First Ag...

[Muggus]

Looks good Boingk!
My first official AG was done very unceremoniously a couple of months back.
Never really considered BIAB, looks easy enough, but I constructed a lauter tun setup way before I did my first AG, and i'm pretty happy with the results thus far.

Have you got the badboy fermenting yet?

 

[boingk]

Got two of them fermenting, Muggus! Put down another yesterday afternoon, recipe is here. ESB is bubbling away at 19~20'C and the Southern Lager is coming down from a 24'C pitching temp. Both smell wonderfull, especially the ESB which threw a bit of foam out the 'lock earlier this morning.

As for the locale, its temporary as the garage is currently filled with a mates trailer. Once that is outta there there'll be a premo space for a bit of brewing...perhaps even a more advanced setup...

Pollux - you sure you want to use stitching on the bottom? Have a read of the BIAB master thread started by PP, it advises against stitching the bottom due to the bag having to endure a fair bit of stress at times, what with wet grain and all. Also, if you do decide to stitch, make sure you use nylon thread so it doesn't degrade with heat and moisture.

Cheers - boingk

 

[Gavo]

Yep, good work there boink. Havn't tried BIAB. Just gone with building up a three vessel gravity system over time.

The easiest way in my book is to always have some dried or liquid malt on hand. Very simple to add for an unexpected low gravity without having to worry about reformulating the recipe etc.

I did this with my first AG, Just don't tell anyone. h34r: You know, if a tree falls in the forest and there is nobody there to hear it, does it really make a noise? That aside it is a good way sort out a recipe without having to worry about changing hop additions.

Gavo.

 

[boingk]

Good work on the 3-vessel, I'd like to have a shot at that sometime, see what the fuss is about. For now though I've got a big pot and a burner so I figure I may as well do something with them. Plus, I can be a thirsty kinda guy on the odd occasion.

As for the lowish alc ESB, Gavo, maybe that old can of Tooheys Special Lager thats been lying around for a while is actually good for something after all! Yeah... its special alright. Real 'special'

- boingk

 

[Pollux]

Pollux - you sure you want to use stitching on the bottom? Have a read of the BIAB master thread started by PP, it advises against stitching the bottom due to the bag having to endure a fair bit of stress at times, what with wet grain and all. Also, if you do decide to stitch, make sure you use nylon thread so it doesn't degrade with heat and moisture.

Cheers - boingk

Well, it's stitched up now, will see how it holds and if need be I have enough leftover to make a pillowcase or hop bag style one.

And yes, I got the wife on the sewing machine this arvo. Made an oversized bag as per the design I posted, all seams triple stitched with a straight-zigzag-straight design. See below it will start the new revolution, BrewAssistant in a bag. Also got a hop sock made up and grabbed a spare coat hanger to form a ring and cross bar.


EDIT: Also, sorry about semi-hijacking your thread....I'll leave it alone and start my own soon, I promise.

 

[boingk]

Looks good, Pollux! Triple stiched should do the trick, too. As for the hijack, no worries! Questions, answers, discussions, critiques...its all good as far as I'm concerned.

By the way, just noticed your sig line; funniest thing I've read in a while, burst out into full-blown laughter. Awesome, just awesome!

Lastly, I may have my next recipe. Its a stout that I originally made up as a partial-mash using 900g of grain, a bunch of hops and extract...and a Coopers Real Ale kit. I enjoyed it a lot so I though it'd be good to make it again...AG this time. I've accounted for the fact that I have cruddy efficiency at the moment, so bear that in mind if anyone uses the recipe. Its located here.

Cheers - boingk

 

[Gavo]

Good work on the 3-vessel, I'd like to have a shot at that sometime, see what the fuss is about. For now though I've got a big pot and a burner so I figure I may as well do something with them.

The pot and burner are no good just sitting there looking pretty. I did my first AG on the kitchen stove, I could hardly get the paddle under the rangehood. Anyway after spilling a bunch of water on the floor and the odd bit of wort (luckily only small amounts of wort) I got my brewing outside. Only just made the stand and it is still under development. I reckon the fuss is just the simplicity of it. Run from HLT to Mash Tun, from mash tun to boiler, from boiler to cube. Dead easy, it just takes up a little room though.

Looking at your recipe. I have never done a stout. It looks good though. You will probably get some higher efficiency now and stuff up the hop balance again.

Cheers
Gavo.

 

[boingk]

<insert post from immediately above here>

Ha! That would've been a blast doing it on the stove and whatnot...can see it now... As for spilling wort, I was carrying the kettle full of boiled wort from the shed to the front door where my fermenter was. Almost spilt the whole lot of it pouring it into the fermenter. 2 minutes later my brother arrived and asked what I was doing

As for the three vessel dealy...the more I read about it the more I see its just that each stage gets a lot more specialised. Each component is designed to do one thing and do it well, whereas single-vessel trades that exacting design and performance for a bit more utilitarianism. As somone here put it, try taking your 3-vessel system round to a mates place for a brew session.

Thanks for the comment on the stout, too. Knowing me I'll get 75 percent by aiming for 60 and end up with an OG of almost 1.090 or something ridiculous. Haha, that'd be gold wouldn't it? Anyway, try your hand at a stout sometime. I don't have a lot of dosh to throw at nicely crafted (or even average) commercial examples, so prefer to make my own. Nothing beats a well aged stout on a cold, rainy evening; nows the time to get one down.

Cheers - boingk