First all grain BIAB

[bowserm]

Hello everyone,

I just did my first BIAB and ended up with a 25% efficiency.

It was a 1 gallon stout recipe I converted from extract to grain.

If I brew the extract recipe, can I merge the 2 into the secondary, or should I just suck it up and drink the 1 gallon of 1.94 ABV once it's done?

I am guessing I didn't crush the grains good enough and that's what caused the low efficiency.

 

[thegreatbrewnorth]

Hello everyone,

I just did my first BIAB and ended up with a 25% efficiency.

It was a 1 gallon stout recipe I converted from extract to grain.

If I brew the extract recipe, can I merge the 2 into the secondary, or should I just suck it up and drink the 1 gallon of 1.94 ABV once it's done?

I am guessing I didn't crush the grains good enough and that's what caused the low efficiency.

25% seems REALLY low. Even if you didn't crush the grains well enough for BIAB, that's still unreasonably low. Are you sure you converted the recipe correctly? There must by other factors which your missing besides grain crush.

 

[fuzzy2133]

Please post up the recipe you came up with. 25% is a wide open door of possible problems.

 

[MrHopScotch]

An efficiency that low could be the result of an inaccurate thermometer. If you missed your mash temp by, say, 10 or 15 degrees, you may not have had complete conversion during the mash.

I could believe efficiency in the 60s bring a result of bad crush but not that low.

 

[bowserm]

1.5 lbs of Maris Otter
0.1 lb of black malt
0.2 lb of C60
0.2 lb of chocolate malt
0.3 lb of roasted barley

It was mashed for 75 minutes at 155 degrees. For the last 20 minutes I had to turn up the heat because it dropped to 148-150. I got the temp back up within a few minutes.

I used a digital thermometer, so not sure how inaccurate those get.

 

[bowserm]

This was a 1 gallon batch by the way. I mashed then boiled with 2 gallons

 

[phug]

what was the OG?

 

[bowserm]

The OG was 1.021. According to Brewers friend, it will finish at 1.006 which for a stout is way too dry. I am using S-04 yeast

 

[phug]

Yeah, that's brutally low. Any idea what your water profile is?

 

[bowserm]

I use bottled water from either the grocery store or Walmart. I have used it for all my batches.

So should I do another batch and merge the 2 together? I'll do an extract version with some extra LME, but keep the steeping grains the same

 

[fuzzy2133]

Distilled (DI)/Revers Osmosis (RO) from a Water Machine or Bottles Spring Water off the shelf?

If the water was from one of the DI/RO Water Machines that fill your water bottle (1-5 gallon bottle) there probably were not enough minerals to get near the correct PH for the enzymes to perform the starch to sugar conversion.

 

[bowserm]

Bottles of spring water off the shelf

 

[aprichman]

What temperature did you measure your OG at? I assume you're using a hydrometer?

 

[bowserm]

It was 72 degrees with a hydrometer.

 

[aprichman]

It was 72 degrees with a hydrometer.

Usually hydrometers are calibrated to be read at 60F so your true OG was probably around 1.022 - 1.023. My guess is that your mash probably got too hot and you denatured some of the enzymes.

You also mashed at ~1 gallon of water per lb of grain which probably contributed to your low efficiency. I wouldn't go much higher than 2 qt/lb and mash higher than 152F.

 

[bowserm]

Thanks @aprichman. I will remember that for my next batch.


So can I merge this batch with a fresh batch?

 

[aprichman]

Thanks @aprichman. I will remember that for my next batch.


So can I merge this batch with a fresh batch?

Personally, I would just let this batch ride and bottle/drink it as is. Keep your new batch separate and try to get proper efficiency this time around.

 

[MrHopScotch]

If you think of it, before you brew your next batch post a picture of your grain crush so we can at least see if it's in the ballpark.

 

[bowserm]

Next time @MrHopScotch I'll be crushing the grains at the local shop instead of thinking i can do it myself without a mill

 

[Onkel_Udo]

I used a digital thermometer, so not sure how inaccurate those get.

Cheap ones can be way off. This particularly true of remote probe thermometers that do not have a waterproof probe to wire interface.

Testing it is easy. Stick it in boiling water. Should ready 212 f at sea level. Fill a cup with ice and let it melt to half ice, half water...should read about 33-34 f.

 

[aprichman]

Next time @MrHopScotch I'll be crushing the grains at the local shop instead of thinking i can do it myself without a mill

You didn't run the grain through a mill? Think we found the problem here

 

[Gavin C]

If the grains were not crushed that would be a reasonable explanation to a 25% eff.

On another note. Don't be concerned with water to grain ratio with BIAB. The typical ratios people quote are related to traditional mashes. With BIAB the ratio is indirectly determined by two factors

How much water you need
How much grain you need

This is especially true with a full volume no Sparge BIAB which is what you are doing. The high water to grain ratio will not affect your efficiency by these large amounts. Where it becomes relevant is with regard to mash pH; an easily rectified issue. My thread below might be of use to you. I BIAB also.

A stout that dry would be a dumper in my books. But I guess with a 1 gallon batch that is no biggie. I'm sure you will get a better result next time.

 

[bowserm]

I crushed them with a rolling pin inside a ziplock bag. Probably 5 minutes for each grain. If that is indeed why I got such a low efficiency then I will make sure I never make that mistake again.

A 1 gallon batch will be easier to choke down than 5. Plus it's my first all-grain so I will probably enjoy it more. (Hopefully it's drinkable)

 

[beerdrinker]

One other thought on the low efficiency, did you leave much liquid behind in the kettle?

I've recently started with 2.5 gallon test batches and my first came out light as well. I played with the numbers and realized I has 1gallon left in the kettle with the trub a this threw off my numbers. I now calculate accounting for the 1 gallon in the kettle (6 gallons with 5 gallon batches, 3.5 gallons with 2.5 gallon batches).

If you had a similar issue, 1 gallon left from a 1 gallon batch that's half the batch left and if adjusted for that could make the 1.021 batch 1.042.

 

[shetc]

More help at http://www.biabrewer.info/ as well

 

[bowserm]

@beerdrinker, there was very little remaining in my pot. Maybe 500ml (I think that's 16oz) but maybe I should go with that for my next batch. Do 1.5 times the ingredients and see how that works out.

This is why I do small 1 gallon test batches.. I need to work out all the kinks before going full size.

Thanks @shetc, I will check out the biab forum

 

[beerdrinker]

I wouldn't count on this being a kink with a full size batch. You'll want to work on tracking your brewing numbers for 1 and 5 gallon batches separately.

 

[bowserm]

So as a follow up, I cracked open one of these today. the smell isn't very good, it has great carbonation, and the taste is okay. not really anything great. I am probably going to dump the swing tops, but keep the non-swing tops in the cellar for a bit to see if it gets any better.

It was only 8 bottles, so I am not going to complain too much. I have learned, and it won't happen again.