First all grain recipe try!

[joaoking]

My first crack at an all grain recipe and don't think I did very well. Need a better brew app, using the free brewers friend app and don't think it the numbers are coming out right.

5.5 gallon recipe

154 mash 60 mins
12# American 2 row
1# crystal 20
.5# crystal 60
.5# victory

2oz centennial 60m
1oz centennial 5m
1oz centennial 0m
2oz falconers flight dry hop 7 days

US05 for fermentation

Could use some help with thoughts and ideas. Want to break in the new mash tun. Thanks everyone!


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[brewkinger]

14# of grain with a 1.33 mash ratio should be 18.6 qts (4.66 gallons) of mash water.

Usually half quart per pound grain absorption. So 7 qts (1.75 gallons) lost to the grain

First runnings somewhere in the range of 3 gallons.

Sparge with an additional 4 gallons to get to 7 gallon pre boil volume.

Usual loss to evap and trub loss is in the 1-1.5 gallons and you end up with 5.5 into fermenter.

Keep in mind that these numbers are specific for my setup but a good starting point.




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[joaoking]

Brewers Friend is telling me I should end up with a 3% ABV that seems low to me. Gonna have to pick up some corn sugar or DME to boost it up a little. What do you think?


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[ong]

Brewers Friend is telling me I should end up with a 3% ABV that seems low to me. Gonna have to pick up some corn sugar or DME to boost it up a little. What do you think?


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Yeah, that's not right unless your efficiency is horrible.

Offhand, 2oz of Centennial at 60 seems high to me -- how many IBUs are you targeting?

 

[joaoking]

Wanted to go for a nice hoppy profile for an IPA I like centennial hops but it is subject to change what would you suggest?


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[Yooper]

Brewers Friend is telling me I should end up with a 3% ABV that seems low to me. Gonna have to pick up some corn sugar or DME to boost it up a little. What do you think?


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No way. Something in your efficiency profile isn't set up right. Try resetting that to 70% or so, and seeing what the projected OG is then. You should get 65-75% or so on your first batch. It's hard to say for sure, so if you guess at 70%, you'll be right in the ballpark.

 

[sandyeggoxj]

You could have efficiency set right on brewers freind but have a volume set wrong. That would drop the abv. 3.2 is about what you would get with a 10 gallon batch and 75-80% total efficiency.

 

[joaoking]

Thank you Yooper and Sandy for some reason my efficiency was set at 35%. Now I need to get a boost in my IBUs.


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[Yooper]

Thank you Yooper and Sandy for some reason my efficiency was set at 35%. Now I need to get a boost in my IBUs.


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with 2 ounces of centennial at 60 minutes, you should have plenty of IBUs. Check the AAUs on the centennial, and make sure "boil" and the time is selected.

 

[rodwha]

Were it me I'd change up that hop schedule. I'd certainly drop the bittering by at least half and put some in (a lot) at the 15-20 min flavoring time.

Are you looking for a somewhat balanced American style or more like the super flavorful west coast type?

 

[joaoking]

I was definitely looking for a nice hoppy profile, what changes would you make?


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[rodwha]

My latest IPA has no bittering addition, but is:
1/2 oz Warrior, Simcoe, and Centennial @ 30, 20, 10, and 5 mins, and will get 2 oz of Cascade for a 7 day dry hop. Had there not been any top off this would have been over 100 IBU's were it possible to go over 100...

 

[rodwha]

Using just what you listed?

I ran this through Brewer's Friend.

 

[sandyeggoxj]

I use the following hop schedule. I am drinking this right now. Freaking awesome.

2oz Warrior[15.7%] - FWH
2oz Chinook[12%] - 90 min
1.5oz Columbus[17.5%] - 60 min
2oz Chinook[12%] - 5 min
3oz Simcoe[11.9%] - 1 min
3 oz Amarillo Dry Hop - 5 days

That is for a 10 gallon batch. So half it for 5. Very smooth and nice. I do need to play with my water chemistry a bit too. Grain bill is 96% 2-row and 4% c40. Beer Smith tells me that is 140 IBU. But it doesn't taste "very bitter." I think that is because the bitterness is very smooth.

