First BIAB Dry Run

[spryzie]

Howdy, all.

I've gone out and got myself one of those 19L Big W pots, a 10L HDPE jerry can and some swiss voile.

I've just done a quick run through. I first tried pouring about 12L of cold water from the pot into my jerry can. Did not go well. Water every where. Next up, tried ladling it with a pyrex jug. Much better but slower. Lucky I'm only doing small batches!

OK, next up, I warmed my water to 67 degrees, put my old jumper around the pot and waited an hour. Remove jumper and stick thermometer in. 66 degrees! So this will work for mashing!

Next up, brought water to boil. Ladled it into jerry can. Didn't burn myself! I think I've got this down pat first go.

I'm off to the homebrew shop in a few days to buy some grain and give my first BIAB a go.

I've got a couple of questions.

1. The swiss voile - do I have to sew it into a bag? Can I just drape it in the pot, then bundle it up, tie some rope to it and hoist it above my pot?

2. 67 degrees (with it cooling to 66) is good?

3. How's this recipe? I'm trying to make something like a Ranga Red Ale. I googled a bit and this is a Irish Red Ale'ish recipe:

12 Litre Batch

2.5kg Ale Malt;
500g Carared;
200g Crystal 120;
20g Roasted Barley.

15g Goldings @ 60 mins
35g Goldings @ 10 mins

I have little idea about hoping. BrewMate says this is 36.6 IBU's and is a little more than a standard Irish Red Ale - which is what I think I want. I won't some hop flavour.

I was also thinking of dry hopping with some Cascade hops as well for aroma?

Safale yeast?

BrewMate says OG of 1.058 and 5.7% ABV if all goes to plan.

What do you think?

Thanks!

 

[Truman42]

DO NOT LADEL YOUR WORT INTO YOUR JERRY CAN.

You will cause hot side aeration and your beer will taste like wet cardboard. Get yourself a racking cane and siphon it into the jerry can with your hose resting in the bottom of your jerry so as to cause minimal splashing and aeration as possible.

Or drill a hole in your pot and install a ball valve.

Once its cold and your ready to pitch your yeast then you can shake the shit out of it, but not when its hot.

1. The swiss voile - do I have to sew it into a bag? Can I just drape it in the pot, then bundle it up, tie some rope to it and hoist it above my pot?

You can do that but a bag is a lot easier. You risk the knot slipping if you bundle it.

2. 67 degrees (with it cooling to 66) is good?

1C loss is fine over an hour

3. How's this recipe? I'm trying to make something like a Ranga Red Ale. I googled a bit and this is a Irish Red Ale'ish recipe:

If you want hop flavour instead of bitterness decrease your 60 m in addition and increase your 10 min addition. Adjust until brewmate gives you the IBU you want.


EDIT: Oh and welcome to the forum..

 

[spryzie]

I will be gentle, since it's only 10L jerry can I can hold it and very slowly (without splashing) pour the wort in.

Best I can for time being.

Homebrew shop didn't have any silicone tubing and I don't like the idea of using vinyl tubing with boiling wort.

Any other pointers?

EDIT: THANKS!

 

[Truman42]

Even pouring it in will possibly cause aeration. You want to get it in there with as minimal splashing as possible and if you pour even from the height of the jerry opening, that will possibly be too much. especially trying to pour from a pot, you will end up with wort all over the place. Don't do it....It wont end well..

your only other option is to leave it in the pot. Cover the pot with a few layers of glad wrap and poke a small hole in the middle of the glad wrap, sit the lid on top then leave the pot sitting in a tub of water/ice, or your garage floor overnight to cool. Then pour it into your jerry can (after sanitising the jerry) and then shake the shit out of it and pitch your yeast.

You cant pour it in hot, but when its cold you want to aerate it as much as possible to oxygenate the wort.

 

[Liam_snorkel]

HSA is a myth, apparently.

 

[Crusty]

HSA is always being thrown around in a lot of American brewing forums & I'll tell you this.
I transfer my wort that has been sitting in the urn for 30mins after boiling via the urn's tap.
I just open the tap & let it flow into my sanitized cube for no chilling. I have never experienced HSA or any off flavors from doing it this way & I do it all the time, every brew. Oxidation must be avoided at cooler temps but don't loose any sleep about some splashing at near boiling temperatures. A tap installed in the pot would be a far better option.
I know of a highly awarded urn brewer that just opens the urn tap like me & he's never experienced any HSA problems either.

 

[Truman42]

So Ive been told...But still I wouldnt want to ladel hot wort or pour it in from a height. Just in case. Ive had a few brewers on here tell me they have had HSA from doing similar deeds. lol

 

[iralosavic]

I've read a lot about HSA and I can't make up my own mind based on the weight of evidence, but I think I will find out for sure from my most recent batch as I had to collect multiple 8L batches and dump them in the boiler by hand. haha To make things worse, I then forgot to aerate prior to pitching. It wouldn't be the first time I forgot to oxygenate though... I'm hopeless like that. I've never had a stuck ferment though, just slow starts when I forget to aerate. I used to argue that an airstone was a waste of money, but I'm starting to think one couldn't go astray given my bad track record of remembering to aerate prior to pitching haha

Anyway, back on topic. Danstar Windsor dried yeast would be my first choice for your recipe, followed by Nottingham and US-05 in that order. Remember that an Irish red is a fairly bitter beer (especially compared to your typical Aussie megaswill), so it might pay to err on the side of lower bitterness for your first brew? If your process extracts too many tannins, the associated astringency could amplify the perception of bitterness too. I'd consider going around 30IBU if you don't think "yum" when you think of bitter beers. I'm a bit of a bitterness pussy, myself. The only time I really enjoy a significantly bitter brew is in a sufficiently full bodied IPA and only as a sipper. I personally aim for between 18 and 30IBU, dependent on the style/gravity/flavour profile. My house lager is around 20IBU and is well balanced at 1.048OG and 1.010 FG

 

[Feldon]

Even if HSA does cause it to go stale it won't be immediate.

