A Guide To All-grain Brewing In A Bag

[Macca17]

Finally did my first BIAB and No Chill, didn't realise the grain could
soak up that much moisture. Tasted ok and despite some wort going over the table
and onto the ground, ended up with nearly 23 litres in the fermenter.
Next time will sit the Urn on the ground so can get enough clearance to pull the bag up
properly to squeeze the wort out.

 

[Bribie G]

Hi Argon,

Great to see that you are very happy with your first BIAB. I am a few weeks behind you, given I only brewed up last weekend. A few questions for you (& wide community), if you don't mind?

1/ Did you No-Chill ?
2/ Did you get a significant about of suspended material?

While a considerable amount has already fallen out (Brew: Scottish ale 70) during the first week of fermentation, I can only guess that it will take a considerable period to fully clear.

3/ If so, how long did your beer take to clear?

Just interested more than anything at this point in time in your answers to see if what I am seeing is in line with others BIAB experience?

Hi Texas, just happened on your post here, and I'm currently doing a BIAB Aussie Sparkling. If you use whirlfloc and give it a rest for the crud to fall out before sending the wort to the no-chill cube or the chiller, it should be crystal clear, so no 'suspended material'. What I'll do is post a photo of my current brew when It's been boiled in about an hour from now.
:icon_cheers:

 

[adumicic]

Hey Bribie, I had the same deal with the suspended material as texasranger (also brewed last weekend for my first AG BIAB) and realized about an hour after i pitched the yeast I forgot the whirlfloc. I was thinking of using Polyclar to help clean it up. Do you think that's going to make a significant difference?

 

[Bribie G]

Polyclar removes chill haze after fermentation so probably won't help you . However using something like gelatine finings after primary fermentation would probably clear out any floaters etc.

Now, I'm using an electric urn so after the boil, where I used whirlfloc and then let it sit for 10 minutes, the shyte has sunk to below the level of the tap so this is what I am getting out of the urn:



Should look just like the finished beer. If you are using some other method such as a pot and siphon then you may get floating stuff depending on what setup you have.

 

[Macca17]

If you use whirlfloc and give it a rest for the crud to fall out before sending the wort to the no-chill cube or the chiller, it should be crystal clear, so no 'suspended material'.
:icon_cheers:

That's what I forgot to do, wait :huh: I put the 1/2 whirfloc tablet in with 10 mins to go but transferred to the cube basically straight away.

 

[Thirsty Boy]

whirlfloc just makes the particles of crud stick together, sink faster & maybe stick in a neater pile. If you are willing to wait a bit of extra time, you get the same result.

I finish my boil, wait maybe ten minutes for the churning caused by convection to die away (caused mostly by the residual heat in my cast iron burner, so it would take less time in an urn or with an electric element) - then when things aren't turning over by themselves anymore, I whirpool. I give my kettle a good 30mins for the whirlpool to settle, then my pick-up tube takes clear wort away from the edge.

Dont use too much whirlfloc - it can make things wore rather than better. Half a tablet to a single batch is plenty.

If you got it in your cube, you can just siphon out of the cube leaving it behind - or put it in your fermenter where it will all sink to the bottom. It should, no matter which option you pick, have basically no influence on the clarity of your beer.

Polyclar will do absolutely nothing - gelatin would maybe help, but isn't needed anyway, this stuff will sink on its own.

TB

 

[Macca17]

I wasn't worried, read enough on here to ease my mind Next brew should be easier, I hope

 

[argon]

Hi Argon,

Great to see that you are very happy with your first BIAB. I am a few weeks behind you, given I only brewed up last weekend. A few questions for you (& wide community), if you don't mind?

1/ Did you No-Chill ?
2/ Did you get a significant about of suspended material?

While a considerable amount has already fallen out (Brew: Scottish ale 70) during the first week of fermentation, I can only guess that it will take a considerable period to fully clear.

3/ If so, how long did your beer take to clear?

Just interested more than anything at this point in time in your answers to see if what I am seeing is in line with others BIAB experience?

1. Yep I no-chilled... bunged it straight into the fermenter. (I know, this is considered somewhat of an infection and oxidation risk with the large air gap, but I was willing to take a punt) Waited till the next morning before pitching. I'm not really all that concerned with clarity.

2. The first partial I did I was freaked out by how much trub there was compared to the kits and extracts (Above the line of the fermenter tap). So for this brew I whirlpoled about 10 mins after the boil had finished, waited 20 mins then drained via the ball valve on the pot. Didn't notice a great deal of suspended material. I also used a hop sock, so that would have cut down on the hops floating around.

