Same Malt Different Hops

[brewermp]

Hey brewers,

In the interest of not buying a million different malts I have been considering buying 25kg bags. A beginner question I have is

“how much versatility can you get from using the same malt but different hops”

Let’s say I have a base pale malt and a specialty malt

 

[wide eyed and legless]

I think that is what most folk do, I have Maris Otter, Golden Promise, and Viking Pale Ale malt which is looking good for the price, you could just go with something like one of those and then just small quantities of the specialty grains. As for the hops yes they do make a difference and depending on what you are brewing, for instance English Bitters you will notice the difference varying the hops, but even with the hops you will get favourites.

 

[altone]

For me if you're making American pales, you could use the same grain bill for years and just switch the hops each brew and get a very different beer every time.
I buy a sack of English pale malt and German Pilsner. (Yes I use English malt in my APA - get over it! )
That covers the bulk of the grain bill for the beers I usually do.
The rest i just buy as I need them.
I find also using different yeasts with the same grains can give you some weird and amazing results, so even more good beer combinations from the same grains.

 

[brewermp]

Thanks for the comments the answer I was hoping for haha.

 

[Danscraftbeer]

I take Pale Malt as Base Malt. I think that has been the standard for centuries. We are blessed with all the options now days.

 

[Yuz]

I'm in the same boat, getting into BIAB AG and researching base grains - think the Red X would do the trick. Just on its own to keep it simple as to get the hang of Urn BIAB'ing and cubing.

 

[Ronwales]

I was thinking about doing the same can anyone recommend a good aussie malt for pale ales? It's costing way too much buying as I brew

 

[altone]

I was thinking about doing the same can anyone recommend a good aussie malt for pale ales? It's costing way too much buying as I brew

What kind of pale ales?
American or English - I don't think the Joe White cuts it, so usually use Simpsons (UK) although I've made many an APA with Joe White and enjoyed them but they aren't quite so good.
Aussie - why not try Coopers?
IPA's I've no idea as I don't really brew them.

Just one mans opinion.

 

[Ronwales]

American pale ales , all grain. I was planning on buying from bulk brewing supplies in yangebup. As I'm from perth

 

[brewermp]

I’m currently trying voyager veloria

http://www.voyagercraftmalt.com.au

MY LHBS has them in 10 and 25kg bags [emoji846]

 

[enikoy]

American pale ales , all grain. I was planning on buying from bulk brewing supplies in yangebup. As I'm from perth

I really like the Barrett Burston Pale Malt. I pretty much use it for everything as a base malt. I did have a bag of Joe White Traditional Ale but found the BB Pale always made a better beer. I usually buy when Brewmart have a deal, which was $39 last time around for the BB Pale. Having said that, next time the Maris Otter comes up I'll grab a bag.

https://www.bulkbrewingsupplies.com.au/product-page/barrett-burston-pale-malt-25kg

 

[Edd Mather 6]

How Do Brewermp,

There`s a whole world of fun to be had with just one base malt (Leaving the Adjuncts question aside for now) , but for what I`ts worth ; I`d suggest finding a Hop variety that you like , which provides a NEUTRAL bitterness , and using the later copper hop charges (Varieties of choice) to supply the flavour and aroma elements , It`ll probably save you a few bob as well ,

Cheers ,
Edd

 

[Ronwales]

I really like the Barrett Burston Pale Malt. I pretty much use it for everything as a base malt. I did have a bag of Joe White Traditional Ale but found the BB Pale always made a better beer. I usually buy when Brewmart have a deal, which was $39 last time around for the BB Pale. Having said that, next time the Maris Otter comes up I'll grab a bag.

https://www.bulkbrewingsupplies.com.au/product-page/barrett-burston-pale-malt-25kg

How long will a bag of grain stay fresh?

 

[enikoy]

How long will a bag of grain stay fresh?

I'll leave that detail to the experts. In my case I usually get 6-7 23l brews from a bag, so it is open for about about 4 months. I roll the bag down tight and clamp it shut. When it fits in a 20l sealed bin, I'll pop the whole bag in there. I'm usually more concerned about my speciality grains freshness. Those half kilo leftovers hang around and the age sneaks up on you.

Edit - I grind the grain just before mashing.

 

[koshari]

How long will a bag of grain stay fresh?

I cant definitively say how long it stays fresh because the aging process is a gradual effect. What i will say is milling nearer to when you use the grain will geep it fresher. Its a bit like coffee. Grinding just before using makes a significant difference. Its likely due to the entact bean/kernel/husk having less surface area where oxidisation can effect it.

 

[Rocker1986]

I do the same as Altone with my APAs, same grain bill on every one of them with the hops changed up, and pretty much always used Maris Otter in them too. I only keep two base malts unless you count Munich II as a base malt, those being Weyermann Bohemian Pils malt for lagers, and up until recently it was always Fawcett's Maris Otter for ales, but I have been trying the Gladfield Ale malt lately which has been performing well. I also keep about 6-8 different specialty grains but I buy these in smaller amounts of 2-3kg at a time. Base malts are stored in 60L fermenter style buckets, the spec grains are stored in either 5 or 11L handy pails from the big green shed.

I've settled on malt bills for most of the beer styles I regularly make now although occasionally I muck around with them a bit for something different, so it just becomes a matter of mucking around with different hops and sometimes yeasts for some differences. The only exceptions are two regular recipes and a couple of yearly or twice yearly brews that are brewed the same every batch.