Grain ordering/percentage of mash

[Evan_L]

In preparation for my first AG batch I have 2 questions about measurements that may go hand in hand.

1. I know there will always be exceptions, but is there a general rule of thumb as to how much percent deviation from a recipe's weight of a grain item is acceptable before a noticeable or significant change in final product occurs? For example, a recipe calls for 10oz of a specialty grain, is 10.5 ok, 11? At what point is it significant. I'm sure crystal and base malts would have different tolerances.

2. When ordering grain from an online supplier, if they allow you to choose quantities down to the ounce, how reliable is this? I would not expect 100% precision, but how close are they usually (specifically AHS)? Is it a better idea to round up by a half pound or is it not worth it since they are pretty exact?

I ask because I'm doing a Founder's Red's Rye IPA clone and have zero experience with formulating recipes so i'm not sure how closely I must follow the recipe and how exact I can expect my order to be from the supplier...also it sparked the curiosity about how much deviation from a recipe is ok before you have actually changed the recipe.

Thanks!

 

[hercher]

In reverse order, the online supplier is going to pretty much on the mark in their measurements.

As far as a percent deviation, I don't think there is a general rule of thumb. As you surmise, different malts will have different tolerances. Darker malts have smaller tolerances for deviation because their impact is greater.

 

[Conan]

Beersmith has recommendations as to max % of a grain in each recipe. I don't know any off the top of my head, but certain grains are 'stickier' in the mash than others. Wheat is one example, rye is another.

I always try to be as exact as possible with my measuring but realize my scale accuracy is only about 2 ounces one way or the other. As hercher said some grains are more susceptible to changes than others, especially in light beers. Kyle