Lautering Question

[BrewStew]

After reading, and re-reading john palmers "how to brew" and scanning through this forum, i'm still not entirely clear on a part of the sparging/lautering process.

i'm clear on the bit where you collect the first runnings and carefully re add it to the mash tun until you get clear runnings. Once clear you start adding your sparge water to maintain an inch of water over the grain, keep running it through and stop when it runs clear or when the gravity of the extraction falls below 1.008.

Having not yet done an AG brew I wouldn't know the answer to this, so before i do i just want to clarify... does this process ever leave you short of wort to carry out the boiling of hops? or is there usually enough? if there isnt, what can be done about it?

[J_P]

If you calculate your sparge volumes you'll not fall short volume wise.

What I'd be tempted to do on your first attempt is to do a recipe based on about 70% efficiency most folks can hit that without too much fuss. You may end up with slightly stronger beer as a result but you won't be short of wort or sugars. Calculate your efficiency and after a couple of brews you can adjust your grain bill to ensure you are hitting both your target volume and gravity. Jim has a good page on working out efficiency if you're at all unsure.

[BrewStew]

stronger beer has to be better than a weak one

thanks for clearing that one up JP it's much clearer now

[J_P]

When are you thinking of taking the leap to AG then? Actually "leap" is to strong a word "step" would have been a better word.

[steve_flack]

stop when it runs clear or when the gravity of the extraction falls below 1.008.

Strictly speaking it should fall below 1.008 before it becomes clear. One problem is that hydrometers are calibrated at 20C and your wort with be at 65C. You'll either need to cool the wort to 20C or adjust for the temperature difference - or use a refractometer or batch sparge where you don't need to worry about this.

does this process ever leave you short of wort to carry out the boiling of hops? or is there usually enough? if there isnt, what can be done about it?

Well it might with a weaker beer as the 1.008 cut off might happen before you've collected your desired volume. Easy fix though - just add some water to it to get the desired volume or gravity (campden treated of course)

[BrewStew]

RE: when am i goin AG?

i made a phonecall to Melvin at the bedford brewshop yesterday, and discovered he's got a brupak boiler in stock for a pretty reasonable price

i'm popping in tomorrow and it looks like i may be walking out with a few bags of grain, a mill (as they dont sell milled grain) and the boiler.

Edit: forgot the hops on that list above, but you get the idea

I think (SWMBO and bank roll permitting) my first AG brew might be Sunday (i'll have my phone camera at the ready if i do)

RE: run off gravity
Ok i'll keep an eye on it and make sure i'm allowing for temperature

[J_P]

RE: when am i goin AG?

i made a phonecall to Melvin at the bedford brewshop yesterday, and discovered he's got a brupak boiler in stock for a pretty reasonable price

i'm popping in tomorrow and it looks like i may be walking out with a few bags of grain, a mill (as they dont sell milled grain) and the boiler.

Edit: forgot the hops on that list above, but you get the idea

I think (SWMBO and bank roll permitting) my first AG brew might be Sunday (i'll have my phone camera at the ready if i do)

RE: run off gravity
Ok i'll keep an eye on it and make sure i'm allowing for temperature

Good man, good man You certainly wont regret the move any ideas on what you'd like to make? Choosing wht to brew was the trickiest part of my first brew day!

I'll keep my eye out for your post over the weekend

[BrewStew]

funny you should say that, i just edited my sig to say "any suggestions?"

after reading through my local water report and running the calculations given by John Palmers online book, my local water is set to be slap bang in the middle of the beer colour gradiant without modifications.

I like a beer thats creamy in the mouth, and easy drinking. i'm not a fan of rich beers, and neither bland beers. I guess you could say that i'd like my beer straight down the middle in the whole manner of things including strength (4-5%). i am however critical of aftertaste... i cant stand that metallic aftertaste in my mouth.

I'm also thinking of my mates, as i've now become somewhat of a god in the beer dept (but i hate that i cannot stake my claim because i brew kits) ... and my house is turning into a bit of a pub

so with all that in mind, what can everyone suggest?

[J_P]

I'd maybe look at a single grain single hop brew a bit like the Styrian Stunner or 100% satisfaction, if you like your beers with a bit of body aim to mash around 68C ish.

Personally I like the feel/taste torrified wheat gives a beer so I tend to include that in my brews. I also like a nice hop aroma without too much bitterness so I like to throw in a heap of hops when I turn out the boiler and allow them to steep before running off the wort, a good tip picked up from SteveD and Vossy1. That's the beauty of AG you can add whatever takes your fancy.

[BrewStew]

i must admit, i was eyeing those two up and scribbled them down on the top of my list

how to they usually turn out for aftertaste?

[J_P]

I've only drank the styrian stunner and courtesy of the late hop addition it tastes really good with no odd aftertastes that can be a problem with some of the lighter kits I brewed. I have never noticed any metalic tastes in any of my AG beer (touch wood).

[prodigal2]

I can recomend what JP has said
Doing a single malt single hop brew as AG1 gives you a good basis to learn the effect of the ingredients , and also they are very hard to screw up completly
This means that as you do other brews, when you add other ingredients to the mix you palate is in a place to see how they fit in, and make a difference to the final beer also crowd pleaser No.1(100% satisfaction/Caroline's fine ale) and No.2 (styrian stunner) are just that, great beers

[Frothy]

Hey BrewStew

I go to Mervyn and its a great shop isn't it? With regards to the sparge I'm a Palmer fan but I have had better results recently with a much lower depth of water over the grain bed. His calc's for heating the sparge etc are spot on. As for his recipes I'd recommend the Porter and Victory & Chaos IPA.

I'd try this out:
* water depth of ~ 1/2" over the grain bed during fly sparging. Too much water on top and with our kind of cool box mash tun the water channels down the side and misses the grain.
* Ensure that the mash is well mixed by mixing in the grain and water a bit at a time, use a boat padle or similar if you've got one.
* Sparge water can be anything from 80oc - 85oc. I've had some of my best results using 85oc and no subsequent problems with tannins etc. As a rule of thumb you'l need to heat something like 80% of your target volume but heat 100% anyway and it's quite reasonable to just keep collecting the run-off until you reach your target. You'l need about an extra 20% to allow for evaporation during the boil.

Where abouts in Northant's? I'm near wellingborough
Frothy

[BrewStew]

hi Frothy,

is he called Mervyn or Melvin? hehe i can never tell when he picks up the phone lol. he's a bit eccrentic and opinionated isnt he? (or is that his sense of humor, i can never tell) but he's definately worth his weight in gold when it comes to his advice. can't fault him

I recall us talking about locations in the guest/introduction part of the forum. I'm from Rushden, so only 4 or 5 miles away from you.

that's great advice mate thanks for that i think i may have to have a sample one of your concoctions for the taste test (it's not that i dont believe you... i just love free beer )