Various random questions

[StevieDS]

Just a few varied questions for you brew gurus out there:
1 Can u mash for too long a period of time?
2 If not, how would it affect the brew if the temp dropped to say around 50c during an overnight mash?
3 Can u pitch 'too much' yeast in a brew?
4 What would happen if you pitched 2 different yeasts in a brew?
5 Has anyone ever compiled a list of ideal water profiles for specific styles of beer? I don't mean profiles for cities, cos these aren't necessarily ideal for a style.
6 Is it worth the effort to crush your own grain?
7 From a taste point of view does it matter if a beer is a bit cloudy or is it just asthetics?
8 Why do people drink Tennants?

 

[Aleman]

1 Can u mash for too long a period of time?

Not really, although it does become a moot point as at mashing temperatures the enzymes are gradually denatured. . . It follows an exponential "half life" type decay pattern, so even if the temp was constant eventaully there would be no further conversion

2 If not, how would it affect the brew if the temp dropped to say around 50c during an overnight mash?

all the low temperature enzymes would have been significantly destroyed by the higher starting temperaure, so they would not have that much effect.

3 Can u pitch 'too much' yeast in a brew?

Yes

4 What would happen if you pitched 2 different yeasts in a brew?

Nothing, you would have a beer with the characteristics of both yeasts. I Pitched Windsor and US-05 int my stout I want the fruitiness from the Windsor but the dryness from US-05. Several breweries use a multi strain yeast . . Adnams is a dual strain, and hopback had around 14 strains in it IIRC.

5 Has anyone ever compiled a list of ideal water profiles for specific styles of beer? I don't mean profiles for cities, cos these aren't necessarily ideal for a style.

There is no 'ideal' profile for beer styles, although if you believe otherwise, look at the Murphys/brupaks profiles . . .which IIRC Martin used for the calculator on this site.

6 Is it worth the effort to crush your own grain?

Yes

7 From a taste point of view does it matter if a beer is a bit cloudy or is it just asthetics?

I tend to find that a beer that has a heavy yeast haze does tend to have a harsh bitterness, that once clear dissipates.

8 Why do people drink Tennants?

FIIK

 

[jonnymorris]

6 Is it worth the effort to crush your own grain?... Yes.

Because mashing the resulting crushed grain results in fresher wort or cos its cheaper to buy uncrushed or both?

 

[Loetz]

2 If not, how would it affect the brew if the temp dropped to say around 50c during an overnight mash?

When doing an overnight mash, you risk the chance that the beer will go sour from lacto fermentation. People do it and it works for them, but I've also read stories of ruined beers.

I read someplace, maybe in Brewing Better Beer, about people keeping their wort in an oven over night so that the temperature doesnt drop down that low.

 

[evanvine]

8 Why do people drink Tennants?

FIIK

+1 :thumb:

 

[evanvine]

6 Is it worth the effort to crush your own grain?

Yes, because you get a consistant ratio of husk and flour.
Buying pre-crushed grain can be a "pig in a poke".

 

[Loetz]

6 Is it worth the effort to crush your own grain?

Yes, because you get a consistant ratio of husk and flour.
Buying pre-crushed grain can be a "pig in a poke".

And that is important because it helps you estimate what the original gravity of your beer will be for a given set of grain. Let's say that you crush your own grain, use 7kilos of it in a beer, and then get an OG of 1.060. You can guess that you will probably get that same OG from that same crush the next time you make a batch of beer. If you are buying from shops, there is a chance that the grain will be crushed differently and you'll get more out of it or less out of it the next time you brew.

I suppose I'm not really sure how likely it is that the crush will be different every time when you buy it from a shop. Ive always just crushed my own. I do it because its cheaper to buy a bunch of grain uncrushed in bulk and then just crush it when I need it.

And of course there is always the freshness concern.