First AG! Went perfectly!

[Coastarine]

Well I just joined the club. I brewed the ordinary bitter kit from northern brewer. This was also my first time ever brewing alone. Efficiency into the boiler was 85% and brewhouse efficiency was 77%! I couldn't be happier. Shoutout to Bobby_M, I used his method for mashing/lautering/sparging. I also figured that on this momentous occasion I'd start my very first batch of edwort's apfelwein (with table sugar subsituted for dextrose).

I was really impressed with the turkey fryer that so many of us bought from amazon. I had 6.5 gallons boiling in 25 minutes from tap temp (80ish) on my test boil/oxidation. At full blast that thing is like a jet engine (and I watch the blue angels practice from my deck, so I know what that sounds like)

CF chiller worked great. I'm really pumped. The carboys are currently having a wet t-shirt contest under a ceiling fan. That trick works great. The apartment is 77*, the carboys are 68*.

:rockin:

 

[beerthirty]

congrats!! better efficiency then I got first couple runs. I'm hoping to hit 80% or better after I start crushing my own grain.

 

[MikeFlynn74]

Rub it in!

My first AG went like the 3 stooges were brewin

 

[ohiobrewtus]

Congrats, and enjoy it! :rockin: I still have a batch here and there that gives me fits. I think that most of us do.

 

[Hagen]

Congrats! My first AG went very well some months ago. My first attempt at multi-step this weekend however.... Oh well...

Congrats again!

 

[ajf]

Congrats. That's better efficiency that I get when batch sparging. Just don't spoil the bitter by over carbonating, or over chilling.

-a.

 

[KingBrianI]

congrats man. i did my first AG yesterday with similar results. 78% efficiency. i had to dilute a batch that was supposed to be 5.5 gal to 6 gal to get it to the right OG. i can't wait to try the results. oh yeah, i made biermunchers cream of three crops.

 

[neuron555]

My first true All Grain is on it's diacetyl rest. I guess I should be pretty happy overall, though I hope to improve on a 70% effeciency. I can at least delude myself that the wort that went on my leg, foot and the floor, would have brought the efficiency up to 80% if it had all gone in the pot!

 

[BrianP]

Congrats! Welcome to the AG club.

 

[Warped04]

Congrats Coastarine!

 

[Kauai_Kahuna]

Congratulations, (I am tempted to joke about a Marine and Coast Guard mix not getting mixed up but no). That is some really great numbers and I hope the beer comes out fantastic.

 

[Coastarine]

My gravity is down to 1010 today. The sample was the best I've ever tasted. I really could have just kept drinking it, especially if it had been a touch colder. Friday is the EPA to be pitched onto the yeast cake from the bitter.

 

[Thor the Mighty]

Well I just joined the club. I brewed the ordinary bitter kit from northern brewer. This was also my first time ever brewing alone. Efficiency into the boiler was 85% and brewhouse efficiency was 77%! I couldn't be happier. Shoutout to Bobby_M, I used his method for mashing/lautering/sparging. I also figured that on this momentous occasion I'd start my very first batch of edwort's apfelwein (with table sugar subsituted for dextrose).

I was really impressed with the turkey fryer that so many of us bought from amazon. I had 6.5 gallons boiling in 25 minutes from tap temp (80ish) on my test boil/oxidation. At full blast that thing is like a jet engine (and I watch the blue angels practice from my deck, so I know what that sounds like)

CF chiller worked great. I'm really pumped. The carboys are currently having a wet t-shirt contest under a ceiling fan. That trick works great. The apartment is 77*, the carboys are 68*.

:rockin:

awesome! i was stationed at pcola too. how is it there these days?

 

[jagg]

Congrats on a job well done! Im sure it will be fantastic, brew on!:rockin:

 

[Coastarine]

Bottled! One week in the primary and only 4 days in secondary, but it was very very clear (gelatin). This one was on the fast track to bottling so I could take some home for my dad. It tasted great, although I'm not good at tasting the beer while its flat/warm. I'm gonna see about sending some of it out to those of you who are judges. Watch for that thread to come.

 

[Coastarine]

Well I cracked one today! I know, I know...I rushed it. Oh well, I had to try one. This batch sort of got rushed into the bottle so a sample could go to my parents house with me, and it's only been in the bottle for a week and a half, but I have no other homebrew ready so trying this one early is allowing me to be patient with all the others.

Ordinary Bitter...

What I like:
Deep amber/copper color
toasty/toffee flavor, some light, characteristic fruity esters
good bitterness
authentically light carbonation

What I don't like:
No head due to low carbonation. If it were pulled through a hand pump it would be nicely agitated; perhaps a few grains of salt into the glass?
Yeast particulate. Not haze, but visible particles. I used gelatin in secondary but it only had a few days. No resources to cold crash. I guess I shouldn't expect anything better if I'm gonna rush the beer.
Some diacetyl character. Slick mouthfeel followed by some astringency. This effect is not heavy and almost goes with a bitter. Again, probably from rushing.

Overall I'm happy with it and can't wait to let the rest finish aging and enjoy. I think I'm going to do away with the secondary and just primary all my beers for 2 or 3 weeks now, depending.

 

[Coastarine]

Long overdue...

 

[Chad]

How does it taste now that it's had some time to condition in the bottle?

Looks great, by the way. Congratulations on a successful first AG.

Chad

 

[Coastarine]

It has most definitely improved. It is much smoother. I find that the green flavor in a young hoppy beer is easier to pull off in something with more substantial hop flavor and aroma, but the bitterness in this one has mellowed very very nicely. The particles have settled and I just reserve the last of the beer in the bottle until the end of the pint.

I forgot all about that diacetyl thing until I reread that. I'm not sure if I had that quite right, either way whatever I was tasting is no longer bugging me.

 

[kappclark]

Great efficiency - a holy grail for me, I fear..

Maybe I will start crushing my own grain and start fly sparging

 

[Saccharomyces]

Slight hint of diacetyl is no problem in a bitter anyway. Glad to hear it turned out well. Man that beer is CLEAR. Very pretty, nice job!

Next time I do a cream ale I'll have to drop in some gelatin a few days before racking. Still no secondary for me though. Secondaries are for oaking.