First BIAB

[MikePiotti]

I have done a few extract kits but wanted more control over taste color and well just to stop spending so much on those damn kits.

I tried my hand at a Chocolate Stout, but wanted to ad a twist. So I added Fresh Mint to the boil. (OK so the SWMBO came up with the twist haha )

The guy at the local HBS hooked me up and gave me some pointers. (Like my need to get a mash tun and a Larger kettle...Yea thanks I Know).

So I only have a 20qt kettle but cant be bothered taking up space in my fermenter with 2.5 gal brews, I doubled the batch but had to break it up in two boils. That took a while but i think it ended well.

My grain bill + some left overs


Getting the Water to the right temp. Around 165* I thought i would loose a lot of heat since my pot is really thin but surprisingly not. I think next time I will have to heat to only 160* because it stayed at 159-160 the whole mash-in.


I used a paint strainer bag from Home Depot like I have read so many times here on HBT, worked well. I made sure to stir for 5 minutes or more hoping to get a good efficiency. Ended with 78.8% (pretty good for my first!)


I used a cullender that fit above a smaller pot to drain and squeeze out the liquid in the grains, while getting the boil started to try to save time.


My boil, I love the color! This is why I wanted to switch to all grain so soon!


I cooled in a ice bath, no chiller yet either, and pitched with WL Irish ale Yeast.

Welcome to some pointers if you guys have them. Over all for my first run I think it went well, now lets just hope it turns out well in the fermenter.

 

[Rockn_M]

Looks very nice!

Congrats!

 

[sablesurfer]

Looks like a do'able process there. Pretty much how I started my brew in bag. Something to keep in mind about mashing in the pot. (I have seen other posts to this effect, so not just weird physics in my house.)

If you have a very full pot after mash-in, you will lose less heat than if you have a lower fill. Not sure why, but even wrapped in towels I have had a 3/4 pot lose over 4degrees when same set up only loses 1-2 with a very full pot.

 

[dstranger99]

Looks great ! I love to do BIAB.......

 

[kh54s10]

Looks great, with a little practice you will dial in your mash temperatures.

BTW, I don't like BIAB because of the hot, wet, sticky mess.

 

[MikePiotti]

Between the house being a steam bath and my hands burning from squeezing the bag it was defiantly hot. I know to get them heat resistant rubber gloves for next time haha


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[Hello]

Process looks solid and your efficiency is something I admire.

Might I recommend these gloves:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00HLPXL80/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

They've been on my wish list for a while and I'll be buying just before I do my first BIAB small batch.

 

[NewWestBrewer]

Between the house being a steam bath and my hands burning from squeezing the bag it was defiantly hot. I know to get them heat resistant rubber gloves for next time haha


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Use a flat pot lid to squeeze the bag. Also if your oven has a 170 degree setting, turn it on while heating your strike water, leave on for 10 minutes, turn off and put your kettle in there. I generally don't lose a degree throughout the mash this way.

 

[sablesurfer]

In the winter you have great humidifier for central heat and in the summer you just open windows. Now if too hot and you already have A/C on, well then that kinda sux.

 

[wilserbrewer]

Between the house being a steam bath and my hands burning from squeezing the bag it was defiantly hot. I know to get them heat resistant rubber gloves for next time haha


Brew

Get a fan, set it in a window and exhaust the steam.

On the burnt hands, just leave your bag alone in the colander to drain.

Let it cool and drain in the colander for 20 minutes or so and there will be almost nothing left to squeeze. Keep your tender hands off the hot bag, let gravity do the job. Also, some like to sparge a quart or two of cool water over the bag to improve efficiency and cool the bag. While the silicone gloves are the cats ass, really not needed IMO.

 

[MikePiotti]

Thanks guys! I will definitely be tweaking things for my next brew. that's why this hobby so fun! I for sure have to get a burner for the summer months, it was just to freaking warm.

 

[kh54s10]

I was talking about the hot sticky mess just getting the bag out of the pot and into the colander. I have done a couple but much prefer to use my 3 tier system. It takes longer and there is more to do but it is much easier for me.

 

[MikePiotti]

Oh yes. They too haha


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[MikePiotti]

So I pulled a sample to check the gravity. And it looks and tastes great.
Lots of chocolate, great color, good aroma. But a little lack of mint. I will be adding some more tomorrow. So that's the good... The bad: the gravity is way off! The FG is estimated to be 1.016. I am at 1.04. That's not to far off the OG of 1.054. What would make my FG so far off? Should I just let it sit another week and bottle? Two more weeks? Re-pitch yeast? Thanks in advance for the help


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[sablesurfer]

Was your mash too hot or too short? Those would be first things on the troubleshooting list. Another would be temps changed too suddenly during fermentation? (A cold drop and they will fall alseep before completely done.)

Lastly, it may just be taking a while. Ten days is not quite two weeks, which is when I would start taking gravities. Take it once and then take again in a day or two.

 

[RM-MN]

So I pulled a sample to check the gravity. And it looks and tastes great. View attachment 187997
Lots of chocolate, great color, good aroma. But a little lack of mint. I will be adding some more tomorrow. So that's the good... The bad: the gravity is way off! The FG is estimated to be 1.016. I am at 1.04. That's not to far off the OG of 1.054. What would make my FG so far off? Should I just let it sit another week and bottle? Two more weeks? Re-pitch yeast? Thanks in advance for the help


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Are you using a refractometer to take your readings? Alcohol throws their reading way off. What yeast are you using and what temperature was the fermenter? You do realize that you mashed quite high and that will create dextrines that are not fermentable by ale yeast.

 

[MikePiotti]

I know I mashed a little high, my temps didn't drop like I thought when I mashed in. so of that's it. That's something I have to fix. My temps are around 65F with no sudden drops maybe a few degrees here and there. I am thinking I am going to wait till week three and check. Worst come to worst I have a tasty beer with little to no alcohol.


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[FB12]

Use a flat pot lid to squeeze the bag. Also if your oven has a 170 degree setting, turn it on while heating your strike water, leave on for 10 minutes, turn off and put your kettle in there. I generally don't lose a degree throughout the mash this way.

+1 to the pot lid. Works great with no burns! Once you get outdoors with a burner, you'll be golden! Nothin' better than BIAB outside with some tunes or a ballgame.

 

[MikePiotti]

I am now three weeks out and my gravity is at 1.034. It's a little better but not great. I am thinking and letting it sit another week and bottling. I had to add some more mint it still doesn't have a taste of it at all and since I'm sticking with fresh mint it's more of an experiment.


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[sablesurfer]

Just random thought, isn't mint flavor in an oil form? So you would be trying to soak oil in water, that isn't going to work so much. Wonder if you would have had to add it during boiling.

 

[gspfarr]

First post. Yay!

My two cents on why your attenuation is low: I'm pretty sure that mint can be used as a disinfectant to kill bacteria... It will most likely inhibit/kill the yeast, too. That can be why you're beer may still have a high FG.

Another flavoring that disinfects is cinnamon - that's why you can't just mix it in directly with bread dough, you have to roll it in as a layer.

As far as the flavor goes, my guess is that the mint's flavoring oils broke down during the boil - think of the hop oils from early additions that behave differently than late additions.

I am now three weeks out and my gravity is at 1.034. It's a little better but not great. I am thinking and letting it sit another week and bottling. I had to add some more mint it still doesn't have a taste of it at all and since I'm sticking with fresh mint it's more of an experiment.


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[MikePiotti]

That's a fair thought. I will have to do some research on that. Thanks


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