First BIAB Plan

[mygar]

This is my first all grain batch that I will be brewing. It is only 1 gallon.

It is a saison with a grain bill of 2.4lb

Using various calculators I have determined that I need between 1.75 - 2 gallon total water.

1. 1 gallon water to strike temp @ 158F
2. Mash for 60 min @ 153F
3. Pull bag and place on top of large double mesh strainer. Sparge with .75 gallon @ 170F
4. Boil wort for 60 min, etc

My estimate for boil off using a 4 qal pot is .4 gallons (from previous extract batches). Not sure about trub loss... .25gal maybe?

What do you guys think?

Originally, I was not going to use a bag... just dough in grain and use my double fine mesh strainer and another container to separate the grains.

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

With my current small batch BIAB process, I sparge, as needed, to get to my pre-boil volume (often around a quart of water). With a quart of water, the "sparge" (pour over" or "dunk") can be both time consuming and messy. Some day, I may take the time to "dial in" house recipes that sparging isn't necessary.

Have you considered doing a full volume BIAB mash?

 

[mygar]

With my current small batch BIAB process, I sparge, as needed, to get to my pre-boil volume (often around a quart of water). With a quart of water, the "sparge" (pour over" or "dunk") can be both time consuming and messy. Some day, I may take the time to "dial in" house recipes that sparging isn't necessary.

Have you considered doing a full volume BIAB mash?

Yes I have considered doing full volume … but I figure doing a sparge for a 1 gal batch would be relatively simple and maybe increase efficiency couple of pts.

 

[Redpappy]

BIAB is usually a very simple process, and you can avoid sparging, if your pot can handle a full volume. If you are using a 4 qt pot, which is 1 G, you will not be able to do this. You should have at least 10qt pot. edit: never mind on pot size, i mis read the 4 gal for a 4 qt. distractions... ugg

1. bring 2 G of water up to 158F
2. put bag in, add grains mash for 60 min at 153.
3. Mash out step is optional - if you want to do it, bring pot up to 170F for 10 min (I do not do a mash out, so timing is guess work)
3. pull bag out and squeeze till you get 1.7 G of water
4. Boil wort for 60 min, etc.

I am guessing .3G for grain absorption, .4G boil off, .3G trub for an end result of 1G finished wort. I am getting this information from Water Volume Management in All Grain Brewing - Brewer's Friend .

 

[ThenFalcon]

Looks good. I used to pull the bag from the main mash and then dunk sparge in a separate pot with 170F water for 5 to 10 minutes.

Now I just do a full volume BIAB mash because it's a bit easier. My efficiency is 5% to 8% less this way, but that's ok.

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

Yes I have considered doing full volume … but I figure doing a sparge for a 1 gal batch would be relatively simple and maybe increase efficiency couple of pts.

Given your goal of greater efficiency, your approach makes sense to me.

 

[mygar]

BIAB is usually a very simple process, and you can avoid sparging, if your pot can handle a full volume. If you are using a 4 qt pot, which is 1 G, you will not be able to do this. You should have at least 10qt pot. edit: never mind on pot size, i mis read the 4 gal for a 4 qt. distractions... ugg

1. bring 2 G of water up to 158F
2. put bag in, add grains mash for 60 min at 153.
3. Mash out step is optional - if you want to do it, bring pot up to 170F for 10 min (I do not do a mash out, so timing is guess work)
3. pull bag out and squeeze till you get 1.7 G of water
4. Boil wort for 60 min, etc.

I am guessing .3G for grain absorption, .4G boil off, .3G trub for an end result of 1G finished wort. I am getting this information from Water Volume Management in All Grain Brewing - Brewer's Friend .

Thanks for your reply. Actually you were right thinking that my pot was 4 qt as that was what I originally posted :/ I was correcting this as you were posting lol

 

[mygar]

I bought this really nice double fine mesh strainer ... based on 1 gal with Brooklyn Brew Shop vids... but my kit came with a bag. I think I will do the bag this time and strainer next for comparison.

 

[Redpappy]

I bought this really nice double fine mesh strainer ... based on 1 gal with Brooklyn Brew Shop vids... but my kit came with a bag. I think I will do the bag this time and strainer next for comparison.

If it was me, If i used the bag, I would do a full volume mash and when I pull the bag, I would squeeze it till i got the volume I needed. If I used the strainer (which will require multiple pots/containers) Then I would do a traditional All grain method. In which I would do the instruction in your first post(I did modify it a little).

