Btaz
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- May 26, 2012
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I've only been making beers for a short while and it seems that I've had so many questions about how to go about doing it while I was in the middle of making the beer. So I wrote down my game plan for specialty grain brewing process on my little website (not a commercial site). I've also pasted the text in here in case you don't care to go to a unknown location, but I didn't mess with the formatting. Let me know if you have any advice and perhaps this will help someone else. Thanks.
http://blt.loosecannon.info/wordpress/?p=716
There are a million ways to make beer. Of course there are some real rules to follow, but everyone seems to have their own technique for the gray area. In making my beer I've asked many questions and have been working on homing in on my preferred technique. Below is my plan for making beer with specialty grains which I imagine I'll continually tweak. Feel free to offer suggestions that you feel would be helpful in my beer making process and hopefully this helps some new brewers as well.
Day -1: Prep
Since time is always limited I like to get a few things ready for the brew day early. You can certainly do this on the brew day. I haven't figured out the whole water quality control yet so for now I buy mine. I'll look into this more in the future to help reduce costs.
7 gallons of water.
20lb bag of ice. to circulate through the wort chiller
Propane
Setup drill for chilling and aerating
Day 0: Brew Day
Getting going
I do the following in this order to be as efficient with time as possible. I bought a turkey fryer from Bass Pro shop that came with a 7.5G stainless steel pot which works pretty good out of the box. I took some wire and locked the timer down to override the safety feature so that it doesn't turn off in the middle of brewing.
Double check to make sure you have all the ingredients - Don't forget about the items from day -1.
Take yeast out of the fridge - you want it to have some time to warm up.
Clean out the stainless steel pot and start heating the water for stepping
Place the thermometer in the pot.
Place the steeping grains in the grain bags.
Start cleaning all the equipment that will go in the wort after boiling
Steeping
Steeping is very simple, but for me it needs constant attention to make sure the temperature stays within the right range. I use a metal cross beam and hang the steeping bags from it so that it doesn't touch the sides or bottom.
Wait for the water to reach 155-160 degrees. Do not go over 165 degrees as this will burn the grain and produce off flavors.
Place the grain in the pot. Try to avoid having the bags touch the side or bottom, but as long as they move around things should be fine. I cheat and hang them from the middle.
Watch the temperature as it will fluctuate for a bit. Then after a short while cut the heat as it will stay within the right temp for a while.
Occasionally bob the grain bags
repeat 3 & 4 for 30 minutes.
dsc02059
Steeping
Adding Malt
Turn the heat off, if it isn't already
Add with malt while mixing vigorously to avoid burning on the bottom.
Once mixed turn on heat (watch for boil over). I find that after a short while the risk of boil over goes away.
The boil timer starts when the pot is back to a boil. Maintain a vigorous boil throughout the boil time
Hop schedule
Follow the hop schedule which starts after the wort begins boiling (not when the malt is added)
Place the hops in a small grain bag
Throw it in the pot at the right time.
Make sure it is mixing around well.
Chilling
Chill as quick as possible to avoid any off flavors being generated. I use a copper wort chiller and a drill pump to it. I then circulate ice water from a cooler through it.
Chill the water down to ~70 degrees as fast a possible
dsc02061
Transfer to primary fermentation bucket
I use a drill paint mixer to whirlpool the wort to leave behind some of the trub. Then I use and auto-siphon to transfer it to the primary fermentation tank which in my case is a 7G plastic bucket. I'm going to cold crash later in the process so I'm not so worried about the trub, but this is simple to do and may help a bit.
Whirlpool the wort with the paint mixer for 5 mins
Wait for about 5-10 mins for the trub to gather in the middle of the bucket
Auto-siphon from the side of the pot to primary fermentation tank.
Add water to reach the 5 gallon line
mix in the water for a minute or two
Starting gravity measurement
Get a sample and place the hydrometer it it.
Spin the hydrometer to get any bubbles of of it.
Take a measurement.
Replace the hydrometer with the thermometer
Take a measurement
Repeat 2-5 a few times to make sure you got a real measurement.
Don't return the sample to wort. Taste it to see what you think.
Aerating
Aerate prior to pitching (adding) yeast as this is very important to ensuring the yeast takes well. Aerate for 5-10 mins. I use a drill paint mixer.
dsc02063
Pitching Yeast
Dry yeast....
Liquid yeast should be good to go if you take it out at the start. If you see some bubbles inside then the yeast should be fine. Give it a good shake.
