking up a percentage of the liquid. Squeezing the grains violates that assumption. There's a reason people go through the trouble of long fly sparges in order to achieve those 90%+ efficiencies. Osmosis takes quite a while as the high concentrations of sugars in the grains migrate to low concentrations of the sparge water. Squeezing grains is not recommended. Try brewing two tea bags, allow one to drip and squeeze the other one. Taste both of them and ye shall see the light. Your mouth will pucker up from the astringent tannins of the squeezed bags. My Dad used to say: "Do you want it fast, cheap, or good? Pick two."

 

[lone_wolf]

Sweet Jeebus! I hate to be the bearer of bad news but something can't be right. The only way you're getting those high efficiencies is if you're squeezing a lot of the fluid out of the grains, not measuring volumes correctly, or using more grain than you think. The efficiency calculations are assuming the grains are soaking up a percentage of the liquid. Squeezing the grains violates that assumption. There's a reason people go through the trouble of long fly sparges in order to achieve those 90%+ efficiencies. Osmosis takes quite a while as the high concentrations of sugars in the grains migrate to low concentrations of the sparge water. Squeezing grains is not recommended. Try brewing two tea bags, allow one to drip and squeeze the other one. Taste both of them and ye shall see the light. Your mouth will pucker up from the astringent tannins of the squeezed bags. My Dad used to say: "Do you want it fast, cheap, or good? Pick two."

In my defence I did say right at the outset that there is some grain bag squeezage going on - to be extra clear after the sparge I let it drain as throughly as possible in a big colander and only then start squeezin - basically, I let it drip, then I let it rip :rockin: I'll admit that by the time i'm finished with the grain its pretty damn dry
Not wanting to rake muck thats probably settled in other forums but I thought the whole squeeze the bag causes tannins theory had pretty much been debunked - But I think its at least partially responsible for another problem and thats a crapload of protein and particulate matter coming through to the boil (particulate matter actually hangs around until bottling)

 

[mattd2]

Try brewing two tea bags, allow one to drip and squeeze the other one. Taste both of them and ye shall see the light. Your mouth will pucker up from the astringent tannins of the squeezed bags.

So what does tea have to do with beer? Tea has a lot of tannins in it and you brew tea with 100 deg C water, I agree the "don't squeeze your sack" fear has been debunked.

 

[TokyoRoad]

To the guys that are getting crystal clear beer with BIAB - So I should be clearer(!)
assuming I brew without a crapload of dark malt the beer in the bottle is clear - that is to say I do not have issues with haze (aside from what can be expected towards the bottom of a bottle conditioned beer).
However what I am seeing on close inspection is quite a bit of suspended minute particulate matter.
Now my assumption is that these are tiny fragments of grain that are small enough to pass through the grain bag wall, are not being picked up by a "proper" lautering process and are not heavy enough to settle into the trub.

I suspect that post-mash if I set the contents of the grain bag up as a grain bed and reticulated etc then these particles would not make it into the finished product
thoughts?

Not sure what is going on with your brewing process, but I get nothing suspended, even when I hold the beer up to the light. There are no grain particles that I can see, nor has anyone else commented on when drinking my beers.

 

[Sizz]

Anyone have a link to where the "squeezing = tannins" theory is debunked? I'm assuming it's basically a blind taste test and there was no discernible difference between both methods. If this is true, I'd like to add a press to my system and get most of the goodness out.

 

[Rover]

Take a look at this thread:
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/squeezing-grain-bag-bad-175179/

It starts off saying that squeezing is bad but than if you keep reading there are some references to articals that contradict that.

 

[lone_wolf]

Anyone have a link to where the "squeezing = tannins" theory is debunked? I'm assuming it's basically a blind taste test and there was no discernible difference between both methods. If this is true, I'd like to add a press to my system and get most of the goodness out.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f37/grain-bag-squeezing-185039/index2.html

 

[Sizz]

I learned something today. I'll stop spreading that propaganda from now on since that's a lot of anecdotal evidence that disproves the theory. But where is the double blind study? I got a good beer with my first Mr. Beer kit but that doesn't mean there isn't room for improvement. I want to know if the difference is minimal or non-existent. The only way is an actual side by side comparision.

 

[Rover]

I learned something today. I'll stop spreading that propaganda from now on since that's a lot of anecdotal evidence that disproves the theory. But where is the double blind study? I got a good beer with my first Mr. Beer kit but that doesn't mean there isn't room for improvement. I want to know if the difference is minimal or non-existent. The only way is an actual side by side comparision.

It sounds like you you won't believe it till you taste it for your self, so
brew up a couple batches. Squeeze one and don't squeeze the other.
Let us know what you think

Oh, and make sure you adjust for the 5%+ efficiency

 

[BrewMoreBeers]

I'll stop spreading that propaganda from now on since that's a lot of anecdotal evidence that disproves the theory.

I don't think anecdotes can disprove theory... They are not scientific evidence.

 

[BrewMoreBeers]

I got a good beer with my first Mr. Beer kit...

I guess this proves that taste is subjective... Brew what you like and enjoy it.

But for competition, you need to match the flavor to the profiles; that is a different discussion.

 

[Rover]

I don't think anecdotes can disprove theory... They are not scientific evidence.

Is there any scientific evidence that proves the theory that squeezing grains causes extra tannin extraction?
Just wondering