If first 15 minutes of mash was over 160 is it ruined?

[day_trippr]

Triple 20 gallon kettles, bg14 burners on high pressure propane under hlt and bk.
I get what you're saying but there's heightened risk on that side of the equation

Cheers!

 

[CantWinThisGame]

That calculator assumes everyones' mash tun has the same thermal mass, which is definitely not the case.

True, but it works for the typical cooler type mash tun.

 

[bracconiere]

(sub-note, when using amylase, you need gluco in the fermenter...other wise you'll get an insanely high FG)

 

[robertkerr79]

It's definitely worth taking an interest in calculating how to hit the right mash temp. I had a problem with efficiency and since I've started being more obsessive about getting the temp and pH in range things have improved significantly.

 

[Brewbuzzard]

Triple 20 gallon kettles, bg14 burners on high pressure propane under hlt and bk.
I get what you're saying but there's heightened risk on that side of the equation

Cheers!

I agree but I never miss it by more than a few degrees.
Prost!

 

[jrgtr42]

The Thermapen (the Mk4 model now) is the tool of choice among many of us. Fast and accurate.
They're pricey, yes, but if brewing (and cooking) is your forte you won't regret it. You'd never go back.

They go on sale from time to time, subscribe to their newsletter. They also have "open box sales," that's when I got mine. Box was brand new, and had never been opened. Instrument was brand new too.
This blue one is on sale right now.

I use the 600D from Thermoworks. Runs about $30, and is pretty quick. A few seconds for a reading. I actually got 3 of them - one for brewing, one for smoking / BBQ, and one for general cooking / grilling.
I'll verify calibration every so often on them by checking in boiling water and an ice slurry. If those temps are right, I presume the rest is correct through the range.

 

[balrog]

One thing I learned, you need to come in high from the get-go. Then ease it downward if needed.

I would think you'd risk denaturing beta by coming in high, at which point easing down would find less beta available.

 

[IslandLizard]

Why is that - seems like the unsafer choice of the two options (come in high vs come in low). Is this a system issue?

I would think you'd risk denaturing beta by coming in high, at which point easing down would find less beta available.

I'm not sure how fast enzymes denature. It's surely not instantaneous.

Best to hit it right on target temp, sure. At the most it's only a few (2-4) degrees higher for no more than 5 minutes, while doughing in. From there it's much faster and easier to bring it down than up, using a converted cooler mash tun. Haven't had any problems doing it that way or ending up with unintended highly unfermentable dextrin soup.

By using this method I seem to have much better control of FG and mouthfeel, as one would expect to get from a 156F or 158F mash. They're not all the same anymore.

 

[balrog]

Surely not instantaneous and the only thing I found showed ~ 15m at 158F
https://www.homebrewersassociation.org/forum/index.php?topic=13720.0

 

[North_of_60]

I made an Amber (BIAB) last month and over heated my water to 169 degrees before I stirred in my grains. I didn’t realize my mistake until I checked the mash temperature and saw it was at 164 degrees.

The OG was 2 points low at 1.055 and the FG was 4 points low at 1.014.

The bear tastes great. I can’t tell any difference between this one and ones I’ve made before using the same recipe.

 

[balrog]

Glad it worked out but man, do I hate it when bears get in my brew.

 

[Joshua Hughes]

Got the Bitter bottled a few minutes ago. Didnt taste bad. Weaker than intended but I expected that after screwing up temps. I also added a little too much water/dextrose solution to bottling bucket and ended up with an extra bottle. Oh well IT IS BEER! Not bad at all really.

 

[mattdee1]

I never bother with trying to swing the mash temperature around after it starts - I just roll with what I get, which is usually within a window of 2degF of target. I've duffed it a few times on the high side and ended up around 164ish but oh well. Every time, tasty beer has been the end result, and if it weren't for my notes I wouldn't even remember the mistake. In fact, I've got a beer going right now where this happened. Less than 24 hours after pitching I had a nice thick krausen so I'm not very concerned. It's a repeat recipe so we'll see if it changes the result in any meaningful way.

 

[pvpeacock]

https://www.amazon.com/Inkbird-Waterproof-Thermometer-Rechargeable-Calibration/dp/B07X9ZSCD8Inkbird rechargeable thermometer. They are great supporters of this website, so I am not afraid to plug their product for them.