3. The beer ended up reasonably clear, as you can see from the photo. No significant "bits" in there. As for chill haze, it doesn't bother me, especially for ales.

Here's the first glass of the first AG (had to taste before taking the photo) 3 weeks in primary and 4 weeks conditioning at room temp (decided to skip the secondary... cause I forgot). Then a couple of days in the fridge.



You'll be more than happy with your results. I hope it turns out as good as mine did. Good amount of body, good head retention and lacing and a wondeful aroma. I know people say Grapefruit with Chinook but i'm even getting some Mango aromas. Maybe the combo of the EKGolding, Cascade and Chinook? I can see this batch disapearing fast.

I can't wait for the next one... don't get that much time at the moment. 2 weeks from Sunday is the next booked in brew day.
Good luck with your brew mate... definately let us know how it turns out

BTW what was you recipe?

 

[stevewahb]

whirlfloc just makes the particles of crud stick together, sink faster & maybe stick in a neater pile. If you are willing to wait a bit of extra time, you get the same result.

I finish my boil, wait maybe ten minutes for the churning caused by convection to die away (caused mostly by the residual heat in my cast iron burner, so it would take less time in an urn or with an electric element) - then when things aren't turning over by themselves anymore, I whirpool. I give my kettle a good 30mins for the whirlpool to settle, then my pick-up tube takes clear wort away from the edge.

Dont use too much whirlfloc - it can make things wore rather than better. Half a tablet to a single batch is plenty.

If you got it in your cube, you can just siphon out of the cube leaving it behind - or put it in your fermenter where it will all sink to the bottom. It should, no matter which option you pick, have basically no influence on the clarity of your beer.

Polyclar will do absolutely nothing - gelatin would maybe help, but isn't needed anyway, this stuff will sink on its own.

TB

Hi Thirsty Boy,
I like the sound of your method. Switch off heat, wait 5~10 minutes, whirlpool slowly for a few minutes, then wait a good 30minutes for the crud to fall out.

At this point, should I then set the immersion chiller into action to cool wort down ASAP (another 20+ minutes), before siphoning off to the fermenter?

 

[Macca17]

BTW what was you recipe?

Sort of American Standard Lager, didn't really follow any set recipe.
5kg Pilsner
1kg Rice
400 grams Carapils
90 min mash at 69 (hopefully not too high)

then a 90 min boil
40g Centennial at 60 min
20g Amarillo at 30 min
10g Amarillo at 10 min
1/2 Whirlfloc also at 10.
OG was 1052, should have been a bit higher but had some spillage due to poor placement of Urn and pulley <_<
but happy with 1052
No chilled overnight and is now fermenting at 12c with 2 pkts of Saflager.

Next brew will wait 10-15 mins before whirlpooling and then wait 30min
before transferring to cube. Will also place Urn in better possie to get more clearance for the bag.

Good to hear yours went well.

 

[fergi]

whirlfloc just makes the particles of crud stick together, sink faster & maybe stick in a neater pile. If you are willing to wait a bit of extra time, you get the same result.

I finish my boil, wait maybe ten minutes for the churning caused by convection to die away (caused mostly by the residual heat in my cast iron burner, so it would take less time in an urn or with an electric element) - then when things aren't turning over by themselves anymore, I whirpool. I give my kettle a good 30mins for the whirlpool to settle, then my pick-up tube takes clear wort away from the edge.

Dont use too much whirlfloc - it can make things wore rather than better. Half a tablet to a single batch is plenty.

If you got it in your cube, you can just siphon out of the cube leaving it behind - or put it in your fermenter where it will all sink to the bottom. It should, no matter which option you pick, have basically no influence on the clarity of your beer.

Polyclar will do absolutely nothing - gelatin would maybe help, but isn't needed anyway, this stuff will sink on its own.

TB

so if i am doing biab and no chill , do you still whirpool and if so after leaving it for 10 mins wouldnt this cool down too much for tipping into cube and sterlising with the boiling wort. thanks TB

fergi

 

[Bribie G]

In my case, if I am going to pitch the next day then if the cube is sanitized I don't pay much regard to the 'pasteurising' effect of the wort on the cube, I just trust that there are no nasties in the cube. However if I was going to store it for weeks or months I'd be a bit concerned about leaving it too long in the kettle.

Personally with my gear I find that a 10 minute settling out period is fine, the wee picture I posted earlier was after 10 minutes and was almost boiling.. I have to wear leather gardening gloves to get near the thing.

