Second AG Batch Mash Question

[NWAleDad]

So i'm going to do my second AG batch tomorrow of a recipe i created. When i use beer smith it tells me to use the following Mash schedule.

Total water: 7.26
16.25 Qts of water for 60min
Batch Sparge 2 steps .35gal and 2.85 @ 168


But when I use the online mash calculator at brew365.com i get something completely different.

Total Water needed: 9.06
Mash Water Needed: 4.32
Sparge Water: 4.73


Looking for opinion on which one is best? This is a 13# recipe outline below.


Style: American IPA
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (30.0)

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Boil Size: 5.70 gal
Post Boil Volume: 5.20 gal
Batch Size (fermenter): 5.00 gal
Bottling Volume: 4.75 gal
Estimated OG: 1.073 SG
Estimated Color: 8.2 SRM
Estimated IBU: 55.5 IBUs
Brewhouse Efficiency: 72.00 %
Est Mash Efficiency: 72.0 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amt Name Type # %/IBU
12 lbs 8.0 oz Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 2 89.3 %
1 lbs Victory Malt (25.0 SRM) Grain 3 7.1 %
8.0 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt - 20L (20.0 SRM) Grain 4 3.6 %
1.00 oz Chinook [13.00 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 5 43.5 IBUs
1.00 oz Cascade [5.50 %] - Boil 15.0 min Hop 6 8.3 IBUs
1.00 oz Willamette [5.50 %] - Boil 5.0 min Hop 7 3.7 IBUs
2.0 pkg American Ale (Wyeast Labs #1056) [124.21 Yeast 8 -
2.00 oz Cascade [5.50 %] - Dry Hop 10.0 Days Hop 9 0.0 IBUs

 

[dankev]

The problem is with your Beersmith number for the first sparge. It has to be something more than 0.35 gal.

If you mash with 4.25 gal, you'll get about 2.63 gal into your kettle. If you're going for 7.25 gal preboil, you need your total sparge volume to equal 4.62 gal.

 

[Bierliebhaber]

+1

It doesn't look like your beersmith settings are set for grain absorption. Which could be as much as 1.5 gal on this recipe. That makes the online calculator you used pretty close. I use different software, but you should have a menu for setting the numbers for grain absorption, grist consistency (qt/lb), equipment loss, etc.

 

[NWAleDad]

Thanks guys! Bierliebhaber what software do you use?

 

[Bierliebhaber]

BrewMate-it's free to download. It works pretty well and is fairly customizable or plug and play.

BrewMate.net

 

[NWAleDad]

i will check it out. In the past i used excel sheets that i created but when i moved to AG i purchased BS. Bit of a learning curve, this would probably explain why i was under for my first AG batch.

Thanks again and happy brewing!

 

[NWAleDad]

Oh, i went to beermate.net and i get served with a coming soon page

Nevermind, i'm a dork. brewmate.net

 

[MikeinCT]

I don't use any software. (Neanderthal) I choose the mash consistency I want from books, charts, advice (like from this forum) and experience. Knowing my grain amount I can figure the mash water amount. Then I determine what the grain absorption will be, same way as above. I subtract this from the original mash volume. This gives me the first runnings. Knowing that I want about 6.5 gallons into the boil pot I make up the remainder with sparge water. This is on the order of 4 gallons which I divide evenly into two batches. Seems to work for me. Some other considerations pertain to the size of your equipment. Like I have a 5 gallon mash tun, which means I have fairly low amounts of mash water concentration.

Don't get me wrong, I think that the software is a great tool. But I also think that getting an idea what the relationships are is important.

good luck, Mike

 

[Yooper]

I use Beersmith, but you have to set it up to your system. In the "sparge" part, click the box that says something like "divide the sparge into 50%" or something like that. Fix the amount of boil off and starting volumes in the equipment profile. Then you should be all set!

I also use my noggin. If something seems weird, it usually is weird so checking the settings is the first place to start.

 

[NWAleDad]

Thanks everyone! I picked up BS with the idea that this will help me understand the relationships and underlying theories. Which is working, but I guess i need to spend more time learning the software. I think for the next few batches i will work it out on paper.

Happy new year!