Quickest brewday EVER!

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Alamo_Beer

Alamo_Beer

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Thats what I need....

I'm taking Wednesday off bc we have an AC guy coming and also another guy to take a look at our bathroom (we need some work done).

I COULD go into work but this is the perfect chance to squeeze in a brew bc SWMBO wants to paint our bedroom this weekend.....so no brewing then :(

I've GOT to make it quick though bc I've promised to do other stuff around the hosue too bc I'm taking the day off.

So, here's the plan. First, a recipe....a derivative of Orfy's Brown Porter

OG: 1.043
IBU: 32
Eff: 60% (more on this later)

Grain
9lb Pale Ale Malt
1lb C60
.5lb Chocolate

Hops
2oz Galena FWH

The plan:

I'm planning on only mashing for 20min...I decided on a dark beer bc AB tells me they can hide flaws better :D Mr. Wizard says it's ok to mash for 20min here I made the recipe for 60% eff bc if I do better than...cool! If I don't? Well, I've got a pretty good buffer.

Next, the crazy part....I'm only planning on boiling for 20min...I'll start the timer AFTER the hot break though (thats my usual method anyway) Basic Brewing has a 15min Amarillo Ale, the only difference is that it's an extract recipe

Also, I'm not going to worry about seperating the wort from the trub....just dump it all in there. Lastly, I'll use S-04 dry yeast.

Anything else I should know? I'm shooting for about 2hrs
 
Only thing I'd wonder about is whether you really want Galena flavour in there. Isn't Galena primarily a bittering hop for a reason?
 
Yes, yes I think it is...

I tried it w/ just Fuggles and it was using like 6oz! NO WAY! I'm deffinatly flexible w/ the hops.

I've also been meaning to make a citrusy brown for awhile...I've got quite a few cascades i'd be willing to throw in there....but not like 6oz
 
Ok, so what about this....maybe...

1oz Galena FWH
2oz Cascade 15min
2oz Hallertau 5min

I'm not sure about this though bc I don't really want it to be hop flavor as more hop bitter (I know, I know, only a 20min boil....I'm going to get mostly hop flavor....thats why I'm asking you guys :D)
 
You are a crazy man. :D

I've post a couple of times on speed brewing.

20 minutes to warm up the mash water (Set up gear)
40 minute mash (Get ingredients ready)
10 minute batch sparge
60 minute boil (clean and put away mash gear)
20 minute cool
10 minute rack and aerate. (Clean and put away boil gear)
5 minute clean up.

Full lot for a "Normal brew" 2hr 45 minute.

Is the 45 minutes worth the compromise?
 
orfy said:
Is the 45 minutes worth the compromise?
Click to expand...
I agree.

Did you consider making your brew day longer? get up early and mash in. then let it sit for a few hours and then get done what you need to. come back later and sparge boil. That way you can split it up and get done what you need to in between. IF it is not too windy out i can usually get my boil to be independent (set and walk away) minus hops additions.
 
Another thought is that some wheat beers (notably Berliner Weiss) have a very short boil, or no boil at all.

Personally, I'd try and just be productive doing other things around the brew session. If you've got a project that'll take 60-90 minutes, do that during the mash (do something that won't mind if it attentuates out a bit). I spent most of the boil this past Saturday pulling weeds out around the driveway.

The concern I have with a short mash isn't necessarily that you won't get conversion, but that you may end up with a wort that's not as fermentable as you would like. It's not just conversion from starch to sugar, it's conversion from long-chain to short.
 
i know this is a all grain forum. why not just go extract if you dont have the time. Its quick & less clean up. Plus you can paint while the hops boil away.
 
Alamo_Beer said:
Ok, so what about this....maybe...

1oz Galena FWH
2oz Cascade 15min
2oz Hallertau 5min

I'm not sure about this though bc I don't really want it to be hop flavor as more hop bitter (I know, I know, only a 20min boil....I'm going to get mostly hop flavor....thats why I'm asking you guys :D)
Click to expand...

Those hop additions seem like you have completely changed you beer from what you initially planned. Stick to your guns
 
I was also going to say just do a extract brew and save your all grain for a day when you have more time.
 
