Mash Steps

[jasonclick]

this is probably a pretty basic question... I'm brewing a bohemian pilsner this weekend and I'm using beersmith. This is what the "mash in" portion says: add 15.34 qt of water @ 162.1F; step temp 152.0F; step time 60 min. Does that mean to get the water to 162 and mix in the grains; let it cool down to 152 and let it set for 60 min or does that mean something else?

Thanks for the help!

 

[jasonclick]

one more thing... batch sparge: it says to batch sparge with 2 steps (.93 gal, 3.48 gal) of 168.0F water. I assume i do the above; drain the mash tun... after that, what's the 2 steps? Wouldn't I just add the 4.5 gal of water and then drain off again? Thanks.

 

[gr8shandini]

You won't have to let it cool. Once the strike water hits the (relatively) cool grain, it'll absorb the heat and the whole mash will quickly stabilize at the step temperature. Of course, your mash tun will also absorb some of that heat, so I always "temper" it with some hot water that gets dumped right before adding the grain and strike water.

As far as the batch sparging goes, I'm not sure why it's telling you that. Beersmith always assumes a "double batch sparge" in which the grain gets rinsed twice. Honestly, I never do that unless I'm running short on space in the tun. Once you get used to your system, you'll know how much wort you'll get from your first runnings, then you can just add enough sparge water to get to the volume you're looking for pre-boil. A single sparge is a little less efficient, but we're only talking about a couple of percentage points in efficiency and I'm willing to spend the extra 50 cents in grain to save me the time.

By the way, all of this was thoroughly confusing for me the first time around as well. Luckily, one of the HBT members has a great writeup that really helped me figure out the process:

http://www.suebob.com/brew/Bobby_Mallgrainprimer.pdf

 

[a6ladd]

What do you use for a mash tun and how big is our grain bill? 162.1f water seems like it might be a little on the low side, I usually shoot for around 166-168f for my mash water but every system is different! But you've got the right idea going. Reach your mash-in water temperature, pour the water into your mash tun then dough in, making sure to thoroughly stir the grain as its being added. If you over shoot a little bit, not the end of the world just add some cold water, take note and adjust for your next brew. If you undershoot simply add a little more hot water to try and bring your mash temp up.

For batch sparging I add the first portion (.93 gal) directly to my mash and let it rest for 10 minutes. Then I will vorlauf, then drain my mash tun. After its drained I add the second portion (3.48 gal) and let that rest for another 10 minutes to rinse all the residual sugars off that I can.

Hope this helps!

 

[cmybeer]

As for the Batch Sparging check your equipment profile and see how big your mashtun is. Are you using a ten gallon cooler? Right now it I think it indicates the double sparge because it is assuming there is not enough room in the mashtun for all the water. Either that or you need to up the percentage of the mashtun to fill for sparging. You can do that by clicking on the little check mark next to your mash profile to edit it. Then there should be a percentage that when you hoover over it it will read something about how much of the mashtun to fill for sparging. Make sure that is at 100%.

I always like to drain my mashtun with the first runnings before adding the sparge water so I'd select that button as well so long as were on the topic

 

[jasonclick]

my mash tun is a 52qt cooler and the recipe calls for 11 pounds of grain... I setup my equipment in beersmith and this recipe shows "my equipment". I think I have a good understanding of my questions. Thanks for the help.

 

[cmybeer]

No problem, Beersmith can be a bit tricky when you're getting started on it. It took me a bit of tinkering before I could really figure out some of the stuff but just using it has actually taught me a lot about brewing.

Let us know if you have any other problems.

 

[sidepart]

my mash tun is a 52qt cooler and the recipe calls for 11 pounds of grain... I setup my equipment in beersmith and this recipe shows "my equipment". I think I have a good understanding of my questions. Thanks for the help.

I have a 52qt cooler as well. I tend to use 180F water to pre-heat it and then wait for it to cool to 165F before pitching the grain (typically 13-15 lbs worth). I used this calculator to give me an estimate on the water temp I should use before adding the grain.

By the way, all of this was thoroughly confusing for me the first time around as well. Luckily, one of the HBT members has a great writeup that really helped me figure out the process:

http://www.suebob.com/brew/Bobby_Mallgrainprimer.pdf

This is a useful starting guide for sure. Really helped me understand the process and provided me with a foundation for understanding the other books and resources I have.

Probably not your first grain batch it sounds like. But if it is, my only advice is to STIR THE **** OUT OF IT! During mash-in and for a few minutes during each batch sparge. There are many factors of course, but that was the difference between 70% and 83% efficiency for me.

 

[JTMavs]

What is your opinion of "Fly Sparging" vs. "Batch Sparging"? Here is a good video of the whole AG process and he uses the Fly method.

 

[sidepart]

I've only done batch sparging. I think it's the easiest method for my setup. Apparently it's a hotly debated topic though.

 

[cmybeer]

I don't know that it is that hotly debated anymore. There is a good percentage of people who will swear by either method and I think each has been proven to work. For me, it's batch sparging all the way for it's simplicity although I do have a sparge arm that I've been thinking about trying again sometime.

 

[JTMavs]

I have a book that describes the All Grain method and they show more of a Fly Sparge using a flower watering deal to shower the water over the mash rather than just dump it. I would think that if you go too slow, you lose some off the heat in the sparge water.