Dr. Francois
Well-Known Member
**Warning: if lack of efficiency makes you twitchy, please stop reading now.**
My brewing ambition currently exceeds my brewing equipment.
I have been an extract brewer for over two years, but I got tired of the limited options for base malts; I wanted to try some Maris Otter. Moreover, after watching a few batch sparge videos online, mashing does not seem any more complicated than steeping grains. I'm also a bargain brewer, so the cost benefits of AG seemed great. I was looking for a workable way to use my extract setup (detailed below) to brew all-grain beer.
I read up on the no-sparge method on this board and a few websites. I was looking for a way to go all grain without having to upgrade to a full-boil kettle or dedicated chiller. Both are on my list as "eventually," but my brewing procedure from extract works pretty well. I also read about "richer wort" and a few other benefits, but my main priority was to find a workable solution for my equipment.
Here were my limiting factors:
--No full boil. I have a 20qt pot, which means I can only have about 4.5 gallons boiling at a time.
--No chiller. My extract method has been sterile ice directly into wort to chill to pitching temps
--No time. I have a 22 month old boy who thinks he's a dinosaur and who hates my freedom.
Here were the positive assets of my setup:
--10 gallon Rubbermaid MLT
--outdoor propane burner
--A few extra bucks for grain
Procedure:
--I pre-heated my mash tun with hot tap water (I keep it around 140F)
--I heated my strike water out of hot tap water (it's very clean and has no off flavors) and boiling water from an electric kettle and a small pot of hot water on the stove. Both were heated while I was setting up.
--I mashed with the full volume of water for my boil. I calculated to end up with 4.5 gallons in my 5 gallon kettle. I used some online calculator, and it worked. I kept adjusting the values until the "Sparge Volume" was close to zero.
--After 60 minutes, I simply drained the wort into the kettle and got it boiling.
--I performed a 60 minute boil. Final wort volume was around 3.75 gallons.
--I added the sterile ice to the fermenter with the hot wort. I topped off to reach 5.25 gallons in the bucket.
--I was instantly down to pitching temps, so I added my yeast (I only use dry), aerated, and sealed it up.
Ultimately, my brew day was about the same amount of time as brewing with extract, 3 hours. 4.5 gallons of 152F wort certainly gets boiling faster than 4 gallons of cold water mixed with hot steeping liquid. The only appreciable difference in time was the half hour difference in mashing v. steeping.
I hit 51% efficiency without a sparge. This number is low, but consider that I added about 1.5 gallons of water in the fermenter.
I'd love to hear feedback. Is this method heresy? Am I a sellout for not playing the efficiency game? Does anyone see a loophole I've forgotten?
My brewing ambition currently exceeds my brewing equipment.
I have been an extract brewer for over two years, but I got tired of the limited options for base malts; I wanted to try some Maris Otter. Moreover, after watching a few batch sparge videos online, mashing does not seem any more complicated than steeping grains. I'm also a bargain brewer, so the cost benefits of AG seemed great. I was looking for a workable way to use my extract setup (detailed below) to brew all-grain beer.
I read up on the no-sparge method on this board and a few websites. I was looking for a way to go all grain without having to upgrade to a full-boil kettle or dedicated chiller. Both are on my list as "eventually," but my brewing procedure from extract works pretty well. I also read about "richer wort" and a few other benefits, but my main priority was to find a workable solution for my equipment.
Here were my limiting factors:
--No full boil. I have a 20qt pot, which means I can only have about 4.5 gallons boiling at a time.
--No chiller. My extract method has been sterile ice directly into wort to chill to pitching temps
--No time. I have a 22 month old boy who thinks he's a dinosaur and who hates my freedom.
Here were the positive assets of my setup:
--10 gallon Rubbermaid MLT
--outdoor propane burner
--A few extra bucks for grain
Procedure:
--I pre-heated my mash tun with hot tap water (I keep it around 140F)
--I heated my strike water out of hot tap water (it's very clean and has no off flavors) and boiling water from an electric kettle and a small pot of hot water on the stove. Both were heated while I was setting up.
--I mashed with the full volume of water for my boil. I calculated to end up with 4.5 gallons in my 5 gallon kettle. I used some online calculator, and it worked. I kept adjusting the values until the "Sparge Volume" was close to zero.
--After 60 minutes, I simply drained the wort into the kettle and got it boiling.
--I performed a 60 minute boil. Final wort volume was around 3.75 gallons.
--I added the sterile ice to the fermenter with the hot wort. I topped off to reach 5.25 gallons in the bucket.
--I was instantly down to pitching temps, so I added my yeast (I only use dry), aerated, and sealed it up.
Ultimately, my brew day was about the same amount of time as brewing with extract, 3 hours. 4.5 gallons of 152F wort certainly gets boiling faster than 4 gallons of cold water mixed with hot steeping liquid. The only appreciable difference in time was the half hour difference in mashing v. steeping.
I hit 51% efficiency without a sparge. This number is low, but consider that I added about 1.5 gallons of water in the fermenter.
I'd love to hear feedback. Is this method heresy? Am I a sellout for not playing the efficiency game? Does anyone see a loophole I've forgotten?