Add the yeast
Stir/mix in. This probably is not needed but I feel better doing it.
Primary Fermentation Storage
Add the lid
Add the blow off valve. I use some vodka for the liquid.
Place in location where it is dark and will be at the right temperature for the yeast. I built a fermentation chamber for this
dsc02068
Clean up
Clean everything and leave to dry
Day 1: Clean Up
Put away all the brewing equipment now that it is dry.
Day 11: Cold Crashing
Fermentation is complete when the gravity hasn't changed for 3 days which is typically 6-10 days. I usually brew on Saturday or Sunday so I just wait until Wednesday of the next week (day 10) before I start cold crashing which is usually plenty of time. There will still be plenty of yeast for bottle conditioning later.
Begin cold crashing after fermentation is complete.
Make sure you have an S-airlock (or there is some other methods that can be used) because the crashing will cause the bucket to suck in.
Lower the temperature to under 40 for 2-3 days in primary.
Day 14: Secondary Fermentation
There is a lot of discussions whether this should be done or not, I've chosen to do it. When transferring to the secondary you want to expose the beer to as little oxygen as possible. Be gentle. When done move on to secondary and let it rise to the desired temperature. The amount of time to leave in the secondary is quite variable. I've read that that strong beers, stouts, and porters should be left for 6-12 months, whereas pales and such don't need as long. For long durations in a secondary I will use a glass carboy, but for shorter durations in the secondary I've just used a plastic bucket. The days below assume a "normal" 2 weeks in the secondary or you can adjust using the -days to bottling for longer secondary times.
Transfer to secondary
Clean the Secondary fermentation bucket/carboy
place the primary fermentation higher than the secondary
Use the auto-siphon to for the transfer. Don't suck up the bottom.
Day 25 (-7 to bottling): Dry hopping
I haven't done anything with dry hopping yet so for now I'll follow the information I read from a homebrew forum
both Stone and Russian River:
- Russian River recommends 68ºF (20ºC) for dry hopping homebrew
- Stone recommends "warm fermentation temperature", which coincides with Russian River's advice. Grassy flavours come from dry hopping too long, stale hops, or wet hops.
At 20ºC most dry hopping aroma is extracted in 3 days, almost all of it by 5 days, 99.99% by 7 days. nything longer and you run the risk of that grassy flavour.
I'm not too sure of the affect to the dry hop when using the gelatin, so I'm going to split the difference for now. 3 days of dry hopping and another the 3 days of dry hopping with the gelatin
Set fermentation temp to 68 degrees
Place the hops in a grain bag, if not using leaves
Add the hops to the carboy
Day 28 (-4 to bottling): Clearing Agent
I've selected to use gelatin over Irish moss since from what I've read the gelatin has no affect on the beer taste or smell and is very effective at removing the particles.
Using Gelatin
Boil the water first and then let it cool a bit before adding the gelatin.
Add the gelatin and mix.
You need to let it sit for awhile to "bloom" and then heat gently to get as much as possible dissolved but DO NOT boil.
Gently add to the secondary.
Wait 3 or more days.
Cold Crashing Part 2
It is possible to crash again but I've decided not to do it since I've done it once and I don't really want to wait to crash chill the whole thing down and then let the temperature rise again before bottling. If you do cold crash here, just follow the steps in the first cold crash section.
Day 31 (-1 to bottling): Bottling Prep
Clean the bottles. It's okay (i.e. a low risk to contamination) to clean a day early and let them dry.
Make sure you have enough bottle caps
Day 32: Bottling
Final gravity measurement
Take a final gravity sample.
Get a sample and place the hydrometer it it.
Spin the hydrometer to get any bubbles of of it.
Take a measurement.
Replace the hydrometer with the thermometer
Take a measurement
Repeat 2-5 a few times to make sure you got a real measurement.
Don't return the sample to wort
Calculate the alcohol percentage. I use an app (ABV Calculator for android) so I don't have to worry about the formulas.
Priming & Capping
Transfer from secondary to bottling bucket (just my primary fermenting bucket again). Be careful not to agitate the gelatin on the bottom and try to limit the exposure to oxygen.
Mix the priming sugar in boiling water
Add the priming sugar to the bottom of the bottling bucket
Transfer the beer from the secondary to the bottling bucket
Bottle and cap.
Leave at 70 degrees in a dark area.
