Instruction Needed

[cdbrown]

I think I've worked out a recipe for this in beersmith.

0.5kg dark cystal malt steeped for 45mins in 1.3L water at 77C (in beersmith chose "Single Infusion, Full Body, No Mash" in hope that this was the same as a steep?)

Sparge with 2.5L hot water and add 50g of LDME. Boil vol 3L, OG 1.041
25g Challenger (7.9%) @15mins
25g Northern Brewer (9.6%) @ 15mins
25g Fuggles (4%) @ 5mins
25g EK Goldings (4.8%) @ 5mins

1.45kg LDME
1.5kg can Light LME

OG 1.048
FG 1.012
ABV 4.61%
EBC 29.5
IBU 28.4

Hope this is right - the boil OG didn't change when I modified the mash profile to a different type of mash

 

[Supra-Jim]

Looks good. Good luck with it!

:icon_cheers: SJ

 

[buttersd70]

cd, with crystals the mash profile is largely irrelevant...the conversion is already done. Bot for the sake of getting it at whatever temp you want, the mash profile will work it out for you....fyi, the main difference between a steep and a mash is purely one of time, and making sure the temp is constant. Other than that, it;s the same basic principle.

 

[MarshallBrew]

Hi guys,

First time poster. Also relative newcomer to the genius that is HB.

Used to brew a few years back with a mate, but recently got a Brewcraft Kit for my 30th and so the obsession has started again!

I got a Munich Lager with my kit and have just bottled that. I have a Brewcraft Ultra Pale Ale kit in the fermenter at the moment, which was put down yesterday.

Am looking forward to tasting the fruits of my labour in a couple of weeks.

Cheers guys!

PS. look forward to more and more information as you guys post it.

 

[Mantis]

Adding some Caraaroma grain in the steep would be good for a Kilkeny style.
I made a red ale with pale extract, 300g pale crystal and 200g caraaroma and it came out very nice.

 

[cdbrown]

Would that be in as a substitute of the dark crystal or in addition to?

Also butters did I get it right in only adding 59g LDME to the steeped malt liqor to get the right OG for the boil?

 

[Mantis]

Would that be in as a substitute of the dark crystal or in addition to?

Also butters did I get it right in only adding 59g LDME to the steeped malt liqor to get the right OG for the boil?

The caraaroma adds red colour and lovely flavours. If using dark crystal I would substitue say 40% with the caraaroma.

 

[buttersd70]

Would that be in as a substitute of the dark crystal or in addition to?

Also butters did I get it right in only adding 59g LDME to the steeped malt liqor to get the right OG for the boil?

Agree with mantis on the amount of caraaroma.

As far as the boil gravity....theoretically, its right. Practicality is another issue.

Each program treats crystal differently when swapping between mash and steep...if you flick to 'extract' in beersmith, it will reduce the BG significantly, as it considers steeping to be less effective than having it in mash conditions.....promash, on the other hand, does not. switching between 'partial' and extract' shows no change whatsoever on the gravity contribution, and it is exactly as you have calculated it. Which is right? I couldn't say. It's been theorised on this forum that beersmith assumes that the end user is at the lowest common denominator, and just sucks at steeping.

My thought is...if the grain is properly crushed (milled by your lhbs), instead of just cracked in a haphazard way, and you pay attention to your process, then it is likely to be (at least close) to what you've calculated. If you're just lightly cracking the grain with a rolling pin and are a bit more slapdash, it is more likely to be the low amount that beersmith gives if you click over to 'extract' in the brew.

Take a hydro reading of the boil (after chilling a sample to 20C). If it is different, tweak the efficiency percentage until you get the actual BG. You should also be able to use that number in future, if your method remains the same. don't remove the sample volume from the boil volume, leave it as-is, and adjust the hopping to compensate, if required.

 

[cdbrown]

For the steeping - I've just followed what instructions that I think you provided funnily enough. The grains are curched by Nev at Gryphon Brewing. I bring the desired amount of water up to the temp. Turn off the flame, dump in the grain and stir a little to ensure it's all in there getting a good soak. This is done in a heavy bottomed pot. After the time is up, I strain into another pot and then pour some hot water over top, then squeeze the spent grain against the strainer which get's some more nice coloured/flavoured wort out.

How long should I steep and at what initial water temp as I've seen all sorts of different times and temps around? Also is there a rule of thumb to the amount of water needed (ie 4x amount of grain)?

Will be adding carraroma to the shopping list.

Recommended yeast? Have Us-05, S-04, Nottingham and a few others. Seems that Wyeast Irish ale is on the original sample recipe.

While I think of it is there anything I can substitute for Northern Brewer as it's currently out of stock with Craftbrewer and I'll be doing a bit of an order with them for some other stuff.

Cheers
-cdbrown

 

[buttersd70]

For the steeping - I've just followed what instructions that I think you provided funnily enough. The grains are curched by Nev at Gryphon Brewing. I bring the desired amount of water up to the temp. Turn off the flame, dump in the grain and stir a little to ensure it's all in there getting a good soak. This is done in a heavy bottomed pot. After the time is up, I strain into another pot and then pour some hot water over top, then squeeze the spent grain against the strainer which get's some more nice coloured/flavoured wort out.

No worries with that at all...it should come out pretty much as calculated.

How long should I steep and at what initial water temp as I've seen all sorts of different times and temps around? Also is there a rule of thumb to the amount of water needed (ie 4x amount of grain)?

As you described should be fine. The water/grist in mashing is important, less so in steeping. It's just a matter of getting enough water for an effective steep and rinse ....the only real rule of thumb is more is better. I think ~3x for the steep, and the same again for the rinse would be fine....if your pot is big enough, push it higher, and do a slightly bigger boil.

Recommended yeast? Have Us-05, S-04, Nottingham and a few others. Seems that Wyeast Irish ale is on the original sample recipe.

s04 or nottingham would be fine. I would go with the nottingham myself, if not using a liquid.

While I think of it is there anything I can substitute for Northern Brewer as it's currently out of stock with Craftbrewer and I'll be doing a bit of an order with them for some other stuff.

Hallertauer is listed in beersmith as a sub for NB, and docs red ale (an AG red ale) uses it...never used it myself, though. You could just use fuggle or ekg if you wanted to.

 

[cdbrown]

I have Hallertauer in my fridge - but it's AA3.9% and not the 9.6 of the northern brewer. Guess that just means using more to get the IBU which isn't a problem.

Good news is that I've just ordered a 20L stock pot from allquip so hoping they don't dilly-dally on the shipping and I might be able to use it on this brew. If not it's limited to the 3L boil size.

Once this is fermented out, would it be recommended to chill, gelatine and polyclar before kegging or just straight into keg like the weissbier? Trying to get a better understanding of what styles do get fined and the ones that don't

 

[buttersd70]

With the hallertaur so low, you would need more...I'd probably up the challenger a bit to help with the IBU, so maybe an extra 5g?ish, so the weights of one to the other are not miles apart.

I would definately be wanting this beer to drop bright. Red ales are very attractive looking beers when they're bright as a button. so crash chill and geletine would be the go. If you have polyclar, then yes, use that too. I'm a bit of a clarity nazi, with my own beer. If it's meant to be bright, I want it very bright. If it's meant to be cloudy, then it should be cloudy. I don't like any middle ground, personally. But thats just me.

 

[cdbrown]

Butters - you are a champ!