 

[rodwha]

Were it me and using what you listed I'd likely do:
0.5 oz Centennial @ 60 mins
1.75 oz Centennial @ 20 mins
1.75 oz Centennial @ 5 mins
Falconer's Flight for 7 day dry hop
65 IBU's

But that's because I've never done a whirlpool, though I hear it's great.

I've never used Falconer's Flight either, and I'd likely split it up evenly between the flavor and aroma additions, and move some Centennial to the dry hop from those 2 additions. But that's me, and I don't see many who divide up their hops like that. Many will use this for this addition, and that for the aroma, and another for a dry hop or some such.

 

[mlafnitzegger]

here's my latest extremely hoppy schedule for a 10gallon batch:

0.75oz Nugget [13.00 %] - Boil 60.0 min
0.15oz Horizon [12.00 %] - Boil 60.0 min
0.15oz Summit [17.00 %] - Boil 60.0 min
0.50oz Willamette [5.50 %] - Boil 45.0 min
2.00oz Santiam [6.00 %] - Boil 15.0 min
0.50 oz Willamette [5.50 %] - Boil 15.0 min

1.75 oz Cascade [5.50 %] - Dry Hop 5.0 Days
1.75 oz Centennial [5.00 %] - Dry Hop 5.0 Days
1.75 oz Chinook [13.00 %] - Dry Hop 5.0 Days
1.75 oz Simcoe [13.00 %] - Dry Hop 5.0 Days
1.25 oz Amarillo Gold [8.50 %] - Dry Hop 5.0 Days
1.00 oz Columbus (Tomahawk) [14.00 %] - Dry Hop 5.0 Days

 

[joaoking]

K so changing it up I'm going to do

60m- .5 oz centennial and Falconers Flight
20m- .75 oz centennial and Falconers Flight
5m- .75 oz centennial and Falconers Flight
7 day Dry Hop- 2oz centennial

Brewers Friend says this will give me 59.26 IBUs

What do you guys think



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[rodwha]

Certainly much better. It will likely have a fair bit of bitter to it, and not that that's necessarily bad, but it won't be quite like a west coast styled American IPA as they really load up at the end. I'm not sure which you prefer.

 

[joaoking]

I'm running my chiller on it now. Gonna end up with beer in the end. Need to start fine tuning all grain. There is a lot for me to learn.


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[rodwha]

Have you eyed your water and what you'd do?

 

[joaoking]

Not yet, just starting with the basics for all grain right now, will do so probably next batch or so


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[rodwha]

I just BIAB, which to me seems much more simple. I've read a couple of times now How To Brew, and for some reason I just can't get my little brain wrapped around all of the jargon and whatnot.

I recently received an extra 5 lb bag of milled 2-row that I was told to keep as they couldn't resell it. So I worked on my first all-grain beer.

My sparge was terrible and had to add 2 lbs of DME and a little more honey.

And then I found that the DME I used was the one I needed for my pale, and so I had to reconfigure my recipes, which turned my pale into an all-grain too.

I read about water chemistry, which seemed rather easy, though I'm told How To Brew uses outdated thought on it.

 

[rodwha]

You may want to read that portion and use his scale to see what style of beer your water is likely best suited for. If your water is too hard your IPA may very well be harsh.

 

[rodwha]

Brewer's Friend has a simple water calculator too. It's the one I've been using.

 

[brewkinger]

Have you eyed your water and what you'd do?

Not yet, just starting with the basics for all grain right now, will do so probably next batch or so

Agree with both of the above...

Eventually, the water profile should (and will) become an important aspect of making "better" beer.

I concur that for the time being, dial your system in and figure out losses and volumes, etc....

Get a good process down AND THEN dive into water chemistry.
And seek help here on HBT, specifically the BREW SCIENCE subforum.

 

[brewkinger]

You may want to read that portion and use his scale to see what style of beer your water is likely best suited for. If your water is too hard your IPA may very well be harsh.

As far as How to Brew is concerned, the readings in the book give a real basic understanding of the various mineral and chemical components in water, safe and effective amounts, etc...
The nomograph inside the back cover, is in my opinion, easy to use but essentially gave me values and an understanding that I soon changed when I consulted with the more knowledgable members on HBT.
Use something like Brewers Friend or BrunWater (my favorite). I used both when I first started messing with my water. Brun' was just easier to use for me and I verified any numbers that it gave me in Brewers Friend and they all checked out.
Plus, the designer of BrunWater is a member who routinely peruses the Brew science forum and is a great help.

