Is all grain really THIS easy?

[BillTheSlink]

On the recipe...I'd drop your pilsen by a pound and add another pound of wheat. The kolsch my friends love is 7 pilsen, 2 light wheat, .75 dark munich, .25 melanoidin/crystal 10.

I would definitely look at using a wyeats's kolsch yeast instead of the safeale though.

How much rice hulls would you guys use with this? I got 1/2 lb just to have on hand.

Bill

 

[Moose777]

This is am awesome thread with some excellent points.
I have two extract and three all grain batches done.

Yes it takes time and some trial n error to get you system down and it takes 4-5 hours so plan ahead.

I don't put my immersion cooler in the brewpot .. I just soak it in my starsan bucket along with my funnel, pitcher, blow off tube, airlock, etc etc. I found that it interrupts the boil a few minutes when you put it in the brewpot and just gets in the way of the hop bag..to each his own.

One thing I've learned is that there are many ways to brew all grain you just need to find your own way. That video is great and I watched that along with Knight's many times as well as read Palmers book and others..

The learning curve is steep the first few batches. Good luck to you brother.

 

[squeekysheep]

as far as cost i looked around used 10 gallon drink cooler $30, went to a cook store for a pot and they were like $80 for stainless steel talked to the guy at the counter. my favorite quote ever he said "is used ok ?" he went the the back and pulled out a well used 7 gallon stainless steel pot with nice thick edges $25 took it home with me. then another $25 dollors for copper tubing and about 10 for parts to hook it all up.

 

[VTBrewer]

How much rice hulls would you guys use with this? I got 1/2 lb just to have on hand.

Bill

I don't use rice hulls until the wheat approaches 50% of the grain bill. Then i use half a pound. Throwing the half pound in you have won't hurt.

 

[Irie5447]

I use rice hulls in all my brews as do many other people. It just helps prevent stuck sparges, a couple handfuls will be fine. They are super cheap and don't impart any flavors or absorb any liquid. They are neutral.

 

[BillTheSlink]

Super guys. This really did turn into a good thread. I did end up going with the fly sparg set up, just because it was already put together and I have very few tools, few places to work, and I am disabled and a klutz with physical labor stuff like turning screws. Someone mentioned the chiller. I already had one and have been using it and I couldn't agree more. I think the reasons my brews so far have been good is because I could do a full boil, calculate my boil loss with Beersmith, and chill right away. I do unfortunately have to carry the pot to the kitchen to hook up the chiller. I can only connect to the kitchen faucet and with the a/c I couldn't run a hose to the patio. It is a short distance and I don't have to lift it into the sink however.

Bill

 

[Makeyermark]

Good thread. I am also a AG newbie. I brewed my first AG batch about 3 weeks ago and it really wasn't complicated. I did quite a bit of reserach on the front end, built my MLT from a 10 gallon home depot cooler, braided supply hose and a ball valve. Used the brew kettle that came with my original kit to heat the strike and sparge water then used the large aluminum pot that came with my turkey fryer for the boil. I also batch sparged, which was simple as it gets. It's almost like making a big batch of coffee. I caluclated 67% efficiency, which I don't think is too bad for my 1st attempt. Hit my targets and the samples taste good. I am building a wort chiller this weekend though. I used a ice bath for my last one and it took about 45 mins to chill it to pitching temp.

 

[MeatyPortion]

I just showed a buddy (who has never homebrewed) the video on the original post. He basically said "is that it?". Cool.

 

[Makeyermark]

Hey Meaty Portion. I see you are fan of Issac (Love Boat). About a year ago, I was shopping for light bulbs at home depot. Me and this dude were both standing there in light bulb hell or heaven depending on how you look at it. We were kind of talking to each other about how confusing it all was, but I wasn't really looking at him. All of the sudden, some dude comes running over and says "You're Issac from Love Boat!!!". He kindly replies, "yes, at one time I was Issac from Love Boat. Now I am Ted Lange." He spoke to the guy for a few and then went back to light bulb hell with me.

Anyway. No real point to the story. Just trying to kill time at work.

 

[MeatyPortion]

I would have fainted.

 

[Trubadour]

It really is easier than you think. And if you're on the fence, do it. I thought my extract / specialty grain beers were good, but dayum, AG is the way to go IMHO. Yes, there are a few more things to think about, but in return, you get much more control over your finished product. You can control the mouthfeel of your beer based on your mash temp, just to name something. And you start to understand a lot of the science behind brewing that you just don't need to know with extract.

That said, to each his own. Excellent beer can be made with extract also.