First all grain question

[mygar]

I am trying my first all grain this weekend... a 1 gallon kit.

The instructions say to heat (159F) 1 gallon of water and pour into steeping bag containing the grains and mix well. Mash for 1 hr @ 148F. Strain liquid into another pot and sparge the grains with 1.5 gallons - this sparge is with room temp water.

I have a nice fine double mesh strainer that I would like to use instead of the steeping bag. I would just dough the grains into the water at 159... then do the remaining steps outlined above. I would think I would have better efficiency this way.

Any thoughts on any of the above? Thanks!

 

[AJinJacksonville]

I'm confused why it would call for a sparge water temp at room temperature?

 

[mygar]

I dont know .. will post

 

[AJinJacksonville]

I believe you! Usually the sparge temp aims for between 168-170. Any higher than 170 introduces unwanted off-flavors from the tannins. I do not brew one gallon sized batches, so maybe the difference in sparging with room temp water vs. 170 degree water is negligible.

 

[mygar]

I thought sparge at 170F also.. here is instructions

 

[mygar]

Says only to heat 1 gal out of the 2.5?

 

[mygar]

Do I follow verbatim or does the forum have better instructions?

 

[AJinJacksonville]

For a one gallon batch I don't think it will ruin anything. The mash basically converts the starches into sugars that you'll be fermenting with the yeast. Hot water is typically used in the sparging process because the sugars will drain or dissolve better. You'll still have fermentable sugars if you rinse with room temp water...but it'll be less efficiency. Again, may not be that noticeable in a one gallon batch. You'd be more able to see a difference in a five gallon batch if you were to take hydrometer readings for your starting and final gravity...comparing it with your initial calculations from your ingredient list.

 

[AJinJacksonville]

Do I follow verbatim or does the forum have better instructions?

I think if you have the time and water, you could heat up the sparge water to about 168 or so (remember, not over 170 degrees), and sparge with that versus room temp water.

 

[mygar]

I think if you have the time and water, you could heat up the sparge water to about 168 or so (remember, not over 170 degrees), and sparge with that versus room temp water.

Yep that's what I was thinking. So ditch the grain bag and just dough in as normal you think? I have a fine double mesh strainer to use.

 

[AJinJacksonville]

You could still use the grain bag...it's like a mini-brew-in-a-bag from what I'm understanding. Just when you rinse the grains, you can do it with the hot water. Maybe that's why it's not requiring a hot sparge...since it seems like you'd almost be hoisting the bag up with your hand to rinse the grains perhaps?

 

[rsquared]

I thought sparge at 170F also.. here is instructionsView attachment 695969

This may be a weird question, but did you get that from a shop called Hop Hero? Those drawings on the recipe look familiar....

 

[mygar]

This may be a weird question, but did you get that from a shop called Hop Hero? Those drawings on the recipe look familiar....

Yes

 

[RM-MN]

The temperature of the sparge water makes little difference for the speed of draining as the viscosity difference is so low as to be difficult to measure. It also makes little difference in the extraction of tannins provided that the pH is below about 6.0. Where it does make a difference is in the amount of time it takes to get the collected wort to a boil (mostly negligible due to the hot wet grains heating the sparge water) and the necessity of another pot to heat the water. Using hotter water will get you a higher OG if conversion is not complete as it will speed up the action of the alpha amylase until the heat denatures it.

 

[mygar]

Where it does make a difference is in the amount of time it takes to get the collected wort to a boil (mostly negligible due to the hot wet grains heating the sparge water) and the necessity of another pot to heat the water. Using hotter water will get you a higher OG if conversion is not complete as it will speed up the action of the alpha amylase until the heat denatures it.

Yep this is why I questioned sparking with room temp. I think I will sparge with 168 to help ensure as much conversion as possible. Thanks!

 

[Leezer]

I wouldn’t ditch the grain bag. Maybe I’m missing something but how will the strainer make it possible to remove all the grain from the water at the end of the mash.

 

[mygar]

I will place my strainer (double fine mesh) on top of another container and pour my mash through it... separating the grains. My thought.. is I may introduce more particulates in my wort this way; that the bag may offer additional filtration. However, not using a bag in the mash would allow better contact with water during the mashing period... and also having it piled onto the strainer instead of in the bag when sparging... I may get better rinse this way.