Wet Milling

[LutzBrewer]

Has anyone tried 'wet milling' their grain? Is it worth the time and effort? I've read several articles and don't know if it's worth the trouble.

Thanks

B

 

[Cavpilot2000]

If you are referring to conditioning the grain with water, yes I do it and it's awesome and easy - hardly any additional work for the benefit.
If you are talking about truly "wet milling", which I have heard of some breweries doing, that seems like a process better left for the commercial/industrial scale.

 

[MagicMatt]

+1. In fact, I don't brew with unconditioned grain anymore. Every batch gets the treatment prior to milling.

 

[kh54s10]

I think it depends on your mill. I use a Corona style mill and it pretty much shreds the grain husks whether I condition or not, so I don't bother. I also didn't notice any improvement when I did.

 

[stevehaun]

I'm sorry if I am hijacking the thread but those of you that condition your malt, do you have problems with your mill rollers rusting?

 

[wilserbrewer]

I'm sorry if I am hijacking the thread but those of you that condition your malt, do you have problems with your mill rollers rusting?

Conditioning malt is done by adding a very small amount of moisture to merely raise the moisture content of the grain husk.

If done correctly this will not rust your mill.

We are talking a minuscule amount of water that is absorbed into the grain quickly. Not enough to cause issue w a mill.

 

[wilserbrewer]

Conditioning malt is done by adding a very small amount of moisture to merely raise the moisture content of the grain husk.

If done correctly this will not rust your mill.

We are talking a minuscule amount of water that is absorbed into the grain quickly. Not enough to cause issue w a mill.

I would be more concerned with storing your mill in a damp environment than milling conditioned grain for a few minutes.

 

[MagicMatt]

wilserbrewer is correct, I haven't had any issues with my rollers rusting. I add about 0.25oz/lb of water via a spray bottle, stirring the grain every few squirts. Adds about 5 minutes of labor to my brew day. I do it right after I light the burner to heat my strike water, and let it rest about 10 minutes before milling. For me, that works out to be right when my strike is getting to temp, so it's perfect.

After brewing, when I'm finishing putting things away, I'll blow out the mill using compressed air (computer cleaner kind). Every few months I'll take an old toothbrush to the rollers.

 

[andrewmaixner]

I seem to go from 75% to about 83% on normal gravity beers when I take the time to condition the malt before crushing. Cuts down on the dust also.
All it takes is a big plastic bag or tray and a cheep spray bottle. spray the top layer, mix, spray, mix...

 

[RM-MN]

With a conventional mash tun you depend on the intact grain husks to form the filter bed. Shredded husks just don't work too well so without conditioning the grain by wetting the husk you are limited to how much you can crush the grain without shredding the husks. Adding just a little water and letting it sit for a few minutes allows the husks to absorb the water which toughens them and may start softening the kernel too. That should allow you to set your mill a bit tighter for the crush and with a finer crush your efficiency should go up. Try it a few times, first without adjusting your mill and then again with the mill set closer each time until you start having trouble draining the tun.

 

[PartagasD4]

I find for me that 2% water by weight works perfect. So 10lbs grains would be 3.2 oz water. I always let the grain rest for a minimum of 30 minutes in a closed 5 gallon bucket and set my mill at .028. I also mist and mix thoroughly and shake the heck out the bucket every time I walk by it.

I usually save a 1/2-1 lb or so of grain to run through unconditioned at the end.
I never have to re-adjust the mill for wheat/rye or oat malt. I just made a Hefe at 40/60 barley/wheat with zero problems. To me it is worth it because of consistency.

 

[MagicMatt]

I definitely change the gap size between barley and wheat. I mean, just look at the difference in size of their kernels. I set my gap to 0.55 mm for most grain, but running the wheat through there will barely crush half of it. So I set it to 0.41mm for my wheat, and it works great.

 

[Big Monk]

Has anyone tried 'wet milling' their grain? Is it worth the time and effort? I've read several articles and don't know if it's worth the trouble.



Thanks



B

Conditioning is such an easy task to do: water bottle, some sort of a bin for the grain and your hand is all you need. 1-2% water by weight. So easy to do.

If by wet milking you mean some of the other known forms used by large breweries, I can say you should steer clear.

My main collaborator ran the gamut of the conditioning methods detailed in Kunze's text: steep conditioning, steam conditioning, etc. and either too much moisture was introduced or the temperature of the grain wasn't raised enough to take advantage of any of the benefits.

Stick with conditioned dry milling. It's easy!

 

[stpug]

I also condition my grain before milling, exactly as MagicMatt described. It's about 1-2 minutes of 'spray, spray, stir, stir (repeat)', and I just use my brewing spoon and the container that I put my grains in prior to milling. After the couple minutes are up, I let it rest 10 minutes to equalize the moisture. Then I mill. The visual difference in the crush is so noticeable that a side-by-side is not even needed; my mill, which is mild steel, does not show any rust but I'm also in a very dry climate; and there has been no effect to my efficiency (and the mill gap has not been adjusted for conditioned grain - i.e. same old standard gap).

 

[Big Monk]

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