All Grain #2 - Winter Lightning

[ChrisG]

Thinking about my next batch and just an adaption of the "Summer Lightning" clone.

-Winter Lightning- called it this due to not having a summer and well i like winter

5500g Pale Malt

200g Wheat

40g Challenger Hops at boil (@ 90mins)

20g Goldings Hops at boil (@ 90mins)

15g Goldings (@ 15mins)

10g Goldings (@ boil off)

Not much of a difference but looking to make around 26L, not wanting this too strong and look to get an OG about 1040-42.

Proabably going to keg most of this for a change.

Comments?

[coatesg]

Assuming 60% overall efficiency then it looks pretty good (though I used a pretty much identical bill for my last and got 23L @ 1050 post boil - but I may get better efficiency I guess - mine is about 70-75% overall). Can't say how it tastes as it's (still) in the primary!

What yeast will you use?

[andyp]

As above, if you want to get to 1040ish then you prob only need 4 to 4.5K of the malt unless you have an unusual efficiency.

[ChrisG]

I think I'll reduce the amount of pale malt to 4.5kg like you suggest.

Going to use SO4 yeast, always had good results with it.

[PaulStat]

I still don't understand all this talk of efficiency

[highwayman]

I still don't understand all this talk of efficiency

You are not the only one Paul.. It sounds very mathamatical to me..so I have avoided it..

However, if someone on here can simlpy it for us Newbies ..I am sure we will give it a go

[ChrisG]

I still don't understand all this talk of efficiency

I'm not even bothered about it. If I make a good pint, who cares

[Parva]

Efficiency means that given known estimated and actual final gravity from the last runnings from the mash tun you could work out how much you can reduce (or increase) your grain bill to achieve your target starting gravity. My final run-offs from the mash tun have been in the region of 1.018. Bearing in mind that this can go as low as 1.006 I could make calculations and lower my grain bill but for the amount of beer I'm making I'll stick to being inefficient and err on the side of being well outside of extracting tanins.

Over time (and probably hundreds of litres) being so inefficient could probably add to the costs significantly but for 23l of brew every few weeks or so it's not an urgent consideration for me.

[highwayman]

Thanks for that Parva...Its not as complicated as I thought

I am sparging down to 1010 and collecting 30 Litres in the copper..so I am getting good efficiency then

[Parva]

Yep Highwayman, that sounds pretty good to me and I wouldn't want to increase your efficiency much more. It actually pays to be a little inefficient. I seem to recall that you are fly-sparging? That would explain why your efficiency is that much better than mine.