Sparging temp

[Easy Peasie]

Ok
AG#2 is in the offing this weekend hoping to do an Old Peculiar clone, probably Graham Wheelers seeing as though the book arrived from Amazon this afternoon.
Anyway one thing that is not perfectly clear is the best sparging temperature.
Any words of wisdom please???? :wha:

 

[unclepumble]

anything between 76 and 83deg C will suffice

UP

 

[Easy Peasie]

Thanks unclepumble.
Am I right in thinking that the sparging temperature should be high enough to stop the enzyme action on the grains and also dissolve remaing sugars???

 

[Aleman]

Most books quote a 'high' sparge temp (up to 76C) stating the fact that it will stop enzyme action . . . however, there is significant amylase activity at temperatures exceeding 80C.

Personally I try and sparge so that my mash bed temperature is around 76C . . . I don't really want to go higher as I don't want to risk excessive tannin extraction which can cause haze problems later on.

The real reason for higher temperatures is that it lowers the viscosity of the wort and makes running off much easier.

 

[prolix]

Tannins start to get extracted if the grain temp is above 78c and the ph changes due to dilution ie under 1008

If you're batch sparging the hot end is safe as houses as the SG is still high and so tannins don't get leached from the grain husks.

Sugars are disolvable in a linear relationship to temp so the higher the better would work but time also effects solution as the sugars do not saturate.

So even as low as 62, quoted by some folk, would be fine as long as the sparge took a long time, hotter liquor faster sparge times.

It will take a fair few brews to work out the optimum for your system and be nigh on unreapeatable to any but those with the technology in their brewhouses, so in short stick a thermometer in the grain bed and keep it just above 70 and you will be fine, if it goes up a few don't worry, down a few slow the sparge rate.

Oh and if you are fly sparging with a hydrometer get a table to convert your SG from high sparge temp to 20c, because 1008 at 70c is not 1008 at 20c, sorry I use a refractometer so can't help with that one.

 

[Easy Peasie]

Thanks Guys

Made the hydrometer/temp when sparging mistake on my first brew, can be sure that won't happen again.

 

[Brewmarc]

As Aleman suggests :thumb: I try to maintain the mash bed temperature rather than the sparge water temperature as this Im covinced is the most important factor, I have found through trial & error that my sparge water needs to be at about 85C, allowing for a temperature drop through my fly sparging system to arrive at the optimum grain temp.

 

[evanvine]

I don't want to risk excessive tannin extraction which can cause haze problems later on.

Thanks AM, I didn't know that :thumb: