Yes, the smaller the volume the harder it is to keep the temperature right…
Out of my depth please help!
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Don’t sweat it, but just for info here’s why controlling the temperature of the mash matters. The aim is to get a particular mix of the two enzymes (alpha and beta) that convert starch in grains into sugar:
The balance of alpha versus beta is what makes the beer ‘clean and dry’ or ‘malty and sweet’. Notice how much difference you get for only a degree or so each way…
The balance of alpha versus beta is what makes the beer ‘clean and dry’ or ‘malty and sweet’. Notice how much difference you get for only a degree or so each way…
cheers might have wrecked it was parts touching 72 others in the low 60's
Sparge now see what it looks like if ruined its not a big deal and a lesson learned
what side does too much heat take it to compared to not enough heat?
More heat = maltier
It’ll be beer either way - and I bet it’ll be darned good beer too :-)
sparge done will boil when back in and add the hopps
yeah worst case it becomes shandy haha
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Well managed to get it cooled to 14c and added the yeast, been sitting overnight between 12c and 14c - no signs of bubbling yet i presume the colder yeast takes longer to work?
Got close to SG should have been 1.047, I got it to 1.045. volume was closer to 5 ltr than 4.5ltr, so either didn't lose as much during the boil or too much sparge water
Looks very dark I think i have overheated the mash?
leave it for a week then raise to 18c and cold crash it outside or the garage.
much harder work than cider haha struggled to keep a constant mash temp and swmbo was not impressed with the smell
See how it turns out i guess
Got close to SG should have been 1.047, I got it to 1.045. volume was closer to 5 ltr than 4.5ltr, so either didn't lose as much during the boil or too much sparge water
Looks very dark I think i have overheated the mash?
leave it for a week then raise to 18c and cold crash it outside or the garage.
much harder work than cider haha struggled to keep a constant mash temp and swmbo was not impressed with the smell
See how it turns out i guess
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Sounds like you’ve done an excellent job I hadn’t clicked you were working with a 5litre batch - that makes it a lot more difficult than a bigger one to do most steps. As for bubbles- much of the first couple of days with a lager in particular is the yeast growing using the oxygen and any CO2 produced at this early stage will go into solution. More CO2 can also be absorbed at lower temperatures so giving the beer a subtle fizz even in a fermenter.
Hi Anna, yes very basic kit justa stock pot on a kitchen hob so went for small batch see if it works.
I messed up the mash started ok dropped low then finished too high so that will affect the flavour, something to work on for next brew and perhaps looks at a small thermostatically controlled hotplate, or make something up
Sounds like you did well! I’d say you got extremely close to the correct OG, which means you managed to convert all the starches into sugars during the mash - and that’s the main thing. After all, brewers don’t make beer: yeast makes beer; brewers just make wort :-)
The brew in the bag method seemed to be ok for extracting from the grain, in my extremely limited experience.
see how it ends up, the irony is i do't even like larger haha
I hear you but lager comes in many different forms, many of which are a million miles from bland industrial fizzy yellow water...
Looks horrendous but bubbling away now at 14/15c
as the hop pellets were so tiny i just tossed them at the boil, when transferring i could not see them, so presume they are in the with all the other sludge in the FV, will this do any harm?
Also the recipe calls for dry hopping for 5 days, as this is a small 5 ltr batch its i plastic bottle, not a wide neck, so not sure how I would get a hop bag in or out for the 5 days. What the best option here throw it in and then strain the whole thing after 5 days? or can i wait until fermentation calms down draw off a small sample and add the hops to that for 5 days then add that liquid to the FV?
as the hop pellets were so tiny i just tossed them at the boil, when transferring i could not see them, so presume they are in the with all the other sludge in the FV, will this do any harm?
Also the recipe calls for dry hopping for 5 days, as this is a small 5 ltr batch its i plastic bottle, not a wide neck, so not sure how I would get a hop bag in or out for the 5 days. What the best option here throw it in and then strain the whole thing after 5 days? or can i wait until fermentation calms down draw off a small sample and add the hops to that for 5 days then add that liquid to the FV?
I would add them 5 days before you are planning to bottle
Well lesson learned strain before adding to the FV haha.
Settled ok lots of sludge at the bottom my own fault i did not use a bag for the hopps, just chucked them in.
racked it to another fv so get rid of the sludge checked FG and cheeky taste.
I am not a beer drinker but wow even at this stage tastes nice and good lime citrus flavour but felt quite strong, going by the FG will be about 6%
Out in the garage now the coldest place I have let it sit for 10 days then add priming sugar and bottle.
was concerned I had messed up the mash by not being able to keep correct temps, but might have got away with.
See when bottled and conditioned but so far pretty impressed was CML kit.
Small 5 lt stove top kit
Settled ok lots of sludge at the bottom my own fault i did not use a bag for the hopps, just chucked them in.
racked it to another fv so get rid of the sludge checked FG and cheeky taste.
I am not a beer drinker but wow even at this stage tastes nice and good lime citrus flavour but felt quite strong, going by the FG will be about 6%
Out in the garage now the coldest place I have let it sit for 10 days then add priming sugar and bottle.
was concerned I had messed up the mash by not being able to keep correct temps, but might have got away with.
See when bottled and conditioned but so far pretty impressed was CML kit.
Small 5 lt stove top kit
Well done :-)
Cheers for that bit more work than kits but so far looks to be worth it.
It's true that it's a bit more work, especially for small quantities. It's a bit like making your own bread or something - it's satisfying to create something a bit more from scratch, and you get to tweak things a bit more to your preferences.
Well my son approved of my first shot at AG made him the Crowned mexican kit from CML
He tried it last night against Corona he prefers it says a touch sweeter and has more citrus flavour and generally easier to drink despite being a higher ABV.
I presume the sweetness may have come from too much heat in the mash?
He tried it last night against Corona he prefers it says a touch sweeter and has more citrus flavour and generally easier to drink despite being a higher ABV.
I presume the sweetness may have come from too much heat in the mash?
That's quite likely.
To put it simply:
- At lower mash temps (about 60-63ºc) you get more alcohol and less sweetness in the beer.
- At higher mash temps (about 68-72ºc) you get more residual sweetness and less alcohol.
Note that the enzymes that do the work quickly 'wear out' above their optimum temperatures. The low temperature ones ('beta amylase') start burning out above about 65ºc, and the higher temperature ones (called 'alpha amylase') start burning out above about 75ºc.
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