Day 53+: Drinking Time
The time to bottle conditioning varies quite a bit, but the "normal" way is to wait at least 3 weeks. Its said that the long the better the beer will turn out, but I imagine just like secondary fermentation this varies with the beer.
http://blt.loosecannon.info/wordpress/?p=716
There are a million ways to make beer. Of course there are some real rules to follow, but everyone seems to have their own technique for the gray area. In making my beer I've asked many questions and have been working on homing in on my preferred technique. Below is my plan for making beer with specialty grains which I imagine I'll continually tweak. Feel free to offer suggestions that you feel would be helpful in my beer making process and hopefully this helps some new brewers as well.
Day -1: Prep
Since time is always limited I like to get a few things ready for the brew day early. You can certainly do this on the brew day. I haven't figured out the whole water quality control yet so for now I buy mine. I'll look into this more in the future to help reduce costs.
7 gallons of water.
20lb bag of ice. to circulate through the wort chiller
Propane
Setup drill for chilling and aerating
Day 0: Brew Day
Getting going
I do the following in this order to be as efficient with time as possible. I bought a turkey fryer from Bass Pro shop that came with a 7.5G stainless steel pot which works pretty good out of the box. I took some wire and locked the timer down to override the safety feature so that it doesn't turn off in the middle of brewing.
Double check to make sure you have all the ingredients - Don't forget about the items from day -1.
Take yeast out of the fridge - you want it to have some time to warm up.
Clean out the stainless steel pot and start heating the water for stepping
Place the thermometer in the pot.
Place the steeping grains in the grain bags.
Start cleaning all the equipment that will go in the wort after boiling
Steeping
Steeping is very simple, but for me it needs constant attention to make sure the temperature stays within the right range. I use a metal cross beam and hang the steeping bags from it so that it doesn't touch the sides or bottom.
Wait for the water to reach 155-160 degrees. Do not go over 165 degrees as this will burn the grain and produce off flavors.
Place the grain in the pot. Try to avoid having the bags touch the side or bottom, but as long as they move around things should be fine. I cheat and hang them from the middle.
Watch the temperature as it will fluctuate for a bit. Then after a short while cut the heat as it will stay within the right temp for a while.
Occasionally bob the grain bags
repeat 3 & 4 for 30 minutes.
dsc02059
Steeping
Adding Malt
Turn the heat off, if it isn't already
Add with malt while mixing vigorously to avoid burning on the bottom.
Once mixed turn on heat (watch for boil over). I find that after a short while the risk of boil over goes away.
The boil timer starts when the pot is back to a boil. Maintain a vigorous boil throughout the boil time
Hop schedule
Follow the hop schedule which starts after the wort begins boiling (not when the malt is added)
Place the hops in a small grain bag
Throw it in the pot at the right time.
Make sure it is mixing around well.
Chilling
Chill as quick as possible to avoid any off flavors being generated. I use a copper wort chiller and a drill pump to it. I then circulate ice water from a cooler through it.
Chill the water down to ~70 degrees as fast a possible
dsc02061
Transfer to primary fermentation bucket
I use a drill paint mixer to whirlpool the wort to leave behind some of the trub. Then I use and auto-siphon to transfer it to the primary fermentation tank which in my case is a 7G plastic bucket. I'm going to cold crash later in the process so I'm not so worried about the trub, but this is simple to do and may help a bit.
Whirlpool the wort with the paint mixer for 5 mins
Wait for about 5-10 mins for the trub to gather in the middle of the bucket
Auto-siphon from the side of the pot to primary fermentation tank.
Add water to reach the 5 gallon line
mix in the water for a minute or two
Starting gravity measurement
Get a sample and place the hydrometer it it.
Spin the hydrometer to get any bubbles of of it.
Take a measurement.
Replace the hydrometer with the thermometer
Take a measurement
Repeat 2-5 a few times to make sure you got a real measurement.
Don't return the sample to wort. Taste it to see what you think.
Aerating
Aerate prior to pitching (adding) yeast as this is very important to ensuring the yeast takes well. Aerate for 5-10 mins. I use a drill paint mixer.
dsc02063
Pitching Yeast
Dry yeast....
Liquid yeast should be good to go if you take it out at the start. If you see some bubbles inside then the yeast should be fine. Give it a good shake.
Add the yeast
Stir/mix in. This probably is not needed but I feel better doing it.
Primary Fermentation Storage
Add the lid
Add the blow off valve. I use some vodka for the liquid.