 

[Macca17]

I sanitize the cube anyway before using so shouldn't be any nasties in there.

 

[adumicic]

Thanks for the tips Bribie and TB. It's already in the fermenter for almost a week now so I'd think chances are the particles have settled by now regardless. Is is still worth considering adding polyclar to stop/reduce chill haze?

This was my first attempts at AG (after seeing NickJD's awesome beginners guide) so I just did my batch in a 15L pot (13L batch).

 

[stevewahb]

Polyclar removes chill haze after fermentation so probably won't help you . However using something like gelatine finings after primary fermentation would probably clear out any floaters etc.

Now, I'm using an electric urn so after the boil, where I used whirlfloc and then let it sit for 10 minutes, the shyte has sunk to below the level of the tap so this is what I am getting out of the urn:

View attachment 33101

Should look just like the finished beer. If you are using some other method such as a pot and siphon then you may get floating stuff depending on what setup you have.

Hi BribeG,

Thanks for the pic of your latest batch, something to aim for on my next brew.
From all the responses read, I need to let the wort sit for a good 10 minutes after flame out, then whirlpool, wait for around another 20 minutes then fire up the immersion chiller and in to the fermenter once the temperature is close to target.

:icon_cheers:

 

[Thirsty Boy]

so if i am doing biab and no chill , do you still whirpool and if so after leaving it for 10 mins wouldnt this cool down too much for tipping into cube and sterlising with the boiling wort. thanks TB

fergi

Nope - I leave it for 10 or so minutes (to stop convecting, ie self stirring), then whirlpool, then leave it for a further 30minutes to settle.

Its still above 90C by then and plenty hot enough to kill any of the hopefully very very few bugs that might be present in your cube, which you have of course already sanitised thoroughly.

No problems with extended storage of the wort after this as far as I am concerned. Or at least I certainly haven't had any.

Hi Thirsty Boy,
I like the sound of your method. Switch off heat, wait 5~10 minutes, whirlpool slowly for a few minutes, then wait a good 30minutes for the crud to fall out.

At this point, should I then set the immersion chiller into action to cool wort down ASAP (another 20+ minutes), before siphoning off to the fermenter?

I'm no chilling - so the IC doesn't come into play. I also don't whirlpol slowly, I whirpool the crap out of it, spin it as fast as it will go.

When I was using an Immersion Chiller.. the chiller went into the kettle while it was still boiling (to sanitise it) and was then turned on immediately after the boil was done. Waiting for convection to stop when you are chilling anyway is just a waste of time.

Chill your beer down, then whirlpool OR whirlpool while the chiller is still in there.

TB

 

[katzke]

Chill your beer down, then whirlpool OR whirlpool while the chiller is still in there.

TB

I whirlpool after pulling the chiller. I find that getting the wort down the last few degrees is the hardest and so have to stir quite a bit to keep it moving around the chiller.

 

[stevewahb]

TB,

My motto for my next brew, as flame out occurs and the IC is just starting to run, "whirpool the crap out of it" for a few minutes.

Thanks.

 

[killspice]

Just finished my first AG BIAB (first was a partial lager that has just been bottled), using DrS' Golden Ale recipe slightly modified to use 30g Cluster for bittering as I only had enough amarillo for flavour/aroma.

I have done both my partial and AG in a 19L pot (concentrated boil, then top up). With 8 icecream containers of ice I am getting it cooled to pitching temp within 30-60min which I am pretty happy with. I am thinking I'll stick with this in the near future, avoiding the need for a large pot, and an alternate chill method (chiller or no-chill cubes). If it wasn't for BIAB i'd still be K&K, I just wish I had done the Golden Ale first as it would be drinkable by now (damn lagers)

I hit 1050 (at about 25-30deg, so probably closer to 1052 officially) at 19L so I pretty much hit 75% efficiency (beersmith calculated 75% efficiency was 1050 @ 19L), so I am more than happy with that. Can't wait to try this one out, I love JSGA!

 

[Damian44]

Hi. Ive been trying to work something out in Beersmith, but its a bit beyond me. To save on gas and time id like to boil some water on the stove and add it to the mash to reach mash out. I have a spare 19L stock pot i can use. Im doing 50L batches ATM, and my boil volume 61L.

So the question is, if my mash is sitting at 67C how many liters of boiling water will i need to add to reach 78C and end up with 61L in the pot after 9.5kg of grain are removed? And would it be harmful adding boiling water to the mash? Am i making any sense at all?

TYVM Damian