Items needed:
1. 1 Pot to mash in
2. 1 pot to boil in (or another container to swap the wort around)
3. 1 container to hold sparge water
4. Strainer
5. spoon
6. Homebrew or a beer of your liking


1. 1 gallon water to strike temp @ 158F
2. Mash for 60 min @ 153F (if you have to heat up the mash again, stir while you have heat on.
3. dump wort into a double mesh strainer in another pot. Sparge with .75 gallon @ 170F to achieve 1.7G
4. Boil wort for 60 min, etc
5. during boil, kick back, enjoy a Homebrew or a beer of your choosing

 

[NSMikeD]

strainers can clog - think of the bag as a full volume strainer. Unless the stainer can hold the full mash, you'd have to do it in batches which makes the day less fun.

I do however us a colander and collection pot to hold the bag to collect wort as I hate holding it over the boil pot waiting for the draining to complete.

This was helpful when I had brews that would push my brew pot volume to the limit. I preferred to hold a few quarts back and sparge and not worry about spillage (I transfer my pot to a warm oven to hold mash temp).

TIP: . if you are throwing away the spent grains, the colander/pot set up is convenient way to let those grains cool out of the way . Grains are hot enough to melt a kitchen garbage bag - something you needn't have to deal with while keeping your focus on your first brew day.

 

[Leezer]

+1 to using a bag rather than a strainer. I also do what NSMike does with a colander and collection pot. Works great and simplifies things.

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

2. Mash for 60 min @ 153F (if you have to heat up the mash again, stir while you have heat on.

Many home brewers will insulate the kettle (sides and top) during the mash to maintain temperature.

 

[mygar]

If it was me, If i used the bag, I would do a full volume mash and when I pull the bag, I would squeeze it till i got the volume I needed. If I used the strainer (which will require multiple pots/containers) Then I would do a traditional All grain method. In which I would do the instruction in your first post(I did modify it a little).

Items needed:
1. 1 Pot to mash in
2. 1 pot to boil in (or another container to swap the wort around)
3. 1 container to hold sparge water
4. Strainer
5. spoon
6. Homebrew or a beer of your liking


1. 1 gallon water to strike temp @ 158F
2. Mash for 60 min @ 153F (if you have to heat up the mash again, stir while you have heat on.
3. dump wort into a double mesh strainer in another pot. Sparge with .75 gallon @ 170F to achieve 1.7G
4. Boil wort for 60 min, etc
5. during boil, kick back, enjoy a Homebrew or a beer of your choosing

Thanks redpappy!!!

 

[mygar]

strainers can clog - think of the bag as a full volume strainer. Unless the stainer can hold the full mash, you'd have to do it in batches which makes the day less fun.

I do however us a colander and collection pot to hold the bag to collect wort as I hate holding it over the boil pot waiting for the draining to complete.

This was helpful when I had brews that would push my brew pot volume to the limit. I preferred to hold a few quarts back and sparge and not worry about spillage (I transfer my pot to a warm oven to hold mash temp).

TIP: . if you are throwing away the spent grains, the colander/pot set up is convenient way to let those grains cool out of the way . Grains are hot enough to melt a kitchen garbage bag - something you needn't have to deal with while keeping your focus on your first brew day.

Yes, I am wondering about clogging of the strainer. I have two 1 gal grain kits, so I will do each method just for the experience. My first one will be biab though. Thanks for the hot grain tip!

 

[mygar]

Many home brewers will insulate the kettle (sides and top) during the mash to maintain temperature.

Yes, for this batch, my oven will easily hold my pot, so will do the warm oven method. I tested my oven... set to warm... temp climbed to160F. Turned off oven to see how long for temp to back down. To my surprise, temp kept climbing to 190F! There seems to be a serious lag time, but the oven is convection, so maybe this has something to do with it? I will do another test and heat to 130F and see what happens. If oven is too wonky or unpredictable, I will use a blanket or something instead.

I have been testing my new equipment (syphon, bottle wand, etc) and practicing before brew day to help prevent screw ups much as possible before brew day. I think it has helped me being so new at this.

 

[NSMikeD]

Yes, for this batch, my oven will easily hold my pot, so will do the warm oven method. I tested my oven... set to warm... temp climbed to160F. Turned off oven to see how long for temp to back down. To my surprise, temp kept climbing to 190F! There seems to be a serious lag time, but the oven is convection, so maybe this has something to do with it? I will do another test and heat to 130F and see what happens. If oven is too wonky or predictable, I will use a blanket or something instead.

I have been testing my new equipment (syphon, bottle wand, etc) and practicing before brew day to help prevent screw ups much as possible before brew day. I think it has helped me being so new at this.

Ovens can be tricky. A probe thermometer (wireless or wired) is your best friend, stick the probe in the mash (but not submerged as water above the tip ruins the probe) and you needn't open the oven. I use dual probes, one for the mash and the other for the oven ambient. My oven leaks heat fast and I am paranoid about pre-mature mash out as its lowest setting is too hot. I would put a cake pan full of hot water and a pizza stone in the open floor to act as a heat sink. I wouldn't worry about the oven temp starting at 190° . Once you open the door to put the pot in, the heat will escape.

