I had a brain fart while buying grain...

[RayInUT]

I bought ten pounds of maris otter and three pounds of 50L crystal malt and ground it together before it dawned on me that I only wanted one pound of crystal for my pale ale. Would you add 10 or 20 more pounds of maris otter and make a couple batches or one 15 gallon batch or would you brew it as is? Will it have way too much body if I do? I don't usually do dumb things like that but I was in the middle of doing Christmas shopping when I decided to stop and buy some grain to do a New Year brew.

 

[devaspawn]

Well you can have up 20% crystal in a recipe. If you added two more lbs of MO you'd have 20% crystal. As it stands right now you have ~23%. If it were me I'd get the 2 lbs of MO and make big 5 gallon batch of beer. That's just me though.

 

[ChshreCat]

I'm far from the voice of experience, but just an idea... maybe you could mash at a lower temp to lighten the body up a little to compensate?

If it were me I'd probably just get another 20 lbs of maris otter and have grain ready to go for my next three batches.

 

[RayInUT]

I went to the store the other day to buy some grain to compensate for my screw up but then I couldn't make up my mind with what I wanted to do so I just bought another ten lbs of maris otter and a pound of crystal and brewed that one. I've never used maris otter before and I think it is my new favorite base. I drank a sample after I tested the gravity today and it is great. I used S-04 Whitbread yeast and it fermented in about three days total starting with an OG of 68 and ending (tentatively) at 15. I dry hopped it with an ounce of cascade and will probably bottle it next week. I like beers that finish FAST! I think I'll just add some more MO and make a really big 5 gallon batch. I like that idea.

 

[RayInUT]

Any other ideas or suggestions?

 

[dontman]

If it is already ground and has been for several days I suggest you , like the Nike ads say, "Just Do it." The malt is not getting any younger.

Besides, you throw enough hops at that crystal and they will complement each other well.

 

[devaspawn]

You could mash it a little a longer (90 minutes vs 60 minutes) to make it a little lighter thus making it less sweet because it's "thinner." That might help it compensate for the extra sweetness. MO and GP might be better malts but they won't compensate that much to make a difference. In fact, I'd say they are sweeter than regular UK or US 2-row.

 

[RayInUT]

You could mash it a little a longer (90 minutes vs 60 minutes) to make it a little lighter thus making it less sweet because it's "thinner." That might help it compensate for the extra sweetness. MO and GP might be better malts but they won't compensate that much to make a difference. In fact, I'd say they are sweeter than regular UK or US 2-row.

Does a longer mash time decrease body? I always do a 90 minute mash. Most of my beers are pretty full bodied but then again, I mostly brew German beers and do a decoction mash.

I've got the crushed grain in airtight bags in the freezer so I'm not too worried about how soon I mash it. I just want to get some ideas so I don't brew a beer that I won't drink (okay, I'd probably drink it even if it tasted like pee). I'm leaning towards adding another ten lbs. of MO and doing a ten gallon batch. I've got a few empty buckets right now anyway.

 

[chemist308]

I would weigh the crystal malt I needed on a food scale and save the excess in a ziploc and in a dry place. Then next batch I'd buy another 2 pounds of the stuff and 55 of the maris otter, and just keep the excess for future batches--you'll cut your costs that way long term. But thats just me, and my grain store is probably more than I need and much less than many here.

 

[Blender]

I would buy some more base MO and mix it with your present grain.Make that beer and see how it comes out and whether you should adjust it again on the final brew.

 

[david_42]

I would get about 6 pounds of MO and 1/2 pound of chocolate, then combine 1/2 of the mixed grains with 4 pounds of the new MO for a pale and use the rest for a Brown.

 

[RayInUT]

I would get about 6 pounds of MO and 1/2 pound of chocolate, then combine 1/2 of the mixed grains with 4 pounds of the new MO for a pale and use the rest for a Brown.

Wow! I like that idea. What yeast would you use? I can pitch some whitbread from the batch of IPA I just racked to secondary. What hops would you recommend for the brown? I've never made a brown ale before.

 

[somecallmetim]

Marris Otter & Whitbread. Heck Ya. Sound like you need some East Kent Goldings or Fuggles in there.

 

[somecallmetim]

My brown ale is about 1.050, I like this hop scedule...

All Fuggle, 4.5aau about 21 IBU
1oz - 60min
1/4 - 30
1/4 - 15
1/2 - 5min

 

[RayInUT]

Marris Otter & Whitbread. Heck Ya. Sound like you need some East Kent Goldings or Fuggles in there.

For my pale ale which starts out around 1.068 I use 21 grams of nugget and 26 grams of cascade at boil, 19 grams of cascade at 60 minutes into boil, and 1 oz. of cascade dry hopped when I rack into secondary for 2 weeks. Then I bottle it and drink it in about four hours...okay, maybe it takes a few weeks but it doesn't last long.

 

[Kugster]

For my pale ale which starts out around 1.068 I use 21 grams of nugget and 26 grams of cascade at boil, 19 grams of cascade at 60 minutes into boil, and 1 oz. of cascade dry hopped when I rack into secondary for 2 weeks. Then I bottle it and drink it in about four hours...okay, maybe it takes a few weeks but it doesn't last long.

So you are doing a FWH? How does that work out for ya? I'm thinking of doing it on my next batch?

 

[RayInUT]

So you are doing a FWH? How does that work out for ya? I'm thinking of doing it on my next batch?

No, but after reading about first wort hopping I might give it a try. I wait until my wort is boiling to add my hops. Sorry for the confusion.

 

[remilard]

I'd brew it and hop the hell out of it and call it an amber ale.

 

[RayInUT]

I'd brew it and hop the hell out of it and call it an amber ale.

What if I toast some of the grain? For what it's worth, I usually hop the hell out of everything (except for my hefe's, of course).

 

[RayInUT]

Okay, the wort is ready to boil. Here is what I did:
1)roasted 5 pounds of combined grain for 1 hour at 350 to make brown malt
2)roasted 1/2 lbs. of combined grain for 15 minuted at 450 to make british pale chocolate malt
3)combined the above two malts with 7.5 lbs of the unroasted Maris Otter and 50L crystal malt and did and overnight mash at 154.
4) Ended up with 8.3 gallons of wort (I overshot my wort volume but that is okay. I get huge evaporation during my boil and always come out low. My pre-boil gravity is about 1.045.

Here is my question...I'm using leftover hops and I have 18.6 grams of Nugget and 5.3 grams of Chinook that I am going to do a FWH with. I'm going to add 1 oz. of Cascade at fifteen mutes left in boil when I add my Irish moss and then I am going to add 9.2 grams of Hersbrucker with two minutes left. Does that sound okay for a robust porter. I know the hops don't exactly match the style but it is what I have. I'm going to pitch S-04 Whitbread. Someone help me quick before I start my boil!

 

[RayInUT]

It's in the fermenter. The only thing I did different was I added 4 oz. of Ghiradelli 100% cacao and 2 oz. of Italian roast coffee at 15 minutes. The gravity ended up right at 1.068 with five gallons in the bucket! I pitched Whitbread. We'll see what happens...

 

[devaspawn]

Yes, an increased mash time does decrease the body.

 

[RayInUT]

I think it's going to be a hell of a beer. It's already starting to krausen after only a few hours. Whitbread seems to get going fast and finish fast.