First AG Day

[Parva]

Don't worry about the run-off being cloudy. I myself worried about this to start with but the idea of collecting and returning the first runnings is to remove all the particles of grain, you'll see them floating about in the first couple of jug fulls. I think people have the misconception that the wort should be clear but this isn't the case, clear means free of particles as forementioned rather than clear as in a crystal clear pint of beer.

[kevthebootboy]

well done on your first brew, i think i would be panicing like mad on my first if i had to be out the door by a certain time, shame about the jeans though

[BritishBelgianTwst]

So there we go, I've bottled my first AG and all went OK, FG down to 1010 so I'm pretty happy with myself.
One thing I did notice was that there was a bit of flour (I think) which slipped through my mash tun filter so I'll try sparging more carefully next time but apart from that it was already as clear as a bell.
If I were to change the recipe I think I'll add a bit of crystal as it really is lager-like to look (yes I know it's a golden ale).

All in all this brewing lark is a lot less daunting now I've done it once....I'm now planning to brew my next lot just before the session that is planned to consume this one so that I can reuse the bottles.

I'm now off to try and convert more people to the joys of home brewing.

[JamesE]

Hi BBT,

I was interested to read that you're brewing British style ales using Belgium pale malt.

I'm over in Holland (Leiden) and recently did my first AG using Belgium pale malt. I only realised when I picked up the bag from my local HBS that it was sold uncrushed - a standard BrewFerm bag as sold by Brouwland. I hastily bought the only grain mill in the shop, however, made a bit of a mess of the first attempt resulting in pretty awful mash efficiency (~40%).

I'd be interested to know where you got your grain and if you had to crush it yourself?

James

[BritishBelgianTwst]

Hi James,
Unfortunately I too had to invest in a grain mill as I don't know of anywhere that sells ready crushed malt over on the continent - I guess the demand isn't that high so the malt sits in the HBS longer than in the UK.
If you are still interested I got it from Brouwland (Beverlo) you can order from their website but if you've got an HBS near you then good luck.
I milled my grain with my new, shiny Crankandstein 2S that the missus got me for Christmas - hopper, stand, crank handle and mill were sent from the US for about €150 including the €10 that I had to use to grease the palm of the dirty Belgian customs officers (well the post man asked for it on their behalf actually).
I wouldn't hesitate to order the same model if I had to do it again, it was really easy - 5kgs went through it in about 5 minutes of hectic winding and as you can see for a newbie my efficiency seems to have been pretty good and I think I could have improved it further using a few tips I've picked up since like really giving a good mix in the coolbox when I've introduced the first lot of sparging liquor and then leaving it a few minutes before the run-off.

[JamesE]

The only grain mill in my HBS was the cheapo Corona style mill sold by Brouwland, its really more of a "grinder" than a crusher. I spent ages trying to adjust it and still ended up with half flour and half untouched husks.

I'll stick with it for a while as I don't brew much and don't mind upping the grain bill a bit to account for the lower efficiency - definately room for improvement though!

I'd be interested to know how your beer turns out with the Belgium malt.

James