Novice BIAB questions

[Shep14]

Im currently drinking my 2nd crack at BIAB, a Dr Smurtos Golden Ale and its drinkable but im not completely happy with it. I think its a little bit light bodied and a little astringent, would be great if i could get some direction as to what might have caused this.

I mashed at 67deg and ended up with a OG of 1.048. Ferment temp fluctuated between 16 and 19 deg and FG was 1.010.

I thought my thermometer might be off, but i calibrated with boiling and ice water and it was spot on.

I use a 40L crown urn and tried a mashout this time which i didnt do for my 1st BIAB, i raised the temp to 73 before removing the bag. Is this a possible cause?

I have just moved to Perth (Kensington) and my first BIAB was in Adelaide, is there a potential issue with the mash ph? I just used water straight from the tap.

Also my cube is 25L and I ended up with just under 22L in the fermenter, leaving a bit of air in my cube. I assume this isnt much of a problem but would be good to get peoples point of view on this.

Cheers
Shep

 

[simco999]

Hi - this all sounds ok.

I mash out at 80c.

I don't think cubing with air in is an issue as long as you get all surfaces covered by the near boiling wort.

I can't comment on the water - this may be where the problem lies.

 

[roverfj1200]

What was your strike temp?

I mash out at 78... No probs there.

What temp was the mash at the end and mash length?

1.010 is not what I would call thin.

Sounds OK for what you have there.


Cheers

 

[wbosher]

Bottle or keg? I've found that bottles opened too early can taste how you describe.

 

[Shep14]

My strike temp was 69 and i hit just over 67 at mash in, temp was 66 at the end of 60mins.

I bottled, but that was 2 and a half months ago now.

 

[Crusty]

It all looks ok.
67deg should be fairly full bodied but 1.010 is heading to the drier side.
What yeast did you use & please tell me you roused the mash whilst adding heat for the mash out.
You did a single infusion @67deg?

 

[Shep14]

I used US-05, was a single infusion mash and I stirred the mash fairly constantly during mashout.

Could it just be one of those things that not every brew is the same and some are better than others?

Might just have to have another crack at it and if I have the same problems I will know its not just a one off.

 

[manticle]

I have just moved to Perth (Kensington) and my first BIAB was in Adelaide, is there a potential issue with the mash ph? I just used water straight from the tap.

Very likely at least a contributor. Water in Perth is not the best.

Have a look at ways of dropping out carbonates, acidifying mash, reducing chlorine content and flavouring beer. Not something I'd recommend for beginners usually but WA water profile looks like a prick to deal with.

 

[Hippy]

Very likely at least a contributor. Water in Perth is not the best.

Have a look at ways of dropping out carbonates, acidifying mash, reducing chlorine content and flavouring beer. Not something I'd recommend for beginners usually but WA water profile looks like a prick to deal with.

Perth Water is quite hard and contains a lot of carbonates, particularly if it comes from the Gnangara or Jandakot groundwater mounds which the majority does. I mix with rain water and add a tiny bit of acidulated malt to lower the mash ph.

 

[manticle]

Post 11: http://aussiehomebrewer.com/topic/46120-ahb-articles-water-chemistry/

https://sites.google.com/site/brunwater/water-knowledge

http://braukaiser.com/wiki/index.php?title=An_Overview_of_pH
http://braukaiser.com/wiki/index.php?title=How_pH_affects_brewing
http://braukaiser.com/wiki/index.php/Mash_pH_control


Lots of technical info and no doubt confusing at this stage but I bet my pants it will fix your problem. Carbonates in pale beers can contribute to astringency/harshness as can alkaline sparge water.

Here is a short summary I wrote that offers only hows, no whys. The above linked articles have the whys and hows.

post 5 here: http://aussiehomebrewer.com/topic/72079-im-just-starting-to-get-into-water-hp/#entry1027655