Grain crush question

[novaraz]

Last weekend I set out to brew all Sunday, so I stopped by the LHBS and picked up 1 extract kit, 1 partial mash, and one 1 AG 3.5 gallon (BierMuncher's Aberdeen Brown). I started with the AG, and overlapped with the PM. I missed my gravities by a lot, about 10 points each. I mashed on the stove top, 1 hour, ~158*F ending at 148*F for both. I done plenty of PMs, and usually get over 80% total efficient. So I'm thinking the crush is way off. Regrettably, I've never really closely inspected my grain before. Luckly (I guess), I still have the stepping grains from the kit (which they prepare fresh at the LHBS). I snapped a picture for some opinions--

There's some smaller pieces, and some flour at the bottom of the bag. So gurus,
look bad? What can I do at home to save the final batch? Taking it back isn't really an option, the store is rather far.

As for the other batches, I attempted to save the Aberdeen, which is a Newcastle clone, by adding a pound of DME. I don't have much hopes for this one, since its a malt forward beer, and it will probably taste pretty bland. The PM is probably fared better, since is a Californian/IPA crossover with lots of Nugget hops (and 4.5# LME); the only specialty grain was 0.5# Crystal 60. I added a pound of honey to the fermentor, so hopefully no infection..

 

[two_hearted]

Definitely not milled enough or at all. you want to see a bunch of starchy white chunks and lots of empty husks.

like this

 

[BobC]

Hard to tell from the picture. I do mine myself, worth the investment, and I usually have a few more broken kernels. Not much you can do but prolong the steeping/mashing, don't know which one you have left. As far as preventing this from happening again I would invest in a mill and start to do it your self. You have to remember that a LHBS mills a lot of grains and can be sloppy with insuring the right crush.

 

[mattd2]

Definitely not milled enough or at all. you want to see a bunch of starchy white chunks and lots of empty husks.

Hahaha, I was going to say was it milled at all

 

[rklinck]

Yeah, that doesn't look milled at all. It looks like my whole, nonmilled grain.

 

[stpug]

I'd agree. That looks UNcrushed to me.

 

[ScottG58]

You can rescue it by crushing with a rolling pin.

 

[novaraz]

Thanks two_hearted, pretty definitive proof there.
BobC I ran that by the wifey, not too pleased. I figure I'd invest once I have room to store some bulk grains.

 

[mattd2]

If you only have the extract with steeping to go, then consider throwing the specialty grain in the blender and buzzing it a few times and then steep at a bit lower temp, shouln't be to bad as you are just soaking out the already converted sugars and not converting any more.

 

[unionrdr]

I order my grains crushed from midwest. The crush is not that good. So I use this old mini food processor about half full with grains. I buzz it 3 times,about 2 seconds per pulse. But I do biab partial mash,so a finer crush is needed. With the paint strainer bag,& wrapping the MLT/BK in my old hunting coat,I get way better efficiency. My typical OG's of 1.043-1.044 went up to 1.055. So it works well for me anyway.

 

[gcdowd]

To me, it looks completely uncrushed.

 

[novaraz]

I order my grains crushed from midwest. The crush is not that good. So I use this old mini food processor about half full with grains. I buzz it 3 times,about 2 seconds per pulse. But I do biab partial mash,so a finer crush is needed. With the paint strainer bag,& wrapping the MLT/BK in my old hunting coat,I get way better efficiency. My typical OG's of 1.043-1.044 went up to 1.055. So it works well for me anyway.

I do BIAB partial mashes too; this is a great idea. I ended up buzzing the 2 pounds of grain that the Fat Tire kit came with. Little messy, but I'll take it. It's bubbling away happily now.
Thanks for the advice folks!

 

[unionrdr]

I've used the mini food processor for all three of my partial mash beers to get a finer crush. Just be carefull not to crush too much & it's all good. You want to keep the grain hulls as intact as possible to avoid astringency issues. My way seems to work well.

 

[Feldmann]

Take it as a lesson learned. Your LHBS shouldn't have a problem with you running it through the mill a few more times during your next visit.

 

[novaraz]

Definitely a lesson learned. Luckly, the beer came out pretty good, thanks to my last minute saving throws. The Brown Ale is quite good, while the Nugget Cali Common is a little thin, but very drinkable.

 

[HomeBrewerB]

Once you crush your grains and have them in a plastic bag, how long would they last before they go bad ifyou are able to use them on a later brew day?

 

[stpug]

Once you crush your grains and have them in a plastic bag, how long would they last before they go bad ifyou are able to use them on a later brew day?

According to Briess maltster, crushed grains should have nearly the shelf life of uncrushed grain when stored in favorable conditions. I've linked the post in the past but cannot find it at the moment.

EDIT:
Here's the post:
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/how-long-do-malts-last-crushed-vs-whole-391507/#post4922892

 

[unionrdr]

I've had crushed grains last a month or more sealed in the fridge before using them. Were still fresh & good about 5 weeks after recieving them.