I am averaging 6+ hours on last 2 partial mashes. I find the time killer is getting things up to temperature and the clean up afterwards.

I tried a 30 minute boil with my last batch my logic being it took almost 1/2 hour to bring my wort up to a rolling boil. The 60 minute hop schedule was similarly reduced by 1/2. My rationale being that it takes about 1/2 hour after flameout to gravity drain my keggle through my counterflow chiller while the hops are steeping in the hop bag.



I am kind of interested in how you make out Alamo_Beer

Cheers
BeerCanuck
 
BeerCanuck said:
I am averaging 6+ hours on last 2 partial mashes. I find the time killer is getting things up to temperature and the clean up afterwards.
Click to expand...


6+ hours? I'm down to 5 for all grain. It's all about Mise En Place. It's what we in the culinary world call, "having all your **** where it needs to be". This concept is so crucial for being efficient.
 
I'm down to about 4.5 hours, including cleanup (and sometimes recipe formulation). Cleaning up as you go is critical; the LAST thing I want to do after putting the fermenter in the basement is wash out the mash tun (so do it during the boil!) I could probably shave another half-hour or 45 minutes off the process here and there (mashing outside with the propane burner instead of in the kitchen with the stove, for example), but I can't imagine getting under three hours (much less down to two); hell, the boil is 60 minutes, and cool-down is 15, which only leaves 45 minutes for mashing, sparging, and getting everything UP to boil!
 
Just thinking out of the box here.

You want a hoppy beer, right? Could you try boiling the hops(few minutes) the night before and steep at room temps overnight?

Then bring up to boil with rest of malt and boil the shortened time.

Critiques welcome as I have no clue what that would do for you.
 
I know we all love our system like they're our frickin childern. But if you are really in such a hurry why not just do an dried malt extract recipe and steep the crystal and chocolate malt. They're not as fun, but they can still make really good beers. You can avoid the most labor intensive and time consuming process of mashing/sparging, and you won't have to worry about DMS (probably the biggest concern here). You can also have a full 60min boil instead. If you do it like you initially wanted to just add all the hops whatever they be at 20min.
 
Brew-Happy said:
Just thinking out of the box here.

You want a hoppy beer, right? Could you try boiling the hops(few minutes) the night before and steep at room temps overnight?

Then bring up to boil with rest of malt and boil the shortened time.

Critiques welcome as I have no clue what that would do for you.
Click to expand...

Just a little more outside the box is taking wort samples for making of starters and to incorporate into the HFR when it comes to secondary/krausening

Cheers
BeerCanuck
 
i will confess that i have done a few extract batches this summer. aside from special ales, my pale ale and light ale have been extract for the past 2 batches. it is to hot for the all grain marathon, i did squeeze in a all grain belgian triple 2 sundays back. it was nice and overcast and cool.
 
I'm planning a double batch this weekend.. since I don't have a lot of time I will do one AG and brew a extract batch on the stove during the mash. I have never done extract before so it's an experiment of sorts... but what the heck I have a new keezer I have to fill. :D

As for the recipe... I'd go for at least 30 minutes on the boil. I used Galena once with a 30 minute addition and I thought the hops were fine.

If you have Beano you could crush up a few tabs and throw them in the mash to help with conversion. ;) Then again I'd just set my alarm clock early so I could start the mash as the sun rises. More time to brew and it avoids the Tx heat..

- Eric
 
The fastest guy I know goes from setup through cleanup in about 2.5 hours. No time, no movement, no friggin' breath wasted. No sparge, either. He knows exactly what he will do, inside and out. It's really something to see.

And, don't count on getting your mash done in just 20 minutes. Yes, you can do it, especially with that grain bill. I've done it, for that matter, but you cannot just count on it.


TL
 
What do you mean, "no sparge"? Not even a batch sparge? What's he do, a thin mash, then just let it it rip? Just take the runnings directly from the mash?
 
If you do it right there is no need to cut out any steps.
If you can't give it 3 hours then leave it till another day.
It's easy to brew in <3hrs when you get the hang of it.

