steeping grain temps????

[dreaded_rust]

In the few batches that I've used specialty grains for steeping I haven't heated the sparging water up. Here's my process: steep the grains in about two gallons of water at about 160* and then pull the bag out and set it in a colander above the pot. Then I crack open a new jug of water and use that to rinse the bag then top off the pot to my boil volume of 4.25 gallons and crank the heat up to get it boiling. Now my question is; with the obvious temp fluctuations that are happening here, how will this affect my beer. The last batch I did was an imperial IPA that my recipe estimated a 1.084 OG....it came in at 1.092. I know my volumes were spot on and I know it was mixed well (took the sample after oxygenating). Could steeping grains affect OG this much? I also think that maybe my cheap scale I used to measure out the sugar could have been a little off. Any thoughts on this?

 

[BakerBrew]

The O.G. could have been higher if you took the reading while the wort was at a temp higher than 70F. Your steeping temp is fine. Anywhere within 150F-168F, you're fine.

Your gravity would be affected if you went below 150, as less fermentable sugars would be extracted due to slower enzymatic action. Going to 170F or higher will extract tannins from the grains, possibly causing off-flavors. As long as you're steeping for 20-30 minutes, that should allow proper extraction of sugars, proteins, etc.

As for sparge water, you want 1qt of water per 1 pound of grain you are sparging. to properly sparge, the pH should be between 5.3-5.7, and the temp of the water should be 150F-160F. Aim around the low 150's.
The most common mistakes people make with sparging is using too much water, not having the proper pH (but this can really be overlooked for the extract brewer), and the water isn't the right temp.

Just make sure to use the correct amount of water at the right temp and you should yield better results. Hope this helped!

 

[J-Drew]

I'm not sure if you calculated the contribution of the steeping grains or sugar, but they will definitely add to your total. In How to Brew, Palmer lists the typical malt yields in points/ pound/ gallon (ppg) for many malts. For example, he notes 22 ppg for steeping pale crystal and 46 ppg for cane sugar.

As for your hitting your OG in your example, I can tell you what I do. Early in my brewing process, I use part of a campden tablet to remove chlorine (I use tap water) from some extra water (usually one gallon). I boil that water and then start cooling it. Next I set it aside so it will be much closer to pitching temps by the time I oxygenate my wort. Then I proceed with brewing.

After I oxygenate, I take a gravity reading like you did. From there I correct my gravity with the water I have set aside and algebra (gravity you have * gallons = gravity you want * gallons). So in this case (and if I'm understanding your situation correctly), the algebra would be:

92 * 4.25 = 84 * x
391 = 84 * x
391 / 84 = x
4.65 = x

So to hit the target gravity of 1.084, I would add .4 gallon of water (which comes from 4.65 - 4.25). After I add the water, I oxygenate again and take another gravity reading, and if not on target, it is usually much closer.

Of course, adding water is only useful in correcting your OG if you come in higher than your target.

As you learn your system and hone your process, you will get better at anticipating and hitting your targets, making this correction less necessary. Nonetheless, it is one that I always prepare for because I believe it is an important adjustment to try and hit my OG as closely as possible. The closer I am with my OG, the closer my FG is, and I feel as though this is really important to getting the balance I want out of my beer.