Do I need a mash tun or can I use my boiler?

[mord]

Hi All

I have done a few malt extract brews now and they are going very well to the fact that the current brew, a hydrid Timothy Taylor meets Old Speckled Hen is being sold to a mate of mine!! Hurray.

Anyway, my wife has asked when am I going to make a brew for her to have. She wants a Hoegaarden beer and I have found 2 recipes, one using a brew kit you add to and one using a full mash. Now I only have a boiler, and looking at what a Mash Tun is, you just need to keep the liquid at 65oC for 90 mins. So my question is, can I just use my thermostatic controlled boiler as a mash tun?

These are the 2 receipes I am going to be looking at:

Hoegaarden
5Kg Wheat Spray Malt
1x Brewferm Wheat Beer Kit
40gms Kent Goldings Hops - Boiled for 30mins
30gms Saaz Hops - Boiled for 15mins
11gms Corriander seeds
50gms Bitter Orange Peel
50gms VERY Fresh Chopped Ginger (the magic ingredient for me I think)
1/4tsp Fermaid K

I think the secret really is to leave it in the keg for as long as possible - 4 months minimum, 6 better. Quite a long time to tie up a keg but the difference in flavour between 1 month and 4 is staggering.


Hoegaarden:

4lb Belgian 2-row Pilsener malt
3lb Belgian Wheat malt
2lb flaked wheat
8oz Belgian aromatic malt
4oz flaked oats
1lb rice or oat hulls

Mash at 150F for 90 min

Boil:

1oz Kent Goldings @60 min

.5oz Kent Goldings @15 min
.25oz bitter orange peel @ 15min
3/4tsp crushed corriander seed @ 15min
1/8tsp crushed cumin seed @ 15min

.5oz Czech Saaz @ 2 min
.5oz bitter orange peel @ 2min
1/2tsp crushed corriander seed @ 2min
1/8tsp crushed cumin seed @ 2min

Yeast:

Wyeast 3463 Forbidden Fruit
or
Wyeast 3944 Belgian Witbier

Prime with 1 1/4cup extra light DME

Thanks
Mord.

 

[Aleman]

Those recipes look **** TBH (Actually the second one looks OK but being pounds I suspect it's American and therefore for 19L not 23 ) . . . .The bit about leaving it for 4 to 6 moths total ******** wits and wheat beers are meant to be drunk young.

My recipe is Here . . .although I would up the Coriander next time, and use the zest of 3 or 4 oranges instead of curacao orange peel.

Insulate your boiler with a couple of camping mats, Line your boiler with a voile bag (BIAB) fill the boiler with all the liquor required get it up to 65C . . .add the grain (Scale the recipe back for your brew length mine was for 65L) and let it sit for 90 minutes. Gather the top of the voile bag and lift it out and allow it to drain into the boiler. . . . . Bring it up to the boil add hops and Robert is your sisters brother.

 

[Lobes]

although I would up the Coriander next time, and use the zest of 3 or 4 oranges instead of curacao orange peel.

Just out of interest, why would you use orange zest rather than the curacao peel? What sort of difference would that make to the flavour?

 

[Aleman]

Much more orange flavour . . . . Added at switch off to avoid driving off too much of the volatiles

 

[artyb]

this guy manages to use his boiler as a mash tun.....

looks like a great way to brew.... :party:


http://www.stempski.com/biab.php

 

[mord]

Well, thanks for all the advice. I will see how it goes. Just got to sit down now and order all the grains, and wait for my current brew to be bottled. Hopefully should be starting this one in about 4-6 weeks, just when my second child enters the world. I somehow think this brew might have to wait, but I have 2 weeks of work!! Perfect for learning the dark art of the Full Mash. Hurray for a new baby.

I'll keep in touch with how it goes. Better read my books on doing a mash next.

Thanks again
Mord :clap:

 

[StubbsPKS]

Def take some pics if you do the BIAB method. I've purchased my bag, got my second keg, made sure I have enough FVs, and I'm just waiting on the container-that-will-be-my-boiler to arrive and I'll be joining the dark side as well :)

Hoping to only do 1 or 2 BIAB before I can get the mashtun built though :)

 

[luckyeddie]

Do not rely on the thermostatic control in your boiler when using it as a mash tun - you will end up with a temperature gradient through the mash. Like Aleman says, get it to strike temperature, dough in and insulate well.

Best of luck

:drink:

 

[Lobes]

although I would up the Coriander next time, and use the zest of 3 or 4 oranges instead of curacao orange peel.

Just out of interest, why would you use orange zest rather than the curacao peel? What sort of difference would that make to the flavour?

Interesting. I've done a couple of Hoegaarden-stylee brews recently. The first one was pretty close taste-wise, I used 20g each of corriander seeds and curacao peel (23l brew). Then I did the same recipe but lowered the peel to 15g and added some honey. Both still had a decent orange twang to them. Might try using normal orange peel next time and see how it goes

 

[mord]

My recipe is Here . . .although I would up the Coriander next time, and use the zest of 3 or 4 oranges instead of curacao orange peel.


Hi.

I have just brewed the above (in the link). After the 'cooking' (sorry still not up on the lingo) the Hygromitor gave me a reading of 1.030 when I pitched the yeast, (you stated 1.051), so a little low. I did a 25l brew so reduced ingredients as required, though I think the grains were maybe a touch less. After 7 days in the fermentation bin it seems to be steady at 1.011.

Should I be alarmed? It tastes like it is going to be OK and is the right colour.

Advice????

Thanks
Mord. :drink:

 

[WelshPaul]

It's going to come out at a very low ABV. If that's not a problem for you then that's fine.
It does seem like you had the exact same problem that I had when I tried my first AG recipe without a mashtun: you simply haven't extracted enough sugars from the grains for the yeast to ferment.
Get or build yourself a proper mashtun and you'll be OK. There's a good link below to help you build one for under £30.

http://www.donosborn.com/homebrew/mashtun.htm
(The only change I made from these instructions was to use 2 airlock grommets to seal the hose going through the wall of the coolbox where I had to drill it due to not having a tap built in).