When is a boil not a boil....

[PD]

when its an abscess.....

I have a query reference the boiling of a brew. I'm rather inexperienced with All Grain and still looking to get things right.
I seem to loose an awful lot of liquor on my boil which due to the barely big enough boiler I have, it means I have to top up. I havent yet got the confidence in knowing how much extra water I can safely add without seriously diluting the wort.
I get to a good rolling boil without problems, can get through the hot break and into the boil itself, and here's where I'm confused. Do I need to keep the full rolling boil on throughout its allotted time or can I turn the heat down slightly so its just off where bubbles are forcing there way out of the surface. My boiler doesn't seem to be able to pick a sweet spot, its either furiously boiling or just off the boil... The temperatures can't be much different.
Me and my boiler would love it to be ok just off the boil but would this effect the brew ?

 

[Good Ed]

My understanding is that a good vigorous boil is required for the first 15-20 mins and then it can be more of a gentle boil.

I have a 30L plastic bucket with a 3kw Backer element which produces a good constant boil and I allow 9%/hour loss due to evaporation.

 

[evanvine]

You really need a good boil to get the best out of the hops.
Although Tony (AM) says different, I always keep mine at a kicking boil for the whole periode.
If your boiler is a little small, dont worry, you can always "back liquor" to your desired gravity.

 

[puravida]

As evanvine says - you are only boiling off water so all the lovely hoppy goodness and malt stays in the pan. Doesn't really matter how much you lose as you can just top it back up after.

So boil vigourously and then add cold water back in the fermenter to hit your desired volume / OG.

There are some good calculators out there (Beersmith includes one call Dilution Tool) that will help you work out how much water you need to add back afterwards to reach your target OG.

I'm sure many will shake their heads and wince at this, but I just add plain old tap water straight into the fermenter if I need to add water back after the boil.

 

[PD]

Well not the answer I was hoping for... But I'm happy with a good rolling boil if adding liquor afterwards is not detrimental. I was a little worried about having to add 5 or 6 litres afterwards. I now know to mix up an extra bucket of water and CT when I fill the hlt/boiler night before the brew.
Thanks again

 

[evanvine]

I'm sure many will shake their heads and wince at this, but I just add plain old tap water straight into the fermenter if I need to add water back after the boil.

It's about all you can do, unless you have anything left in the HLT!

 

[Good Ed]

What calculations do you use for your pre boil volume?

 

[evanvine]

Well not the answer I was hoping for...

I wonder what answer you were hoping for?

 

[PD]

usually my calculations run on the lines of how much room in the boiler....
I use brewMate and try and go by its calculations for a 19litre brew

 

[Good Ed]

Ok, but if you have a big pan you can try this, pre boil volume = brew length + dead space of HLT + loss to hops 1.6L/100g of hops + loss to evaporation (I use 9/hr, you may need more) + 1L for volume loss due to cooling (based on 23L brew length). So for a 23L brew length I usually have about 31-32L pre boil volume, but because my HLT (plastic bucket) is only 30L, I put the extra wort in a pan on the stove and get it to a boil, I then add this to the HLT once the volume has reduced, and on a 90min boil it's usually all added within 30mins.

 

[PD]

thank you again.

I have a large " dead space " in my boiler as I don't have a hop strainer fitted, (my hops go in hop socks) , so the space is level with my tea urn type tap.
Its 3 litres.
I usually discard this after the wort is chilled and removed to the fermenter, as its a very thick cloudy liquid full of all the hot break material etc.
Should I strain this and add it to the collected wort ? or carry on throwing it away ?

 

[alanywiseman.]

Surly the more vigourous the biol the more of the aroma you are losing? I am basing this on cook not brewing as i am still to go extract/AG.

 

[evanvine]

Surly the more vigourous the biol the more of the aroma you are losing?

A lot add hops for the last 15 mins, some even add them at flame out.

 

[fbsf]

Early hops (boiled for 60 or 90 mins) add the bitterness to balance the malty sweetness - less than 60 mins won't allow the oils out correctly, the aroma hops are normally added with either 10 or 15mins to go to preserve the flavour and aroma.

 

[Jeltz]

There is also a school of thought that suggests that you get a rounder (less harsh) bitterness if you put the bittering hops as you start to heat up the kettle.

 

[alanywiseman.]

Early hops (boiled for 60 or 90 mins) add the bitterness to balance the malty sweetness - less than 60 mins won't allow the oils out correctly, the aroma hops are normally added with either 10 or 15mins to go to preserve the flavour and aroma.

A lot add hops for the last 15 mins, some even add them at flame out.

Good point, I did know this but did not think