The Professor
Well-Known Member
Has anyone ever tried a decoction mash? I did recently and the rich malty flavor of the beer was quite nice. I was a little worried about boiling the mash solids for 20 minutes due to the fear of leaching tannins from the grains, but the finished beer had no adverse astringency. All you do is remove 1/3 of the mash solids leaving the liquid in the mash tun. Then boil the removed mash solids for 20 minutes stirring constantly so as not to scorch the mash. Then mix the boiled mash back into your mash tun with the rest of your grist and the temperature will rise about 10-15 degrees depending on the starting temperature and the volume of your mash. This is how step mashing was accomplished in the old days before fancy homebrewing equipment such as a thermometer. This can be done up to 3 times (tripple decoction mash) before you sparge. Just do not go over 168 degrees for your mash total temperature and have some knowlege of the relationship of mash temp to sugar conversion with fermentables and dextrins (non fermentables) before attempting a tripple decoction. I would reccoment trying a single decoction after your grains have fully converted to sugar for the first attempt. You won't be dissapointed.