Brewer's Friend has a simple water calculator too. It's the one I've been using.

 

[rodwha]

I know that my bicarbonate levels are 192 and everything else is extremely low. From what it shows I should be able to make nice dark beers. How would an IPA likely turn out were I to mash/sparge with just filtered tap water?

 

[brewkinger]

I know that my bicarbonate levels are 192 and everything else is extremely low. From what it shows I should be able to make nice dark beers. How would an IPA likely turn out were I to mash/sparge with just filtered tap water?

I have only been messing with my water for the past 6 months, so I am not well enough versed and knowledgable to answer this with great confidence.

Plus, I do not want to highjack this thread and go off tangentially.

I do know that more than just bicarb levels play into the equation, so a better water report with more values is definitely a starting point.

If you decide to probe and inquire over in the brew science forum rowdha, let me know, i would love to subscribe to that thread to help get a better understanding of it all as well.

 

[rodwha]

I asked how it would play with an IPA as this is what he's making. I adjusted my water by diluting 75% and adding salts to bring it back up.

I've read that some people just don't adjust their water, but it makes me wonder how their off styles turn out, especially if beginning at one end of the spectrum and brewing something on the other.

 

[rodwha]

It seems to my limited understanding (only been messing with my water for a month) that it's the bicarbonate levels that dictate whether your beer is OK or not, that the other things either help the yeast or just round out flavors and maltiness, but that it won't necessarily ruin the beer as long as they aren't too far out of whack.

Maybe you'd want to post your water report joaoking...

 

[brewkinger]

I asked how it would play with an IPA as this is what he's making. I adjusted my water by diluting 75% and adding salts to bring it back up.

I've read that some people just don't adjust their water, but it makes me wonder how their off styles turn out, especially if beginning at one end of the spectrum and brewing something on the other.

I understand that, but you asked about an IPA if YOU mashed and sparged with filtered tap water, so I assumed you were asking about you.

This is where the reading in how to brew is a little helpful. It discusses sulfate levels (to accentuate hop bitterness) and sodium levels. (and other mineral levels)

Then strangely enough, the water profile in BrunWater that Martin recommends turns the How to Brew (henceforth abbreviated HTB, cuz i am sick of typing it out) theories on their heads.

The pale ale profile in Brunwater has a sulfate level of 300, which seems way too high until you make a beer using it and then you realize that it does work.

 

[rodwha]

"I understand that, but you asked about an IPA if YOU mashed and sparged with filtered tap water, so I assumed you were asking about you."

Yea…I should have been more specific.

Before I got into water chemistry I'd use RO water to dilute my mash water. 1 gal for dark beers and 2 gals for light beers and called it good, though this was also due to 50/50 partial mashes knowing I had extract to help keep me inline...

 

[brewkinger]

I will repeat just for the sake of hearing myself....

Check out BrunWater (if you have not already)
Check out the Brew Science subforum (if not already)
Read the Water Chemistry- A Primer stickie (if not already)
There is A LOT of information in that stickie that really can go way over your head at first, but give it time and ask questions.
Between mabrungard, ajdelange and a couple of others, I grasped water chemistry pretty quickly. To my defense, I also have a bachelors in Chemistry, so it was not a terribly difficult thing to do.

To the OP:
You are off to a good start. Sorry we got a little off topic with water discussion. It happens from time to time.

Get to know your system to the point that it becomes 2nd nature to brew consistently.

After that, the following things will help make better beer (in no particular order):
1) ferment temp control
2) yeast control
3) water chemistry

 

[rodwha]

"Sorry we got a little off topic with water discussion."

I felt it was very much on topic, and brought it up because I felt it was more than something to just disregard or overlook, and why I brought up "my" IPA as he was making one, though I should have worded it differently to be more specific.

 

[brewkinger]

I felt it was very much on topic, and brought it up because I felt it was more than something to just disregard or overlook, and why I brought up "my" IPA as he was making one, though I should have worded it differently to be more specific.

Duly noted.

 

[rodwha]

Reading about it a little it seems that high bicarbonate levels with a pale beer is not very good at all:

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f128/hey-martin-question-about-bicarbonate-387390/