[majorvices]

Not sure I boiled the concentration down enough. I pulled off two gallons and boiled it down to one (from first runnings) but it was not a syrup, as some have suggested. Didn't take a gravity reading, guess I should have.

[morticaixavier]

Not sure I boiled the concentration down enough. I pulled off two gallons and boiled it down to one (from first runnings) but it was not a syrup, as some have suggested. Didn't take a gravity reading, guess I should have.

Yeah, it sounds crazy but you really do want to boil two gallons down to like .5 gallons or less. maybe even as little as .25 gallons

[majorvices]

I'll probably just try it with specialty malts if I brew it again. Don't really care for taking a break in the brew day to boil a side job several hours.

[denny]

I'll probably just try it with specialty malts if I brew it again. Don't really care for taking a break in the brew day to boil a side job several hours.

It won't be anywhere near the same...I've tried it.

[majorvices]

I believe you.

[AmandaK]

I'll probably just try it with specialty malts if I brew it again. Don't really care for taking a break in the brew day to boil a side job several hours.

Can you just keep boiling the side car until it's concentrated enough? I mean, you take the first runnings, boil it and boil it and boil it. At the same time, do your last runnings like normal, chill it, let it hang in the fermenter. Then when the syrup is done, dump that into the fermenter? Then pitch yeast if it's a good temperature?

I ask because I'd like to try this without the brew-day break.

[morticaixavier]

I'll probably just try it with specialty malts if I brew it again. Don't really care for taking a break in the brew day to boil a side job several hours.

Can you just keep boiling the side car until it's concentrated enough? I mean, you take the first runnings, boil it and boil it and boil it. At the same time, do your last runnings like normal, chill it, let it hang in the fermenter. Then when the syrup is done, dump that into the fermenter? Then pitch yeast if it's a good temperature?

I ask because I'd like to try this without the brew-day break.

don't see why not. you could even pitch yeast and then add the concentrate after.

[majorvices]

I'll probably just try it with specialty malts if I brew it again. Don't really care for taking a break in the brew day to boil a side job several hours.

Can you just keep boiling the side car until it's concentrated enough? I mean, you take the first runnings, boil it and boil it and boil it. At the same time, do your last runnings like normal, chill it, let it hang in the fermenter. Then when the syrup is done, dump that into the fermenter? Then pitch yeast if it's a good temperature?

I ask because I'd like to try this without the brew-day break.

That's basically what I did. All together was well over a 4 hour boil.

[morticaixavier]

I'll probably just try it with specialty malts if I brew it again. Don't really care for taking a break in the brew day to boil a side job several hours.

Can you just keep boiling the side car until it's concentrated enough? I mean, you take the first runnings, boil it and boil it and boil it. At the same time, do your last runnings like normal, chill it, let it hang in the fermenter. Then when the syrup is done, dump that into the fermenter? Then pitch yeast if it's a good temperature?

I ask because I'd like to try this without the brew-day break.

That's basically what I did. All together was well over a 4 hour boil.

if you wanted to shorten that time you can boil in a vessel that is wide and shallow allowing faster evaporation. that is the part that takes so long and it's not doing anything for you but wasting fuel. once the water concentration gets low enough the flavor development is fairly quick.

[AmandaK]

That's basically what I did. All together was well over a 4 hour boil.

if you wanted to shorten that time you can boil in a vessel that is wide and shallow allowing faster evaporation. that is the part that takes so long and it's not doing anything for you but wasting fuel. once the water concentration gets low enough the flavor development is fairly quick.

So... if I could acquire a hugely-oversized wok and a powerful burner, that might just work. Although it would require a lot of stirring and watching.

[kylekohlmorgen]

I suppose as a one pot alternative, you could pull off a gallon of wort early in the mash and boil like crazy in the kettle while the mash finishes. This is figuring that with well modified malt most conversion is done pretty quickly, so you'd be safe pulling a gallon after 30 minutes.

^ I like this idea.

I've heard pro brewers talk about getting their kettle blazing hot before starting the runoff to achieve some carmelization (for lack of a better term).

It would take some care to do this without scorching on a direct fire kettle. You could probably get the kettle hot during vorlauf and then cut the heat right before starting runoff. Stir like mad until you cover the bottom, then crank 'er up again. Periodically rotate the kettle on the burner to discourage hot spots.

[morticaixavier]

That's basically what I did. All together was well over a 4 hour boil.

if you wanted to shorten that time you can boil in a vessel that is wide and shallow allowing faster evaporation. that is the part that takes so long and it's not doing anything for you but wasting fuel. once the water concentration gets low enough the flavor development is fairly quick.

So... if I could acquire a hugely-oversized wok and a powerful burner, that might just work. Although it would require a lot of stirring and watching.

at a 5 gallon batch scale when you are only boiling down about 1 gallon you could do it in a big roasting pan on the kitchen stove.

[majorvices]

I suppose as a one pot alternative, you could pull off a gallon of wort early in the mash and boil like crazy in the kettle while the mash finishes. This is figuring that with well modified malt most conversion is done pretty quickly, so you'd be safe pulling a gallon after 30 minutes.

^ I like this idea.

I've heard pro brewers talk about getting their kettle blazing hot before starting the runoff to achieve some carmelization (for lack of a better term).

It would take some care to do this without scorching on a direct fire kettle. You could probably get the kettle hot during vorlauf and then cut the heat right before starting runoff. Stir like mad until you cover the bottom, then crank 'er up again. Periodically rotate the kettle on the burner to discourage hot spots.

I have a "sort of" colandria so this wouldn't work on my set up. We are getting a 2 bbl direct fired kettle so I may try it for my commercial set up down the road. Too bad there's not just an extract like a Belgian candi syrup you can just add.

[hopfenundmalz]

I'll probably just try it with specialty malts if I brew it again. Don't really care for taking a break in the brew day to boil a side job several hours.

Can you just keep boiling the side car until it's concentrated enough? I mean, you take the first runnings, boil it and boil it and boil it. At the same time, do your last runnings like normal, chill it, let it hang in the fermenter. Then when the syrup is done, dump that into the fermenter? Then pitch yeast if it's a good temperature?

I ask because I'd like to try this without the brew-day break.

That's basically what I did. All together was well over a 4 hour boil.

if you wanted to shorten that time you can boil in a vessel that is wide and shallow allowing faster evaporation. that is the part that takes so long and it's not doing anything for you but wasting fuel. once the water concentration gets low enough the flavor development is fairly quick.

That is how I do it, and the reduced boil is ready by the end of a 90 min main boil.

[morticaixavier]

I suppose as a one pot alternative, you could pull off a gallon of wort early in the mash and boil like crazy in the kettle while the mash finishes. This is figuring that with well modified malt most conversion is done pretty quickly, so you'd be safe pulling a gallon after 30 minutes.

^ I like this idea.

I've heard pro brewers talk about getting their kettle blazing hot before starting the runoff to achieve some carmelization (for lack of a better term).

It would take some care to do this without scorching on a direct fire kettle. You could probably get the kettle hot during vorlauf and then cut the heat right before starting runoff. Stir like mad until you cover the bottom, then crank 'er up again. Periodically rotate the kettle on the burner to discourage hot spots.

I have a "sort of" colandria so this wouldn't work on my set up. We are getting a 2 bbl direct fired kettle so I may try it for my commercial set up down the road. Too bad there's not just an extract like a Belgian candi syrup you can just add.

I suppose you could mix up some DME or LME with enough water to prevent it from instantly scorching and then caramelize that. if you used the MO extract might work pretty well