First biab, grain crush questions.

[mfranzer]

Hey guys, doing my first biab tomorrow! Got a quick question though. I bought my grains pre-crushed from northern brewer since I do not live close to a lhbs. The bags have a lot of grain dust in them which in no way can be held in the grain bag. Should I dump it in, or try to avoid it at all costs? I feel like it would be hard to get out in the end, but I tend to over think things.

Also, I see a lot of people double crush, can I use a rolling pin a bit to crush them up a bit more?

Thanks in advance!!

 

[polarbearbrewing]

I double crush and yes a lot of it turns to flour. I just put it all in my grain bag and go with it. There's a fair amount of trub that gets through the bag, but whirlpooling definitely helps keep it out of the fermenter.
I've never ordered grains from NB so I can't speak to the degree of their crush, but you could try to do a bit more if you think it needs it.
I've only gotten 2 BIAB brews under my belt so far and my efficiency has been between 71-74%. I would imagine it would be lower with a single crush so just something to keep in mind for your calculations

 

[pwolfable]

I'm fairly new to the BIAB thing as well. I'm currently brewing my 5th batch as I type this. I've never felt the need to try and avoid the grain dust personally and the 1 batch that I've drank tasted great. The others I just kegged this morning and I of course had to sample some of it... again, it was good. It's up to you, but I'm not really even sure how you would separate the grain from the dust. A big colander?

 

[themox]

i crush mine into a fine powder all the time. i use a small coffee grinder. if you use a fine mesh swizz voile bag, very little of it will come out in the pot. i've had some amazing beers this way.

 

[Flykilbosa]

Don't worry if a bit of the powder gets in there. I've ordered grains from NB, I know what you mean. Do you have any Irish Moss? That will help in the end.

Crushing the grains til they're a powder isn't recommended.

 

[Demus]

I'm confused, you're concerned about powder but you want to double crush??

 

[beaksnbeer]

I'm confused, you're concerned about powder but you want to double crush??

He is new to this learning is half the fun..........drinking is the other

 

[mfranzer]

So all is said and done. Just went the easy way, and threw everything in all out of the bags the way it came. 75% efficiency.

Lesson learned....don't over think things.

 

[Demus]

Nice work!

 

[Flykilbosa]

So all is said and done. Just went the easy way, and threw everything in all out of the bags the way it came. 75% efficiency.

Lesson learned....don't over think things.

Good job! You'll learn it's tough to screw things up....as long as everything is sanitized, odds are, you're gonna have good beer within a few weeks!!!

Good luck with the hangover!

 

[happypanties]

i crush mine into a fine powder all the time. i use a small coffee grinder. if you use a fine mesh swizz voile bag, very little of it will come out in the pot. i've had some amazing beers this way.

I've heard that you don't want to shred the husks because that will cause tannins and make the beer taste astringent. A good crush would break open the husks and leave them in tact, not shredded. Do you notice this at all?

I wonder how true this is, because I use a motorized corona mill that shreds the hell outta the husks and I'm not getting a lot of astringency.

 

[smyrnaquince]

I wonder how true this is, because I use a motorized corona mill that shreds the hell outta the husks and I'm not getting a lot of astringency.

I believe that getting astringency also depends on having a high pH. If your pH is in the right range, you shouldn't get astringency.

 

[Hawaiibboy]

So all is said and done. Just went the easy way, and threw everything in all out of the bags the way it came. 75% efficiency.

Lesson learned....don't over think things.

I my experience, the NB crush is rather good, especially if you are ordering their 3gal BIAB kits.

I haven't tried yet but you could also call them when you order and ask if they can do a double crush for you.