wilserbrewer BIAB bags

[Mirilis]

my bag came in the other day.. im looking forward to it. The mesh is soo much tighter than the crummy 29x29 generic bag i got at LHBS.

I see a lot of people squeeze and I typically dont do BIAB but wouldnt that extract tannins same as over sparging?

 

[RM-MN]

my bag came in the other day.. im looking forward to it. The mesh is soo much tighter than the crummy 29x29 generic bag i got at LHBS.

I see a lot of people squeeze and I typically dont do BIAB but wouldnt that extract tannins same as over sparging?

Lots of people worry that squeezing the bag will extract tannins but in reality it is a chemical process, not mechanical, that extracts the tannins. You need a pH over about 6 and temperatures over 170 at the same time to complete the chemical process. Extracting the tannins by over sparging is because the excess water drives the pH upward.

 

[Mirilis]

Ahh, see I learn something every day

 

[Beer-lord]

I do BIAB exclusively and squeeze the frack out of my bag (don't tell my wife) and never, ever have had a tannin problem. In fact, I just got a pair of special gloves so I don't burn my hands and I can squeeze even more. Between stirring my mash every 15 minutes and squeezing, I get awesome efficiency and never miss my SG.

Love these bags.

 

[dbkdev]

Stupjd question, but are the hop bags intended for whole hops or pellets, or both? Will I lose any hop oil from using a bag?

 

[divrguy]

I would say both. It's a giant bag and it's got plenty of room for either.


Cheers!

 

[StarrHill]

Just received my order! Very high quality stitching, very fine mesh - much better than the bag from my lhbs I'd been using. Looking forward to using it, and shipping was prompt! Thanks

 

[solbes]

I received my bag from Wilser yesterday. Fit perfectly with my new 15 gallon SS kettle, so I am pumped to brew with my new setup. Just need to carve out some time.

Back to tbe bag, it looks like top notch quality. Very happy with the purchase and uber prompt fabrication/delivery for a custom product. Thanks Wilser!

PS - I am a bag squeezer at heart, but will have to experiment with this new setup. I was always able to squeeze my old bag between the frier basket and a sauce pan lid pain free. It seems my bag has grown, so a new strategy is needed

 

[Mirilis]

LOL i havnt had a chance to use my bag and i think ill have to order another soon. My brewing plans are changing along with my kettle! ill use the bag i got now on my 15g, and ill need one for my 12.25g kettle which im hoping to set up as EBIAB with 2 120v elements. (ill keep the 15g around on propane for larger batches or incase i want to do 2 at the same time).

Now i got to sell my 24 gallon and 17.5 gallon kettles. blah

 

[NTexBrewer]

Guess I will add my praise as I just did two batches last weekend. I did a 1.5 gallon batch on Friday and a 4 gallon batch on Saturday. I have two different pots so I have 2 sets of bags for each pot. I decided to use the hop bag for the first time. I will say that using the hop bag and squeezing this at the end of the boil saves a lot of wort. I may have to adjust my water quantities since now I have less trub. My efficiency was higher so it did not cause a problem with my last batch.

I use both of my bags on brew day. The first bag for the mash and the second one I sanitize and then use it to line my fermenter to get have a final filtration. After I poor the chilled wort into the bucket I slowly lift up the bag and rotate the bag around to filter out as much as possible. When I use carboys I put the bag in my bottling bucket to filter the wort and then drain the wort with a funnel into the carboy.

This method definitely reduces the amount of trub going into the fermenter.

 

[Mirilis]

I have considered using the dry hop bag inside my carboy when I fill it from kettle then pulling it out to see if it filters much trub out. Anyone tried that before I do?

 

[NTexBrewer]

I have considered using the dry hop bag inside my carboy when I fill it from kettle then pulling it out to see if it filters much trub out. Anyone tried that before I do?

Are you pouring from your kettle or do you have a valve so you leave a lot of trub behind?

My large bag fits nicely in a 5 gallon bucket. I usually pour everything into the bucket. When I lift up the bag, I would guess that I have anywhere from 1/2 to 3/4 of a gallon of liquid trapped in the bag due to gunk plugging up the bottom of the bag. I than have to grab the bottom of the bag and start tilting it to allow the wort to flow through a clean portion of the bag until that area clogs up.

I'm thinking the dry hop bag may be too small unless you get a good whirlpool and can get the wort out of the kettle without disturbing the trub in the bottom.

I would maybe try it in a bucket first and see how it goes.

 

[Mirilis]

I have a valve and 1/2" silicone tube I use to transfer to my carboy. I was thinking of putting the tube in the dry hop sack then dropping it in my carboy.

A good portion already gets left behind but I just wanted to catch that initial plug of gunk when I open the valve.

