New All-Grain Brewer

[Wd2048]

Okay guys, I'm going to just finish jumping in here. I've done a bit of research and decided I'm going to go ahead and take the plunge into All-Grain brewing for my next batch. I've read the stickies at the top. Aside from what is listed, if anyone has any tips or "learn from my mistake" stories, I'd love to hear them. Otherwise, just posting so that it is in writing to my making this commitment.

I'll keep you updated on my journey.

 

[malkore]

Make sure you can handle the full boil and account for evaporation. Make sure you can chill that full boil down too.

AG isn't that hard really. Its just a recipe and procedure to follow really. I would keep it simple at first, single infusion of water (so no stepped mashes) and just batch sparge it.

Figure out all your water volumes and temperatures in advance with something like promash or beertools/smith, write it down, and then execute the brew day.

 

[Zen_Brew]

Congrats. It's not as hard as you may think, but harder than it may seem.

Just stick to a couple basic styles without anything too fancy and give yourself more time than you think you need. Make a checklist up before you start and try to check items off as you do them. It's common to get all caught up in a specific process or step that you are concentrating on, and forget to do or add something else. Keep good notes on what you did, when and why. What went wrong, what went right, and what you could improve upon.

Enjoy!

 

[Frank99]

I just did my 1st AG batch and I can say it took a lot longer than I thought! It took an average of about 45 minutes to boil off 1 gallon of wort. I had to boil off 3 gallons to get to the final 5 gallon batch size, so a lot of extra time was spent babysitting the propane tank. Add the 1 hour mash and 45 minute sparge and you have a ton of extra time you usually don't have with extract brewing.

 

[greencoat]

For my first AG (I've done two - so I'm a real vet [/sarcasm]) I did a simple SMaSH recipe just to learn the process. It turned out really well and taught me exactly what my base grain tasted like. You can't really get that with extract brewing.

I guess what I'm trying to say is - keep it simple on the first go-around.

Cheers!

 

[motobrewer]

i would stick with tried and true recipes while you get your process down, before you start messing with random malts.

i made the mistake of thinking i knew what i was doing for two batches. little of this + a little of that = a lot of crap.

k.i.s.s.

 

[95747brewer]

All grain really is a lot simpler than most people make you believe. The best lessons are those learned firs hand. Now when I am showing somebody how to brew for their first time the normal response is "wow, thats it?" Basically you heat water to a given temp, add grain and wait an hour, then sparge and boil with your hop additions. I don't mean to belittle it at all, but it really doesnt have to be much more complicated than making tea. At the same time it can get as complicated as you need to keep it challenging and rewarding. Biggest advice, hit your temps.

 

[Kahuna]

Figure out all your water volumes and temperatures in advance with something like promash or beertools/smith, write it down, and then execute the brew day.

+1 Plan your brew, brew your plan.

Another classic? "Start before noon, or don't start at all."

 

[Wd2048]

Thanks everyone for your suggestions and encouragement. I jumped in Yesterday, and made it through my first All Grain Batch! I succeeded in making a batch of beer, but I didn't succeed in hitting my gravity.

I forgot to take a gravity reading of my mash, so I don't know where it was to begin with. My mash temp was supposed to be 150. My strike temp was 167, and when I opened my mashtun, the thermometer read 148. I thought I would be fine, but maybe the wort was a little colder than 148.

I was aiming for an OG of 1.041, but only hit 1.032, so the Saison is going to be liiiiiggghhhhtttt. But the fact that it smelled and looked like beer was an accomplishment. We'll see how the fermentation turns out, but I'm satisfied with my first All Grain batch so far.