Very Long Mash Times

[madfencer]

Hi Folks,

I have been trying to figure out ways to fit all grain brewing into my busy family schedule. It's harder and harder these days to find a solid 5 hour chunk of time to brew, unless I want to do it in the middle of the night. Recently I've had good success getting the mash started and then going off and doing a few chores, going to the grocery store, etc. So my mash times are usually around 2 hours. Not only does it make SWMBO happy, but my efficiency has shot up from around 65% to 85%.

Now I'm wondering if I could do something similar to let me brew on a work day. I'm thinking I could start the mash in the morning, then be ready to start the boil right when I get home. But that would mean a mash time of at least 9 hours. Is there any reason not to do this? I can't imagine anything would actually go wrong with the starch conversions, but I'm not sure. What about infections if the temperature ends up dropping into the 140's for a few hours?

Thanks for all the tips.

 

[FirstAidBrewing]

As long as you're confident that your mash tun can hold temperature while you are not there then there should not be an issue. Others on the forum have successfully mashed overnight. Since it's pre-boil and a closed environment you don't need to be concerned with infection.

 

[HausBrauerei_Harvey]

Check out my recent thread about overnight mashing. I'm not the first to do it but it's the best thing for me right now also due to family obligations. This has become my standard process now and I don't foresee changing back to the one-day brew session for a few years at least.

 

[madfencer]

Thanks! That thread on overnight mashing is exactly what I was looking for. I've only been thinking about doing this during the day, so in all the searches I've done on the topic I never thought to include "overnight"...

 

[HausBrauerei_Harvey]

Thanks! That thread on overnight mashing is exactly what I was looking for. I've only been thinking about doing this during the day, so in all the searches I've done on the topic I never thought to include "overnight"...

Sure thing! I love getting the brew setup and doughed-in while enjoying a beer on friday night and finishing up on saturday morning, it's been a really enjoyable change-of-process for me.

 

[BigPerm]

Check out my recent thread about overnight mashing. I'm not the first to do it but it's the best thing for me right now also due to family obligations. This has become my standard process now and I don't foresee changing back to the one-day brew session for a few years at least.

I've done this too a number of times with good results. As long as your mash is well insulated, and temp doesn't drop substantially over the course of 1-2 hours, you're good. All of the mash enzymes will denature after 2+ hours. The only slight hazard is that if you dip below 130 for an extended period, you conceivably could get some lactobacillus growth and some tartness, but that's less likely with this method.

Good luck!

 

[RM-MN]

Hi Folks,

I have been trying to figure out ways to fit all grain brewing into my busy family schedule. It's harder and harder these days to find a solid 5 hour chunk of time to brew, unless I want to do it in the middle of the night. Recently I've had good success getting the mash started and then going off and doing a few chores, going to the grocery store, etc. So my mash times are usually around 2 hours. Not only does it make SWMBO happy, but my efficiency has shot up from around 65% to 85%.

Now I'm wondering if I could do something similar to let me brew on a work day. I'm thinking I could start the mash in the morning, then be ready to start the boil right when I get home. But that would mean a mash time of at least 9 hours. Is there any reason not to do this? I can't imagine anything would actually go wrong with the starch conversions, but I'm not sure. What about infections if the temperature ends up dropping into the 140's for a few hours?

Thanks for all the tips.

You could avoid much of this if you learn to steamline the whole process. I BIAB and mill the grains really fine. That lets me cut the mash time to less than 30 minutes. At the end of the mash, I pull the bag out and set it into a colander suspended over another pan and turn the heat up on the kettle. While the wort it heating, I pour some water over the bag of grains and return the collected wort to the kettle.

Unless you are using a bunch of Pilsener malt, you can get by with only a 30 minute boil if you adjust your quantity of hops for the right bittering. If you have a decent burner you can weigh and mill the grains, do the mash, boil and cleanup and put everything away in less than 3 hours assuming you have a good chiller and do the cleanup while the wort it chilling.

 

[David Baker]

You could avoid much of this if you learn to steamline the whole process. I BIAB and mill the grains really fine. That lets me cut the mash time to less than 30 minutes. At the end of the mash, I pull the bag out and set it into a colander suspended over another pan and turn the heat up on the kettle. While the wort it heating, I pour some water over the bag of grains and return the collected wort to the kettle.

Unless you are using a bunch of Pilsener malt, you can get by with only a 30 minute boil if you adjust your quantity of hops for the right bittering. If you have a decent burner you can weigh and mill the grains, do the mash, boil and cleanup and put everything away in less than 3 hours assuming you have a good chiller and do the cleanup while the wort it chilling.

.... and then there's the recent article about "raw ale" in which the mash lasts at least 4 hours but - but there is no boiling of the mash, just the hops. Apparently, as has been said above, if you are careful to maintain temperatures and don't let the mash go below "about" 150F it's like pasteurizing the wort. Makers of raw ale do not boil.