 

[sfrisby]

I have ordered multiple bags over many years. The quality has always been great and the final product has been, well, if less that great it was due to no fault of the bag.

Highly recommended.

 

[wilserbrewer]

Thanks all, appreciate the feedback. We are still offering the free dry hop sock with any order...just mention it with your kettle dimensions and I will happily throw it in.
Cheers!
Wilser


Wilserbrewer
Http://biabbags.webs.com/

 

[Mirilis]

Finally got to use my bag for the first time... It was pretty awesome! My wort was much less cloudy!

 

[user 160740]

Just about to order a "backup" should I ever need it, but I have put these through many batches now without issue. I don't necessarily treat them very well during the brew process, and they're still holding strong:

• *many* things to poke the bag in the kettle - whirlpool arm, thermometer probe, intake elbow
• I use a large 'metal' spoon to stir the mash
• 14-17lb grain bills, lifted out via the pulley and drawstring (much heavier than 17lbs saturated with wort)

Whatever I throw at it, it holds strong. If it ever breaks, it's my own doing... I'm not gentle with them. My best batches so far have been BIAB with these bags.


TL;DR - Great bags, great service, get them.

 

[solbes]

I commented before on the perfect custom fit to my 15G brew kettle. I got a chance ot use it for the first time last weekend and it worked like a champ. Very fine mesh will likely give me less trub in primary. And the drawstring was super easy to lift and attach to my rope/pulley in my garage.

 

[wilserbrewer]

Thanks everyone!
All recent orders shipped.
Wilser


Wilserbrewer
Http://biabbags.webs.com/

 

[Hello]

Has anyone actually crafted the pulley in their kitchen? I don't brew on the stove in my kitchen but I brew on an induction burner in my kitchen frequently. Lifting the bag to let it drain has been the bigger challenge.

 

[chefjaypeek]

Just wanted to add my positive vote for Wilser, after reading this thread on Monday, I ordered a complete set, and even got an email from Wilser at 4 something AM my time saying he had to add an extra panel due to my 22 gallon pot, but that it was done and ready to ship. They came in yesterday or today and I am totally happy with the quality, speed and responsiveness on the order. I can't wait to brew my first BIAB with them, unfortunately it will probably be a week or two, but I know it is going to rock!

Thanks again Wilser!

Chef Jay

 

[Conestoga]

I purchased a 2nd kettle, and went back to wilser for some more bags. The first set I purchased are still performing as new after 6 mos of repeat use.

He worked quickly, and inside of a couple days I have some more high quality bags to use.

I may expand to a third kettle, but not for a few mos I'd image.

Thanks again!

 

[jsmith32]

Just an update -

I've used both bags that I ordered from wilserbrewer basically every 2-3 weeks since I started this thread in November 2013. The bags are holding up very well and I'm consistently benefiting from the fact that these voile bags are far superior in filtering out husk material than the nylon bags that I used previously.

Reading back at this thread, I thought I'd throw in my opinion regarding bag squeezing, which I know has been a debated topic on this forum. I do squeeze with these bags and haven't had any apparent adverse effects in doing so.

That being said, I can't help but think that if you use a bag that is too coarse in its thread spacing, when you squeeze the bag, more husk material will push through the bag. While the act of squeezing itself doesn't cause tannin extraction, perhaps excess husk material would cause astringency once you proceed to boil?

Jason

 

[sfrisby]

I hate to get off topic as there are many places here to discuss bag squeezing, but if husks contributed to astringency and tannins, every decoction recipe in history would be guilty.

 

[jsmith32]

sfrisby - I've never done a decoction before. I just went to read a little bit about it, and, yeah, I agree with you and retract my previous opinion. The amount of husk material that could get through a very course bag is probably relatively small in comparison to the amount that gets boiled in a decoction.

Back on topic, I can't emphasize enough how great these bags are. If anyone reading this is contemplating ordering one of them, I'd highly encourage you to just do it!

Jason

 

[user 190343]

I ordered some bags from Wilser on Monday night and he said they would ship on Tuesday. i was just hoping I'd have them to brew on Sat, but they were delivered on Wed! I'm pretty impressed so far and am looking forward to brewing my all Equinox IPA on Sat with them.

 

[Dopeybrew]

Just got my new(and first) bag. Cant wait to use it on Sunday.

 

[WorkBoots09]

I also just received my bags and pulley from wilserbrewer. I went for the grand slam package, and I'm very excited to brew with it soon!

 

[zacster]

I used mine this weekend for maybe the tenth time. When I went to pull it out I thought for sure I had ripped it catching onto my Brew-mometer. But no, all was fine.

While it may not outlast the Blichmann kettle, it'll probably outlast me!

 

[speeddemon190]

I just got my 15 gallon kettle and ordered the grand slam 4 piece package....cant wait for it to come in!!!