Nothing wrong with trying an experiment though.
 
If I take my time I'm at 4hrs easily (and that includes leaving the house to go get ice to recirc!)

If I went balls to the wall I think I could do it in 3. I think DMS is probably the biggest concern here like Jaybird said....


Ah f*ck it, here's the plan.....I'll try and get all my stuff done as early as possible in the day. When I'm finished I'll brew like normal....if I don't finish in time....I'll go to the shooting range. Either way it'll be a good day :D

I think I still might mash for 30min...I'll check for conversion of course
 
TexLaw said:
The fastest guy I know goes from setup through cleanup in about 2.5 hours. No time, no movement, no friggin' breath wasted. No sparge, either. He knows exactly what he will do, inside and out. It's really something to see.

And, don't count on getting your mash done in just 20 minutes. Yes, you can do it, especially with that grain bill. I've done it, for that matter, but you cannot just count on it.


TL
Click to expand...
Yea, what do you mean by no sparge?

I'm actually thinking of doing something like this on my next batch. I have plenty of room in my mash tun, so I was thinking I will mash with the normal amount of water, then after the 60 minute mash, dump ALL the sparge water in and do one big drain into the boiler.

I know it's less efficient, but maybe the time saved/better quality wort(I know this is controversial) is worth it.
 
I'd probably just wake up earlier to give myself more time. I like the idea of the experiment, but I'd be concerned about cutting so many corners.
 
+1 to waking up early. I have started doing that now that its summer and gets a little hot around here after about 10am. I will get all my grains, hops, and anything else wieghed out the night before and set it near the front door in a small bin. I wake up with the sun and drag the brewstand and my ketles out first thing. While my strike water is heating up, I mill the grains, and after I dough in I pull out the rest of my equpment.

If I clean as I go, by 8:30-9am I have the boil going and everything put away except the stand, boil kettle, and my chiller. Usually by 9:30-10am when it is getting a bit warm, I have everything put away and be pitching my yeast indoors in the AC. This also gives me the rest of the day to do anything else I need to do.
 
the_bird said:
What do you mean, "no sparge"? Not even a batch sparge? What's he do, a thin mash, then just let it it rip? Just take the runnings directly from the mash?
Click to expand...


From John Plamers BYO article
No Sparge Brewing

As described by John Palmer in his BYO article "Skip the Sparge" (May-June 2003), a no sparge brew has the entire volume of sparge water added to the mash and stirred in before any runoff has taken place. Even though additional water has been added, since it hass been added to the mash before runoff has begun, we can more properly think of it as a mash infusion, rather than a sparge addition... hence the name "no-sparge". This method is the easiest way to mash, but at the expense of poor extraction, typically 50%. The advantage, though, is that because all the sugar from the mash is in solution from the agitation of adding the water, lauter design has minimal effect.
 
deathweed said:
If I clean as I go, by 8:30-9am I have the boil going and everything put away except the stand, boil kettle, and my chiller. Usually by 9:30-10am when it is getting a bit warm, I have everything put away and be pitching my yeast indoors in the AC. This also gives me the rest of the day to do anything else I need to do.
Click to expand...

.. such as, empty kegs for next time .. :drunk: :D
 
I don't think this is crazy at all. There are recipes that *should* be a long brewday. A RIS or a Barleywine or an IIPA come to mind.

But for the average drinkin' beer, I think it's a great idea to make the brewday as efficient as possible. And I don't think doing an extract batch instead is the ONLY way to go. I know you guys meant well by suggesting that, but... if the OP wanted to, he would've done just that. I brew every batch AG because I don't *want* to bother brewing with extract. Just... have no desire to try it. DME is for my starters.

Either way, props to you AB for trying this. I've been contemplating shorter mashes... Once I have a new kettle (old one takes too long to heat up) and can get from 160-to-boil really quickly, then I'll try to race ya! :p
 
Just got home from lunch w/SWMBO. I milled my grains b4 lunch....mash water is on. Lets see how fast I can do it :D

I started at 1:42 and I'm doing a traditional 60min mash and boil

I've got 60lb of ice to cool my wort w/hope that speeds things up a little.
 

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