Looking for help doing my first AG via BIAB with a SMaSH recipe in a 30 qt pot

[bjork24]

Hi guys,

I'm ready to make the jump from extract to AG using my current set-up, which is a plain 'ol 30 qt turkey fryer pot and burner. I'd like to do a no-sparge BIAB and use a simple recipe for the first few beers, mainly so I can focus on technique and process until I get the hang of things.

I've heard varying opinions about whether I can do a full 5 gallon batch with my 30 qt pot, or whether I'll need to scale back to 3 gallon small batches. So, my question is two fold:

1. Can anyone recommend a tasty, simple brown ale SMaSH recipe that would work well with BIAB?

2. Do you think I get a full 5 gallon batch with my pot, or should I focus on 3 gallon brews until I save up enough for a 40+ quart pot?

Thanks!

 

[tre9er]

You can do it in that pot. You'll have to mash in less water and simply add water prior to the boil. If you have even a 1 or 2g. pot, boil water in that and pour it over the grain bag after mashing, then let it drip before discarding the grains. Do this with enough water to get you to 6g. preboil. Then just watch your boil carefully and keep a spray-bottle of water around in case any massive boil foam tries to assault you.

Figure on a lower efficiency, but you'll be fine.

 

[bjork24]

If you have even a 1 or 2g. pot, boil water in that and pour it over the grain bag after mashing, then let it drip before discarding the grains.

So, are you saying I should hoist up the bag over the kettle, and then pour the hot water over the grains; or should I put the bag in the second pot with the hot water, and then pour that into my boil kettle?

 

[solbes]

So, are you saying I should hoist up the bag over the kettle, and then pour the hot water over the grains; or should I put the bag in the second pot with the hot water, and then pour that into my boil kettle?

First of all, don't boil the sparge water. 170F is a good temp, a few degrees higher if you didn't do a mashout to the grain first.

Second, you can do either. If you have a 1.5 gal pot (2 gallon preferred) you may be able to dunk the grain bag into it for 10 minutes. This will get you better efficiency of the 2 options.

If you have a larger grain bill or your 2nd pot is smaller than 1.5 gallons you can pour it over and through the grain (hoisted and held by pulley). Lower efficiency, but better than no sparge.

Agree you can do 5 gallons in that pot. But you will be limited on grain bill size. I have a similar sized pot and can mash & sparge wort up to ~ 1.065 OG. Any higher and I add 3-6 lbs of LME or DME. I get between 73 and 82% efficiency (higher for lower gravity brews).

 

[tre9er]

Yes, sorry, my bad. I meant heat the water in the second pot, not necessarily to boil but sometimes I do, then I cut the burner down to low and keep my eye on the temp.

If you can fit the grain bag into the second smaller pot, yes, dunk it, try for some stirring in the bag, then let it sit in there for 10M. If you don't think it'll fit in that pot, just raise it up and pour the 170-180* water over the bag slowly.

 

[VonAle]

The "tea-bag" approach to sparge sounds a lot easier than "pour over" method. Why shouldn't I always want to do it that way, especially if you get higher efficiency with tea-bag method ?

 

[solbes]

It is easier. But my 2nd pot is a quart or two shy of 2 gallons. So anything over 7 or 8 lbs of grain won't fit in there with any significant sparge water. You need a second vessel that is 3 gallons+ to fit the grain bag & 1 or 2 gallons of sparge water.

 

[bjork24]

I don't have a second pot that's large enough to handle two extra gallons of sparge water plus the grain, and I think it would be a better investment of my money to go ahead and buy a 40 quart pot now, rather than a smaller pot to use alongside my old 30 quart.

There's always something new to buy with this hobby, that's for sure.

 

[VonAle]

So.. with a second pot big enough to handle the grain bag, then you would recommend the tea-bag sparge over pour over, correct ?

 

[tre9er]

So.. with a second pot big enough to handle the grain bag, then you would recommend the tea-bag sparge over pour over, correct ?

Yes. Because you're actually sparging with the tea-bag method. You let the wort settle out to the bottom over time. If you had a valve on your sparge pot and could suspend the grain bag off the bottom, you could essentially batch sparge or fly sparge this way, too.

 

[dkennedy]

I have the same setup, with an enamelware canning pot for a teabag sparge- heat my sparge water during the mash. I've been siphoning out of the sparge pot to get to 6.5 gallons (5.5 gallon batches) and hit 80% efficiency yesterday. No boil-overs, but I wouldn't leave your boil unattended.

 

[tre9er]

We boiled within an inch of the keggle on Saturday to start and only had some foam barely come over. Just watched carefully and waited to raise to a big rolling boil until the level had dropped a few inches.

 

[solbes]

I would recommend Fermcap S for those near capacity boils.