Anyway, the OP is only making 10 litres. Sip, sip - its gone.

 

[Truman42]

 

Even if HSA does cause it to go stale it won't be immediate.
 
Anyway, the OP is only making 10 litres.  Sip, sip - its gone.

Good point, but isnt it better to get him into a good practice now? As one day he may be making 50 litres.

Besides that I can see quite a mess coming from trying to pour a 20 litre big w pot into a cube.

 

[jimmyfozzers]

I've been pouring the Big W pot into a 10 litre cube using a funnel for my last few brews. No dramas so far, just make sure of the following:

- Towel under cube
- Wear shoes (last time I started pouring wearing thongs, then thought better of it :-/ )
- Wear thick gloves with decent grip (I use gardening gloves)
- Don't rely on the Big W pot handles. They are only spot welded and one of mine gave a horrible crack the first time I tried to pick it up full by the handles. Instead I put on a thick jumper and kind of 'hug' the pot!
- I also put a Bunnings paint strainer over the end of the funnel to catch any hop/break matter, but that probably isn't necessary.

Have read about HSA, but happy to wing it for now. As mentioned above, 10 litres won't last long.

 

[wbosher]

Homebrew shop didn't have any silicone tubing

Why not just buy some online? Sure, there will be a delivery cost, but you're gonna end up getting some at some stage, so why not just do it now?

 

[bum]

Putting aside the issue of HSA momentarily, ladling is still a fairly bad idea for NC. The wort will cool down to below pasteurisation temps very quickly but not down low enough to be considered chilled. Sounds fairly dangerous to me.

 

[Lord Raja Goomba I]

Never had HSA. I poured (when I no-chill - I chill anything needing late hopping (APA, etc) and no-chill anything where hop aroma/flavour is not the primary component of the beer (eg. Best Bitter, Irish Red)) from BigW pots (2 of them) into the fermenter (big wide mouthed thing) and splashing on the floor aside, I've never had a problem and I've won awards for the beer, with no "cardboard" comments coming from judges with a better palate than mine.

I'm not going to say HSA is a myth or not, but I haven't experienced it and I am an experienced splasher.

Goomba

 

[hellbent]

Have a look at Nickjd BIAB for thirty bucks post, http://aussiehomebrewer.com/topic/38674-move-to-all-grain-for-thirty-bucks/

I use a 19ltr BigW pot and I often do as he does, just put gladwrap over the top cover air hole in lid and let sit overnight with no probs.

 

[Pickaxe]

Just make sure you heat your strike water up to 77 degrees before adding to grain. It will lose temperature quickly due to the grain being cooler, and should level at about 66 degrees. Sounds like your insulation is good.

I'm putting down my first BIAB today, hoping a couple of towels and an old dressing gown will give me the insulation I need.


Good luck.

 

[Pickaxe]

I've got a bag of ice and gonna chill my pot in the laundry tub down to pitching temp.

 

[wbosher]

Just make sure you heat your strike water up to 77 degrees before adding to grain. It will lose temperature quickly due to the grain being cooler, and should level at about 66 degrees. Sounds like your insulation is good.

I'm putting down my first BIAB today, hoping a couple of towels and an old dressing gown will give me the insulation I need.


Good luck.

77 is a bit high, you probably only need a few degrees higher than your mash temperature. If shooting for 66, strike temp should only be about 68 or 69.

Good luck and have fun with it.

 

[Lord Raja Goomba I]

Just make sure you heat your strike water up to 77 degrees before adding to grain. It will lose temperature quickly due to the grain being cooler, and should level at about 66 degrees. Sounds like your insulation is good.

I'm putting down my first BIAB today, hoping a couple of towels and an old dressing gown will give me the insulation I need.


Good luck.

Get brewmate, punch in your grain's temp (usually around ambient), your recipe and the mash temp you'd like (ideally with these first brews, they're generally around 64-65 degrees) - don't heat up strike water to a certain temp without doing the calc, it mightn't be the same for you.

My strike temp, in Tasmania, with the grain's temp at 18 degrees was approx 70 degrees. It's horses for courses and not as simple as apply one temp to the entire process.

 

[manticle]

My understanding of the whole Hot side aeration 'debate' is as follows:

Splashing wort when hot is ONE of the factors that MAY contribute to the development of trans-2-nonenal, the major compound in the 'wet cardboard' taste.

There are other factors too - some which may be more significant (splashing beer rather than wort for example). There are a multitude of factors - doing one thing or another may or may not lead to the effect suggested but it is neither automatic, nor is it a myth.

Homebrewing truisms often seems to suggest X happens, then Y without qualifiers (based on commercial brewing practices), then someone does Y and doesn't get X straight away so they loudly proclaim it's all bollocks. Neither side wins in my book.

Like anything - it's your brew. Take whatever risks you want but make them calculated. If it's impossible not to aerate when hot until you upgrade equipment, then aerate but be aware something MAY happen down the track and if it does, you will have an idea why. If nothing happens within the time it takes to drink your beer then continue to make beer as it suits.

The chemical reactions that lead to staling/oxidation reactions are generally irreversible as far as I understand but they may take a significant amount of time before their effects are noticed.