Want to convert extract batch to all grain.

[XpeedeeX]

I have an extract batch that I really liked and I wanted to make it using an All Grain system I just bought but I do not know how to convert it. Here is the Recipe

Grain Bill:
7# - Pale Liquid Extract
.5# - Caramel 20
.5# - Caramel 30

Hops:
.5 ozs - Chinook - 60 mins
1.50 ozs - Northern Brewer - 10 mins
1.50 ozs - Cascade - 5 mins

Yeast:
American Ale

I would like to know how you changed the recipe so when you respond I would love it if you could explain how you figured out the recipe so I can do it for future recipes that I may want to convert. Thanks for your help.

 

[shanecb]

If you're shooting for basically the same gravity (1.046 from 7lb of extract), then for all grain use 9lb of 2-row malt instead of the extract, and keep the other grains the same amount. If you were just replacing the extract you'd need about 10lb of 2-row for the same gravity, but if you mash the crystal/caramel grains then only 9lb of 2-row. This is assuming 70% efficiency, by the way.

I think the conversion is something roughly like: 1 lb pale malt = 0.75 lb malt extract syrup = 0.6 lb dry malt extract

When you would do this as extract, at one time point were you adding the extract in the boil? Your hop utilization will likely be different so that may have to be adjusted as well to shoot for the same bitterness.

 

[XpeedeeX]

I think I added the extract to the water at around 170 degrees then brought to a boil. Then completed my hop additions.

 

[johnodon]

The only thing that needs to be converted are the extract/grains. Beersmith will do this for you via a conversion tool. You can download a 30 day trial from their website.

I pumped it in and here is what I got:

Amount Item Type % or IBU
6.85 lb Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 71.77 %
1.35 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 20L (20.0 SRM) Grain 14.12 %
1.35 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 30L (30.0 SRM) Grain 14.12 %

I'm not exactly sure why it would convert items that are already grains. I will add that I am not familiar with how well Beersmith converts recipes. Maybe someone else who has used the conversion tool can chime in.

John

 

[Bob]

BeerSmith has completely screwed the pooch, John. There is no reason to increase the amounts on the Caramel/Crystal malts. Those quantities WILL NOT CHANGE when converting to all-grain. All you're going is converting the pale extract to pale malt.

If you think of extract as merely a substitute for the pale or Pils malt which makes up the bulk of the grist in all-grain mashes, you won't be off at all. The overwhelming majority of the time, when converting a recipe's grist from extract to all-grain you need not fiddle with the amounts of the specialty grains listed.

The trouble with converting is getting your target OG if you don't know your system's efficiency. Most brewing software assumes an efficiency of 75%, which is to the best of my experience the high end of homebrew efficiency.

According to my calculations, your original, extract-based recipe gave an OG of 1.054. Assuming 75% efficiency in your brewery, substituting 9 lbs of pale malt and keeping the Crystal malts at the same weight will yield a like sweet wort. Hint: Keep a pound or so of light DME on hand the first time you try this; if your efficiency is low, you can simply add some DME until you get the OG you desire.

You need change nothing else; the hops and yeast remain the same. Current observations indicate that the perceived result of the utilization calculations makes no practical difference; in other words, brewers have been sweating the utilization numbers needlessly, because blind taste tests say no one can really tell the difference.

Cheers,

Bob

 

[shanecb]

According to my calculations, your original, extract-based recipe gave an OG of 1.054. Assuming 75% efficiency in your brewery, substituting 9 lbs of pale malt and keeping the Crystal malts at the same weight will yield a like sweet wort. Hint: Keep a pound or so of light DME on hand the first time you try this; if your efficiency is low, you can simply add some DME until you get the OG you desire.

D'oh... 1.054 is closer than my originally stated 1.046. I just noticed I was calculating to 5.5gal, and I assume the recipe was for 5gal. Just wanted to clarify... forget the 1.046 I said. But yeah, 9lb is the amount of grain you want.