BIAB problem

[Beerbeard]

Hi,

I have an interesting problem. I am doing a pumpkin beer, sort of all grain but with BIAB.

My recipe has 9 lb 2-row, 1.75lb specialty grains, and will have 5 lb of baked pumpkin for extra fermentables and pumpkin flavor.

This is a total of 16.75lb fermentables, which is WAY too much to do in my stovetop brewpot, so I was planning on doing something a little crazy.

I was planning on having two separate mashes that I then combine into one, as volume permits (and boil off volume will hopefully accommodate).

For the first mash, I was planning on taking 5lb of the 2-row and 5lb of the pumpkin, which will hopefully fit in my pot (barely) along with 2 gal of water. I will then sparge this first mash in 1 gallon of 170F water in a second pot before I discard this fraction.

Then comes the kicker: I was wondering if I could use 1 gallon of this pumpkin/2-row sparge water plus an additional gallon of tap water to mash the remaining 4lb of 2-row and specialty grain? I guess my main concern was whether the partly sugary/starchy water from the pumpkin/2-row second runnings would interfere with the specialty grain mash enzymes?

If I went about this route, I would then sparge this specialty grain fraction in a final 1 gallon of tap water.

All in all, this would give me 5 gallons of wort, of which 4.5 gallons give or take would initially fit into my brew kettle. As boiloff permits, I will then add back more and more of my specialty grain 2nd runnings until none remains. At the end, as I usually have to in my BIAB system, I will then top up my collected wort to 5.5 gallons.

If you followed me through the whole thing, I was wondering what you thought? Too convoluted? Would the specialty grain mash not work as well as it would with straight water?

Thanks!

Oh and if anyones interested in the recipe for added clarification, it's Jamil's pumpkin ale:

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f12/jamil-pumpkin-spice-ale-cringe-80618/

 

[beernut70]

I just did a pumpkin BIAB this past weekend and I wouldn't put the pumpkin in the mash at all. Just steep the pumpkin in a 5 gallon paint strainer bag until you hit your strike temperature. Then take it out and add your grains in your regular bag like you usually do with your setup. The wort did not drain out of the bag with the pumpkin and it was like lifting a giant steaming water balloon and was very messy. Luckily I was in my garage, i couldn't imagine the mess it would have made on a stove. Note: I also only used 2 lbs of pumpkin and 14 lbs. of grain. I would think it would be even worse with that much pumpkin.

 

[Beerbeard]

Yeah, I remember the one I made last year with canned pumpkin being pretty messy, and I just steeped it then.

While that beer was awesome, I wanted to try mashing it this year, so that I could get some conversion of the pumpkin starches/sugars from the grain.

But you do have a point, 5lb pumpkin meat + 5lb 2-row in 2 gallons of water may very well prove to be way too much, and/or I'll end up losing a lot of water/moisture to the pumpkin as I remove the bag.

 

[beernut70]

From what I understand there really isn't much if anything to convert in pumpkin. The one I did was based on the below recipe and others who BIAB in the thread steeped the pumpkin and had good results. Next year I am steeping it. I spilled quite a bit of wort lifting the bag out and I am using a keggle.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f76/punkin-ale-145060/

 

[Beergazzi]

Do pumpkins have the ability to self-convert like sweet potatos?

If not..stop here.

If so, I made a sweet potato beer (austin kit) where I added 3 lbs of cubed and slow roasted (and covered, read steam helps) SP's, until they were smelling good and sweet.

Then I barely crushed them and into the bag they went, was left with a ton of aroma and noticeable flavor prior to fermantation. Its in primary now.

If the baked pumpkin can convert like SP's can, Id say bake and mash, if not, steep or make put them in another bag and steep them during the lastcouple minutes and cool down?

I also read that the enzymes in SPs do best south of 200 degrees, so I roasted slowly at 250 for 2 hours, and I added the skins back into my mash since I also read skins have a high enzyme concentration...

Was anything I read correct??? I have no idea, but it seemd to work so far.

 

[Beerbeard]

sweet potatoes can self-convert? what the? Didn't know that was possible, but that's awesome if true!

I guess the main question I wanted to ask was whether having some concentration of sugar in my infusion water will hinder the mashing of my specialty grains?