Wow....how much better is All Grain Brewing?

[Mall]

Hi all,

I've done 5-6 AG brews recently and have been very happy with the results, mostly IPA's including a recent English IPA, compliments to Dr Smurto's recipe.

Last night I opened a JS Amber clone (from HBS recipe, 12 months old, bottled, great at the time.....) and was stunned by the difference.

The older brew whilst tasting great at the time, now lacks in so many areas. AG is full of body, amazing head retention, in your face hop taste and just better.

I'm glad I switched..

 

[MartinOC]

Welcome to the Vortex... :beerbang:

No going back now. It's gonna make cheap beer soooo much more expensive whilst you explore the permutations...

 

[Diggs]

Much better.

 

[Adr_0]

Yeah. Depth of flavour, fermentation, head, colour control.. Get to fiddle.

Glad you are enjoying. IPA's are just the tip of the iceberg... Or slippery slope...

 

[Cocko]

 

[SmallFry]

It's at least 3 points better. Possibly 4.

 

[Cocko]

It's at least 3 points better. Possibly 4.

internets points yeah?

 

[Stuwort]

I've gone from K&k to extract to BIAB and am now doing step mashes with my setup. Bloody loving it and can't believe how easy it is to acquire the knowledge needed to make good beer. Next step is to start using liquid yeasts now that I can rinse and re use my yeast.

Now to convince Wifey that a Kegerator is a great investment...........

 

[Tahoose]

I've gone from K&k to extract to BIAB and am now doing step mashes with my setup. Bloody loving it and can't believe how easy it is to acquire the knowledge needed to make good beer. Next step is to start using liquid yeasts now that I can rinse and re use my yeast.

Now to convince Wifey that a Kegerator is a great investment...........

The easiest way I can think of, enlist her help to wash, rinse, fill and cap a couple of full size batches. Explain that with her help the job will be done and you can spend the hour of time you gained doing that thing she wanted to do...


Then after a couple of batches (by this point she hates bottling) explain how if you had kegs, you could do the same amount of packaging in 1/4 of the time and you wouldn't need to store 10 slabs of empty bottles.

 

[Spiesy]

Only way to fly.

 

[amarks6]

Hope I'm posting this in the right place. If not, someone please tell me.

I was looking at this setup: http://www.blichmannengineering.com/products/breweasy

Then I figured that I should be able to achieve the same process with my existing 3V system - cut back to 2V.

I have a 75 L Blichmann boiler fired by an Italian spiral burner plus a 38L cooler mash tun (fitted with a Blichmann autosparge) and a pump.

Why can't I heat all the water for a brew up to strike temp - then transfer half of it to the mash tun, add the grain. Leave the remaining water in the boiler. Then simply start recirculating the wort from the mash tun (via gravity) to the boiler and from the boiler (via pump) to the autosparge?

This should enable me to do step mashes - providing I can ramp up the boiler temp reasonably quickly.

If this works, why would I want a HERMS or RIMS heat exchange device?

Am I missing something obvious?

Thanks guys.

 

[stm]

You are better off starting a new thread in Gear and Equipment, with a useful subject line.

 

[Vini2ton]

It's the control factor. There's much more in between stuff that has an outcome. I can hear stewie from family guy saying that.

 

[Redracer]

Agree 1000% with the difference to AG. Just did my first AG batch a few weeks ago and am impressed with the results. Did have the following observations on brew day:

1. Hose clamps are a necessity, not optional, when transferring wort.
2. Don't be too concerned about over shooting mash temps. It's probably harder to get mash water and grain up to proper mash temp than it is to add some cool water.
3. On a nice spring day bees are attracted to sweet things....who knew???

Glad I made the plunge and look forward to many more successful brews.

 

[Not For Horses]

7 Better.

 

[Lord Raja Goomba I]

Totes

 

[rheffera]

Agree 1000% with the difference to AG. Just did my first AG batch a few weeks ago and am impressed with the results. Did have the following observations on brew day:

1. Hose clamps are a necessity, not optional, when transferring wort.
2. Don't be too concerned about over shooting mash temps. It's probably harder to get mash water and grain up to proper mash temp than it is to add some cool water.
3. On a nice spring day bees are attracted to sweet things....who knew???

Glad I made the plunge and look forward to many more successful brews.

In my case it's flies, but hey...it tells me ive had conversion

 

[verysupple]

You sure do have a lot more freedom when brewing AG, and it's a lot more fun. However, I don't think my AG beers are any better than my all-extract beers, just more varied in terms of malt complexity etc.

I think the main reason your AG brew is so much better than your JS Amber is because it's fresher. I wouldn't expect one of someone's earlier brews to hold up too well over a year because usually when we start out we haven't really got our processes worked out and get a fair bit of oxidation happening.

Don't get me wrong, AG brewing is awesome. I just believe that a good brewer is a good brewer and a good beer is a good beer regardless of the method used to make it. After a few AG brews people tend to make better beers - partly because they've learned more and not only because of the ingredients or method. Once you've made a few more AG brews and you're getting consistent results, go back and try an all-extract batch and see how it turns out. It's amazing how much you learn doing AG that actually applies to extract brewing. :icon_cheers:

 

[Blind Dog]

The one thing you can't do with extract is control the mash as it's already been done for you and that alone can make a massive difference.

 

[verysupple]

The one thing you can't do with extract is control the mash as it's already been done for you and that alone can make a massive difference.

That's very true. However you can adjust the fermentability of extract batches using things like simple sugars and maltodextrin.

My question is how accurately do you control your mash temp., thickness, pH, etc.? I think the companies making the extract are much more consistent than most home brewers - especially ones with only a few brews under their belt. At least when you buy some extract you know what you're getting. It's great for perfecting fermentation as you know the wort is reliable and predictable. How many posts do we see where the OP is asking why their FG is so high and they brew extract? Not many by my count - the fermentability is at least predictable. They don'y have to worry about their thermometer being 10oC out or something silly like that.