I think I have a clue what my plans are for first ag

[orion7144]

I will have a two pot system (king kooker dual burner). I plan on getting the bayou classic 11 gallon pot for my mash and the 15.5 gallon (or similar pot) for the boil. I assume from all the reading I have done that I will mash in the upper pot, drain to the boil pot, add some sparge water to the mash pot to get to pre-boil volume, then continue the boil like I do for extract brewing.

My plan is to do the 5g version on the Centennial blonde as the first one then I will start doing 10 gallon batches.

So what are the key things to look out for during my first ag session?

 

[mgortel]

That was my 1st All Grain Beer as well

I would suggest that you make a step by step detailed plan on how the brew day will go.....and post it and ask for feedback....that is what I did before my first all grain.....kind of a dry run in your own mind and the forum members.....helped my first all grain day go very nicely.

 

[nbrack]

Planning my first AG tonight as well. I am thinking of doing a SMaSH with just some 2 row and a couple additions of Cascade hops. Looking forward to this. Hope your brew session goes well. Cheers! :cheers:

 

[res291que]

I assume from all the reading I have done that I will mash in the upper pot, drain to the boil pot, add some sparge water to the mash pot to get to pre-boil volume, then continue the boil like I do for extract brewing.

So what are the key things to look out for during my first ag session?

Most people use a cooler to start with as the mash/Lauder tun. This is an easy and efficient set up also keeps the mash temps from falling drastically. The sparge water is actually added to the mash tun then drained into your boil pot. You can either do a fly or batch sparge, the fly sparge is a continuous addition of water to rinse sugars from grain while laudering, with batch sparge you Lauder, refill mash vessel with water stir then Lauder again. Some key points you need to boil a minimum of 60 min, your preboil volume will be greater than post boil, mash in temp will effect body of the final beer, good luck ag is a fun way to go. It takes a lot longer but you have much more control over final product.

 

[res291que]

Planning my first AG tonight as well. I am thinking of doing a SMaSH with just some 2 row and a couple additions of Cascade hops. Looking forward to this. Hope your brew session goes well. Cheers! :cheers:

Great choice keep it simple, you will really enjoy this beer. I always find it amazing the flavors you can get from such simple ingredients.

 

[Arrheinous]

I have the 62qt Bayou Classic. What I found was that I could only get a good boil with the lid on but that lowers the exposure of the water and reduces the boil-off rate to 1 gallon/hour. I'm using two gas stove burners on high as well.

I wasn't able to get a little over 7 gallons down to my target 5.5 gallons in a 90 minute boil.

You might want to experiment with this since it'll determine the pre-boil volume of wort you collect and come back to haunt you on OG/efficiency.

I know I'm going to have to switch to propane or find some very competent insulation for the pot. It seems like it loses a lot of heat in the upper volumes of the water - I get a rolling boil through my sight glass on the kettle but very little boiling action on the surface of the water.

 

[res291que]

Propane is definitely the way to go when you step up to full batch boils.

 

[orion7144]

Thanks for the inputs. I was going to get a cooler for the mash but found the dual burner king kooler stand for not much more than I had bought my turkey fryer for so I took the fryer back. Figured I would mash in the top burner and drain to the bottom to boil on the jet burner.

I am concerned about my efficiency numbers on my first one that is why I will try the 5 gallon first and see how it goes. Also I figure I will have to turn on the heat for the mash a few times to keep proper temps.