The first 20 minutes of the mash does the bulk of the work so if you warm the oven up while getting the mash water to strike temp, then turning it off after putting in the pot, you should be good.

Saisons are forgiving with mash temps as brewers will use the low end of 148° for drier saisons or higher of 153° for sweeter ones. If you are starting at 153° you can err on the side of temp dropping a little during the mash.

Calibrate your thermometers. I have a half dozen from my BBQ habit and it is scary the variations in temp readings, even the high end ones.

PS. I just looked at the Brooklyn Brew Shop video. I have to admit, that looks a lot easier than a bag. The small grain bill for the one gallon makes this easier than using bag. I'd go with their method - just pour slowly and evenly when sparging.

 

[mygar]

Ovens can be tricky. A probe thermometer (wireless or wired) is your best friend, stick the probe in the mash (but not submerged as water above the tip ruins the probe) and you needn't open the oven. I use dual probes, one for the mash and the other for the oven ambient. My oven leaks heat fast and I am paranoid about pre-mature mash out as its lowest setting is too hot. I would put a cake pan full of hot water and a pizza stone in the open floor to act as a heat sink. I wouldn't worry about the oven temp starting at 190° . Once you open the door to put the pot in, the heat will escape.

The first 20 minutes of the mash does the bulk of the work so if you warm the oven up while getting the mash water to strike temp, then turning it off after putting in the pot, you should be good.

Saisons are forgiving with mash temps as brewers will use the low end of 148° for drier saisons or higher of 153° for sweeter ones. If you are starting at 153° you can err on the side of temp dropping a little during the mash.

Calibrate your thermometers. I have a half dozen from my BBQ habit and it is scary the variations in temp readings, even the high end ones.

PS. I just looked at the Brooklyn Brew Shop video. I have to admit, that looks a lot easier than a bag. The small grain bill for the one gallon makes this easier than using bag. I'd go with their method - just pour slowly and evenly when sparging.

Thanks for the tips. I have a magic chef wired thermometer that I have been using to test oven ambient... just hang from the rack. I also have an oven analog that sits on the rack. They both are comparable... but I have not tested either. In addition, I have a digital hand held that I have tested via ice bath (.6F off) but not on boiling water yet (do that next).

Yes, the Brooklyn vid looks easy doesn't it?

Do you stir your mash periodically? Or just let her ride for 60 in oven?

 

[NSMikeD]

Thanks for the tips. I have a magic chef wired thermometer that I have been using to test oven ambient... just hang from the rack. I also have an oven analog that sits on the rack. They both are comparable... but I have not tested either. In addition, I have a digital hand held that I have tested via ice bath (.6F off) but not on boiling water yet (do that next).

Yes, the Brooklyn vid looks easy doesn't it?

Do you stir your mash periodically? Or just let her ride for 60 in oven?

I have it a good stir before putting in the oven and then let it ride.

 

[wilserbrewer]

With small batch brewing, boil off is a much larger percentage of the total boil volume, knowing this, I would “plan” on monitoring your volume during the boil and make adjustments as needed such as increasing or decreasing boil vigor, or even extending the boil time and adding late hops timed to flame out rather then overall boil time.

it is a common error for1st time small batch brewers to be substantially off on volume and surprised when it happens yet did nothing to correct it during the brewing process.

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

Link to boiling wort visual reference.

Notches on the mash paddle (or a tape measure) can be helpful for approximating mid-boil adjustments. You may want to use a microwave to preheat water additions.

 

[mygar]

With small batch brewing, boil off is a much larger percentage of the total boil volume, knowing this, I would “plan” on monitoring your volume during the boil and make adjustments as needed such as increasing or decreasing boil vigor, or even extending the boil time and adding late hops timed to flame out rather then overall boil time.

it is a common error for1st time small batch brewers to be substantially off on volume and surprised when it happens yet did nothing to correct it during the brewing process.

Yes, I have done several extract 1 gal with this pot and seems my boil off rate is close to .5 gallon.

 

[mygar]

Link to boiling wort visual reference.

Notches on the mash paddle (or a tape measure) can be helpful for approximating mid-boil adjustments. You may want to use a microwave to preheat water additions.

My boil rigor has been L2/3 per video. I will mark mash paddle for monitoring. Thx!

 

[DJL531]

I do BIAB and use my bottling bucket as a mash ton. I wrap it in a blanket or something to hold the heat in and then drain via the tap. I've vorlaufed in this way, then drain into the kettle and even sparge after that. I set a ladder up over the bucket and hang the bag to drain into bucket as the kettle heats to a boil. I made an amazing 7% Saison doing it this way and hit the OG nearly exactly as the kit recommend.