Head-to-Head: 3 vessel and BIAB

[hio3791]

With all due respect, what did this experiment prove? For being Process Engineers, there are so many variables that this proves nothing more than 2 friends making the same recipe, with totally different process, ending with 2 different beers and one finishing in half the time.

Don't get me wrong, it's cool but it's not an experiment that proves anything between 3-vessel and Biab.

 

[RM-MN]

With all due respect, what did this experiment prove? For being Process Engineers, there are so many variables that this proves nothing more than 2 friends making the same recipe, with totally different process, ending with 2 different beers and one finishing in half the time.

Don't get me wrong, it's cool but it's not an experiment that proves anything between 3-vessel and Biab.

It looks to me like it proves you can get clear beer without worrying about getting clear wort into the fermenter and that you don't need to use a full day to make a decent batch of beer. If there was a decent 3 way blind test it would tell a bit more.

 

[hio3791]

It looks to me like it proves you can get clear beer without worrying about getting clear wort into the fermenter and that you don't need to use a full day to make a decent batch of beer. If there was a decent 3 way blind test it would tell a bit more.

I did say it proved that one finished in half the time. And I don't believe anyone has ever said BIAB makes an inferior beer compared to 3 vessel because BIAB allows a quicker method to mashing.

It does show that BIAB can make clear beer. Within the scope of this excercise, it would've been interesting to judge each beer independently by a qualified panel but other than proving that both methods can make good beer, which no one else has doubted, it doesn't prove anything.

I admit that I'm nitpicking the pretense of the original post.

 

[TexasWine]

Maybe I should change the title of the post? You're not the first to point out there are a lot of variables we didn't hold constant. But we never intended for this to be an experiment where at the end we could point to one difference in our processes and say it did or did not make a difference in the final product.

However, our intent was to compare our overall processes. My coworker thinks some of the things I do are crazy. I say some of his are a waste of time. So, that conversation birthed this head to head brew off.

So, I think the way you've summarized it is exactly right. Two friends, poking fun at each other, a little friendly competition, and we'll see who gets the bragging rights of making the better beer in the end. Maybe we'll even make an ugly trophy.

 

[hio3791]

Thank you TexasWine. I concede and I thank you for sharing your findings with the community.

 

[misterkidd]

Subbed

 

[misterkidd]

Any update on this little beauty?

 

[watermelon83]

With all due respect, what did this experiment prove? For being Process Engineers, there are so many variables that this proves nothing more than 2 friends making the same recipe, with totally different process, ending with 2 different beers and one finishing in half the time.

Don't get me wrong, it's cool but it's not an experiment that proves anything between 3-vessel and Biab.

In the industry I work in Process Engineers do not have to hold any engineering degree. Not that it matters, but I don't read to far into the title.

 

[TexasWine]

Any update on this little beauty?

You're right. An update is due!

We did the tasting this past Thursday. It was kind of a happy hour thing. Engineers from our group at work were in attendance as well as a few other folks that were non-work friends of my co-worker. The non-work friends happened to know a few things about beer. We had 14 folks voting.

We took a rather simple approach to the voting. Each person got a sheet of paper where the ranked the beers, 1 being the favorite, 3 the least favorite. 1 point for first, 2 points for second, 3 points for third. The least number of points wins, and so on and so forth.

Survey says.....

The commercial Real Ale was 1st
And it was an even split between myself and my co-worker.

It was interesting to see how the votes were distributed.

Real Ale
1st place: 6 votes
2nd place: 4 votes
3rd place: 4 votes

Me
1st place: 5 votes
2nd place: 3 votes
3rd place: 6 votes

Co-worker
1st place: 3 votes
2nd place: 7 votes
3rd place: 4 votes

As you can see, folks either liked my beer the most or the least. My co-worker consistently got voted second.

Several people noted that my beer was a bit hoppier than the others. Also, both my and the co-worker's beers were more carbonated than Real Ale's. If I were to do it over I would adjust my hop additions to account for the no chill method and reduce the volumes of CO2.

That's about all I've got time to type for tonight. I'll upload some pictures sometime this weekend.

 

[TexasWine]

A few pictures from the night's festivities. The first is me (on the right) and my coworker. The second is some of the voters. The third is me with the person who really pulled all this together (my wife). She made some pretty amazing appetizers.

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[TexasWine]

I almost forgot to mention the highlight of the night. My coworker and I did our own tasting before anyone else. The results of that were interesting.

I ranked Real Ale first, myself second, coworker third.

But the kicker was my coworker ranked them in the same order! His own beer was his least favorite. He was taken aback a bit and repeated another blind taste test later in the night, only to rank them in the exact same order.

It was all a lot of fun and I hope we get to do it again sometime soon.

 

[Slow_Day]

Maybe one thing that this comparison points out is that the technique one uses might not be as important as knowing how to control a technique to achieve an outcome.

This is something that separates exceptional brewers from the rest of us.

Thanks for sharing this.

 

[Gavin C]

Great update. Thanks for sharing the pictures. So that is you in your avatar after all. Thought it might have been a Bond Villian I could not quite place. The beers all look really bright. Looks like a fun night.

 

[TexasWine]

Thought you folks might enjoy a fun little update. My coworker has entered his beer into four or five competitions since the tasting. In every one he's placed in the top three in the light hybrid category. I'm super excited for him, and he tells me that by association I'm getting those rankings too

Next up is Lunar Rendebrew and I'll be throwing my beer into the fray for a grand finale. My keg kicked several weeks ago, but I intentionally set aside three bottles just for this competition. It'll be fun to get some official feedback and see who's beer comes out on top.