Partial Mash/Pot Size

[Dawkfan]

Hi,

I've been doing extract w/steeping grains up until now and I'd like to try a partial mash with the equipment I have. Can this be achieved with my current pot size which is 3.5 gallons? My understanding is 1.25 - 1.5 qts of water for every pound of grain. Is there a minimum amount of grain that I need to make this worth while? I plan on rinsing the grains with 170 degree water, how much would I need to accomplish this? I'm not afraid to fill my pot almost right to the top as I use fermcap to help with boil overs.

Also, what's the best software to covert extract and/or all grain recipes to partial mash. Does the software take into account pot size, top up water ect???

Thanks so much!

 

[Leithoa]

Small batch brewing is possible with any sized vessel. As to the minimum size worth it, that's a question only you can answer. Some people enjoy making 1 gallon batches others won't get out of bed for anything under 10 gallons.

For rinsing grains use another 1.5-2 qts/lb. Or just don't rinse. Since you're adding in extract later and the batches are small you're not losing much efficiency. I would gently suggest that since you'll have the equipment anyways you may want to consider the Brew-In-A-Bag method. It takes the same amount of time as a partial mash and isn't terribly more complicated. Don't be afraid to jump into all-grain just because you don't have $1000 in stainless.

I can't offer any advice on software.

 

[bobbrews]

It would be wise to invest in a 7 gallon or greater capacity kettle for full volume boils with no top off water. Second option is to buy another 3.5 gallon kettle and split the batch on the stovetop. Brewing 2.5 gallons of beer takes roughly the same amount of effort as brewing 5 or 6 gallons. You will quickly realize how much it sucks to bottle only 2 or 3 six-packs because of your limited kettle size.

You'll start noticing benefits by substituting 20% extract with base malt, but I would shoot for more like 40-50%. For the drier styles, mash the base malt around 147 F to offset the limitations of the extract.

 

[Dawkfan]

Thank you for the feedback, for now I just want to get a feel for all grain to see if it's for me using the current equipment that I have and by doing a partial mash. I would be topping up to 5 gallons using this method.

What's a good ratio to start with using my pot size? 5 pounds of grain/6.5 qts of water? More? Less?I'm also confused about the amount of DME I would need to add at the end of the boil to hit my SG. Can anyone chime in on the software question or give me an easy ratio of all grain to lme to dme?? Really confused about this part when using both.

I do have a 5 gallon paint strainer bag that I'd be using for the mash, essentially BIAB I think but I'd still be using extract as well.

Thanks

 

[C-Rider]

You will quickly realize how much it sucks to bottle only 2 or 3 six-packs because of your limited kettle size..

SOMEWHAT OFF TOPIC

Or if you don't have room for a keezer w/lots of kegs or a full size freezer to store those hundreds of bottles you make 2 gallon batches which gives 3 six packs and your fridge can hold 8 or 9 DIFFERENT brews.

 

[WillieP]

Try 'brewer friend' for your brewing software. It will do all your conversion for you. I believe your first 5 recipes are free. Good Luck. Happy Brewen

 

[drlars]

I've been partial-mash brewing for a couple of years now. Some of my pals have moved on to all-grain, but I find I can get pretty comparable results my way, and not have to move my operation outdoors to do it. Also, I don't mess with any sort of complicated cooling device, as I find that a sink cold water bath, followed by adding it to 2 gal of cold tap water in the fermenter gets it pretty close to pitching temp. You will see a lot of folks on here warn you about hop utilization in a high-gravity wort, and that's where I'd second that recommendation of Brewers Friend. Just make sure to plug in a 3-gal partial boil, then play around with the hop additions (you will need the correct alpha - numbers) to get where you need to.

If you want to do a 5-gal batch, I agree that you should probably get a 7-gal pot though. (That's what I have, and I do a 3-gal partial and add it to 2 gal of cold tap water.) Your wife will not be a fan of your new hobby if you are having boil-overs in her kitchen.

 

[billl]

You can certainly do partial mashes in a 3.5 gallon kettle. 5 lbs of grain would only need about a gallon and a half of water. Sparge with another 1.5-2 gallons to fill up the kettle and you are ready to go. Add the extract near the end of the boil.

Pretty much any brewing software will help you design recipes. If you want to do that math yourself, you just need to think of total sugar point. eg if you want 5 gallons of 1.060, you need 300 total points. The sugar potential of most base grain is around 36 points and you can expect to get around 70% of that, or 25 points. So, 5 lbs @ 25 points = 125 point. You need 175 points to get up to 300 still. DME is about 46 points per lb, so you would need 175/46= 3.8 lbs. (Call it 4lbs, a little extra ABV won't hurt you!) While you learn the ropes, you should probably just keep some extra DME on hand and be ready to increase/decrease based on whatever sugar you get from the partial mash.