Here goes, first all grain BAIB day!

[rtracer]

Pretty excited. After 4 extract kits, going to try my own recipe al grain BAIB in my new(to me) Keggle.

Going for a hop forward fairly light Pale Ale, similar to my favorite drinker Drakes 1500.

Any critiques?

Recipe: Hop Morning Pale Ale
Brewer: Bdiz
Asst Brewer:
Style: American Pale Ale
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (30.0)

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Boil Size: 7.75 gal
Post Boil Volume: 6.50 gal
Batch Size (fermenter): 5.50 gal
Bottling Volume: 5.00 gal
Estimated OG: 1.053 SG
Estimated Color: 5.4 SRM
Estimated IBU: 51.5 IBUs
Brewhouse Efficiency: 70.00 %
Est Mash Efficiency: 79.5 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amt Name Type # %/IBU
1.00 tsp Gypsum (Calcium Sulfate) (Mash 60.0 mins Water Agent 1 -
10 lbs 8.0 oz Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 2 91.3 %
1 lbs Caramel/Crystal Malt - 20L (20.0 SRM) Grain 3 8.7 %
0.50 oz Warrior [15.00 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 4 24.3 IBUs
1.00 oz Cascade [5.50 %] - Boil 30.0 min Hop 5 13.7 IBUs
1.00 Items Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 10.0 mins) Fining 6 -
1.00 oz Cascade [5.50 %] - Boil 10.0 min Hop 7 6.5 IBUs
2.00 oz Cascade [5.50 %] - Boil 5.0 min Hop 8 7.1 IBUs
2.00 oz Cascade [5.50 %] - Steep/Whirlpool 0.0 Hop 9 0.0 IBUs
1.00 oz Amarillo [9.20 %] - Steep/Whirlpool 0.0 Hop 10 0.0 IBUs
1.0 pkg American Ale (Wyeast Labs #1056) [124.21 Yeast 11 -
3.00 oz Citra [12.00 %] - Dry Hop 5.0 Days Hop 12 0.0 IBUs


Mash Schedule: BIAB, Medium Body
Total Grain Weight: 11 lbs 8.0 oz
----------------------------
Name Description Step Temperat Step Time
Saccharification Add 34.37 qt of water at 158.5 F 152.1 F 60 min
Mash Out Heat to 168.0 F over 7 min 168.0 F 10 min

 

[nDub]

Looks hoppy!

With BIAB you can go pretty fine with your grain crush. If you are buying grain already crushed (like from morebeer) have them run it through the mill twice. My efficiency wasn't very good until I bought my own mill and tuned it in for my system.

Good luck!

 

[McKnuckle]

Sounds like a good recipe from a grain and hops perspective, but let's look at the water volumes you've planned.

Is this a full volume mash? If so, you're starting with 8.59 gallons on your way to a 5 gallon packaged batch. Okay...

You are proposing to boil 7.75, which means you plan to lose 0.84 gal in the mash. That's reasonable, because it factors in 0.07 gal/lb grain absorption.

You believe you'll evaporate 1.25 gallons during the boil, leaving you with 6.5 in the kettle. Reasonable (although it could be closer to 1 gallon/hr, in which case your gravity will suffer a bit).

With 6.5 gallons in the kettle, you expect to lose a full gallon, and that's a lot. If you dump it all in the fermenter, there is no harm done. You could start with a lot less water if you planned for zero kettle loss - or possibly only a quart or less. But not one gallon. I'd never stand for that!

Finally, you expect to lose a half gallon in the fermenter. It may be a little less, but I won't quibble.

 

[McKnuckle]

I realize the above post was "liked" before I removed part of it via editing. I was able to make my own calculator roughly match Beersmith, so I deleted a section about brewhouse efficiency being too high with the reported volume losses. I still think the volumes could be tweaked - plan for a small (0.25 gal) or no kettle loss. It will reduce your required starting volume so that you can get to 70% brewhouse with only about 74% mash efficiency, which is more likely on your first BIAB (or any for that matter).

Sorry for the editing mess.