Place in location where it is dark and will be at the right temperature for the yeast. I built a fermentation chamber for this
dsc02068
Clean up
Clean everything and leave to dry
Day 1: Clean Up
Put away all the brewing equipment now that it is dry.
Day 11: Cold Crashing
Fermentation is complete when the gravity hasn't changed for 3 days which is typically 6-10 days. I usually brew on Saturday or Sunday so I just wait until Wednesday of the next week (day 10) before I start cold crashing which is usually plenty of time. There will still be plenty of yeast for bottle conditioning later.
Begin cold crashing after fermentation is complete.
Make sure you have an S-airlock (or there is some other methods that can be used) because the crashing will cause the bucket to suck in.
Lower the temperature to under 40 for 2-3 days in primary.
Day 14: Secondary Fermentation
There is a lot of discussions whether this should be done or not, I've chosen to do it. When transferring to the secondary you want to expose the beer to as little oxygen as possible. Be gentle. When done move on to secondary and let it rise to the desired temperature. The amount of time to leave in the secondary is quite variable. I've read that that strong beers, stouts, and porters should be left for 6-12 months, whereas pales and such don't need as long. For long durations in a secondary I will use a glass carboy, but for shorter durations in the secondary I've just used a plastic bucket. The days below assume a "normal" 2 weeks in the secondary or you can adjust using the -days to bottling for longer secondary times.
Transfer to secondary
Clean the Secondary fermentation bucket/carboy
place the primary fermentation higher than the secondary
Use the auto-siphon to for the transfer. Don't suck up the bottom.
Day 25 (-7 to bottling): Dry hopping
I haven't done anything with dry hopping yet so for now I'll follow the information I read from a homebrew forum
both Stone and Russian River:
- Russian River recommends 68ºF (20ºC) for dry hopping homebrew
- Stone recommends "warm fermentation temperature", which coincides with Russian River's advice. Grassy flavours come from dry hopping too long, stale hops, or wet hops.
At 20ºC most dry hopping aroma is extracted in 3 days, almost all of it by 5 days, 99.99% by 7 days. nything longer and you run the risk of that grassy flavour.
I'm not too sure of the affect to the dry hop when using the gelatin, so I'm going to split the difference for now. 3 days of dry hopping and another the 3 days of dry hopping with the gelatin
Set fermentation temp to 68 degrees
Place the hops in a grain bag, if not using leaves
Add the hops to the carboy
Day 28 (-4 to bottling): Clearing Agent
I've selected to use gelatin over Irish moss since from what I've read the gelatin has no affect on the beer taste or smell and is very effective at removing the particles.
Using Gelatin
Boil the water first and then let it cool a bit before adding the gelatin.
Add the gelatin and mix.
You need to let it sit for awhile to "bloom" and then heat gently to get as much as possible dissolved but DO NOT boil.
Gently add to the secondary.
Wait 3 or more days.
Cold Crashing Part 2
It is possible to crash again but I've decided not to do it since I've done it once and I don't really want to wait to crash chill the whole thing down and then let the temperature rise again before bottling. If you do cold crash here, just follow the steps in the first cold crash section.
Day 31 (-1 to bottling): Bottling Prep
Clean the bottles. It's okay (i.e. a low risk to contamination) to clean a day early and let them dry.
Make sure you have enough bottle caps
Day 32: Bottling
Final gravity measurement
Take a final gravity sample.
Get a sample and place the hydrometer it it.
Spin the hydrometer to get any bubbles of of it.
Take a measurement.
Replace the hydrometer with the thermometer
Take a measurement
Repeat 2-5 a few times to make sure you got a real measurement.
Don't return the sample to wort
Calculate the alcohol percentage. I use an app (ABV Calculator for android) so I don't have to worry about the formulas.
Priming & Capping
Transfer from secondary to bottling bucket (just my primary fermenting bucket again). Be careful not to agitate the gelatin on the bottom and try to limit the exposure to oxygen.
Mix the priming sugar in boiling water
Add the priming sugar to the bottom of the bottling bucket
Transfer the beer from the secondary to the bottling bucket
Bottle and cap.
Leave at 70 degrees in a dark area.
Day 53+: Drinking Time
The time to bottle conditioning varies quite a bit, but the "normal" way is to wait at least 3 weeks. Its said that the long the better the beer will turn out, but I imagine just like secondary fermentation this varies with the beer.