Dead Ringer 1st AG

[Dylan42]

So after too long of a time I finally got the chance to try all the new AG equipment I got for christmas. I gave a go at the AG Dead Ringer kit from NB, which uses 12 lbs of grain and I used NB 10 Gal AG setup.
OG is supposed to be 1.060 and I ended up with 1.042.
Heres the basics:
-4.5 gal of H20 @ 170 degrees for strike water @ mash in
-Single infusion Sach rest at 152 degrees for 60 min
-4 gal of sparge water @170 degrees
-batch sparged
-boiled wort for 60 min adding all the hops per the recipe
-cooled to 68 degrees with wort chiller

I yielded about 6 gal of wort. So I know I probably used too much sparge water. But who knows. I tasted my gravity sample and it suprisingly tasted well. It was quite sweet up front and then bitter in the back. Tasting the sample I think it will turn out well, but maybe not up to the Dead Ringer standard.

Thinking of fly sparging and using less sparge water next time...thoughts?Critiques are more than welcome, thanks.

 

[brewkinger]

Those water amounts were per the recipe?

What was your preboil volume?
What was your preboil gravity?

Need more information....

The solution may be as simple as not mixing it well and you got a sample that was less dense than the rest.


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[Vetter]

Perfect timing for your post!
I am just finishing up my 3 tier system this weekend, and will be doing my first AG next weekend, which is also the NB Deadringer.
I will watch this post closely, thank you!

 

[jfk69]

That seems like an awfully high amount of strike water. Using 1.25 quart/pound of grain, you should have been around 15 quarts, or less than 4 gallons for your strike. My guess is the extra volume of water, with no compensation for a longer boil to get more wort boiled of and reach the proper volume into the fermenter, lead to your lower OG. But thats part of the fun of AG, learning your equipment. My first couple AG boils resulted in too little into the fermenter, once by a half gallon and the other time a full gallon, until I started trusting my BeerSmith software and quit thinking I was smarter than the program lol. In the end, you'll make beer, and it will probably be pretty damn good!

 

[Dylan42]

My per boil I believe was just under 7 gal. I didn't take a pre boil gravity.

 

[Dylan42]

That seems like an awfully high amount of strike water. Using 1.25 quart/pound of grain, you should have been around 15 quarts, or less than 4 gallons for your strike. My guess is the extra volume of water, with no compensation for a longer boil to get more wort boiled of and reach the proper volume into the fermenter, lead to your lower OG. But thats part of the fun of AG, learning your equipment. My first couple AG boils resulted in too little into the fermenter, once by a half gallon and the other time a full gallon, until I started trusting my BeerSmith software and quit thinking I was smarter than the program lol. In the end, you'll make beer, and it will probably be pretty damn good!

Yeah I'll probably adjust my water amounts next time. Maybe I'll look into beer smith. I love brewing I just don't want to get into worrying about about the little intricacies of it yet. Just having fun and trying to brew good home brew 🍺



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[MikeInMKE]

Important safety tip(s).

You used too much sparge water, and you are over your desired pre-boil volume. Here's what you do, you start the boil, but not the boil timer, and you boil until you've boiled off enough water to reach your desired pre-boil volume. THEN you start the boil timer and add your hops per the recipe.

Or, you finished your boil and you are UNDER your desired post-boil volume. Before you bother to chill, add cold water until you get to your desired post-boil volume. The hot wort will more than pasteurize the top-off water. Then chill to pitching temps.

 

[Dylan42]

Through trub and transfer losses, and I think my post boil estimated volume was off by a bit, I have right around 5 gal of beer when transferred into my secondary. It tastes pretty damn good, but the beer feels a tad thin and the flavor doesnt last real long. In hindsight I rushed my sparge and skipped a couple of steps that should have been done, resulting in what I believe was a low efficiency. Even though I didn't calculate it.

Oh well! I purchased Beer Smith, got a couple new trinkets to add to my equipment and will take better notes and be more prepared next time!

Thanks for the input.