 

[rtracer]

I realize the above post was "liked" before I removed part of it via editing. I was able to make my own calculator roughly match Beersmith, so I deleted a section about brewhouse efficiency being too high with the reported volume losses. I still think the volumes could be tweaked - plan for a small (0.25 gal) or no kettle loss. It will reduce your required starting volume so that you can get to 70% brewhouse with only about 74% mash efficiency, which is more likely on your first BIAB (or any for that matter).

Sorry for the editing mess.

Funny as I kept scratching my head thinking that's a lot of water. I'll reconfigure a bit. I was originally thinking somewhere along 8 gallons max.

 

[ryanryates]

I would suggest pulling back on the crystal malt to maybe 3% of your malt bill. You also may think of adding (replacing 2 row with) some Vienna malt (5-10%). By reducing the crystal and adding Vienna, you will retain a distinctive malt / bready backbone without the cloying sweetness from the crystal. Mashing at 152 will be fine. Your hops and palate will appreciate the recipe mods (assuming your palate is anything like mine.

Best of luck.

 

[wilserbrewer]

Be careful heating to mashout temps, or better yet IMO skip the mashout, pull the bag and go to boil.

Adding heat can scorch the grain / bag, I suggest constant stirring and gentle heat while raising mash temp.

 

[rtracer]

OK, heading mash water now. 8 gallons total after some tweaking.
So, how do I go about getting my brewhouse efficiency?
Do I take gravity sample before boil in addition to post chill reading?

 

[doug293cz]

OK, heading mash water now. 8 gallons total after some tweaking.
So, how do I go about getting my brewhouse efficiency?
Do I take gravity sample before boil in addition to post chill reading?

You calculate brewhouse efficiency using your OG (post-boil SG), volume of wort into the fermenter, and grain bill.

However, it is always a good idea to get accurate SG and volume (in the BK) measurements pre-boil and post-boil. This way you can do a sanity check on your measurements.

Pre-Boil Volume * (Pre-Boil SG - 1) should equal Post-Boil Volume * (Post-Boil SG - 1)​

If they are not equal, then you have one or more measurement errors. Volumes should be compensated for thermal expansion to the same temperature. I like to use 68˚F as a reference temperature for volume measurements.

Measurements of first runnings gravity or mash wort gravity (they should be the same) are also useful for measuring conversion efficiency (ref: http://braukaiser.com/wiki/index.php?title=Understanding_Efficiency#Measuring_conversion_efficiency.)

Brew on

 

[rtracer]

Well all went good, and I think I exceeded 70% efficiency. Came up a bit short on volume into fermenter partly because my pickup SUCKS! Anyways, was at 1.058 in fermenter about 1/2 gallon short. Topped it off with 3/4 gallon of distilled water and was at 1.056. And after 4 extract batches I have never seen such clear wort!
Didn't quite plan properly for time involved. My lovely wifey was politely telling me it was time to grill dinner when I was about to start cleaning. I hate waiting to clean, but I hate an angry spouse even more!

 

[pshankstar]

Didn't quite plan properly for time involved. My lovely wifey was politely telling me it was time to grill dinner when I was about to start cleaning. I hate waiting to clean, but I hate an angry spouse even more!

Congrats! I always seem to have this problem whenever I brew. It always seems to take a little longer (i.e. one hour usually) then expected. I agree it is best to clean up right away. But an angry spouse usually trumps a lot of things... Usually what I will do is try to spray things down quickly or let them soak in a bucket until I can get back to them.

 

[karch]

Good luck! Let us know how it comes out post-fermentation.

 

[rtracer]

Yes, cant wait! Kegging Wed, for serving Saturday for my 40th Bday party!

 

[pshankstar]

Yes, cant wait! Kegging Wed, for serving Saturday for my 40th Bday party!

That's awesome!!! Keep us posted as to how it turns out!! Congrats!!!

 

[rtracer]

Two weeks from brew day and took a gravity reading and got a taste last night.
The color I was going for, taste was great and came in at a final of 1.010.:rockin:
Just about perfect so far!
Racking and kegging tomorrow.