[andrew]

OK, reading all the above I am assuming that most of you add grain to water of the right temp and not the other way around?

water to grain here. grain in the tun with liquor of 165 to 170 flowing in.

[denny]

OK, reading all the above I am assuming that most of you add grain to water of the right temp and not the other way around?

That's the way I do it.  I've tried it both ways and it seems to have no effect on beer quality.  Adding grain to water just makes it easier for me.

[Hokerer]

OK, reading all the above I am assuming that most of you add grain to water of the right temp and not the other way around?

That's the way I do it.  I've tried it both ways and it seems to have no effect on beer quality.  Adding grain to water just makes it easier for me.

Same here.  It's simplest to have the water in the cooler and then gradually add/stir in the grain.

[Mikey]

I add water to grain. It has never been a problem for me.

[Pawtucket Patriot]

OK, reading all the above I am assuming that most of you add grain to water of the right temp and not the other way around?

That's the way I do it.  I've tried it both ways and it seems to have no effect on beer quality.  Adding grain to water just makes it easier for me.

+1

I like to add about 1/3 of the grist at a time to the water and mix.

[kgs]

I have tried it both ways, and at least for my setup, I have found that adding grain to water was significantly easier and ensures that the grain is uniformly wetted. I pour it in not-too-fast while stirring with a 22" whisk I bought at a local restaurant supply store. The whisk prevents dough balls.

Another advantage to adding grain to water is I can take a temp of the mash water before adding the grain, and adjust accordingly. Finally, if I'm going to be splashing myself anything, I'd rather it be milled grain than 168-degree water.

I do slightly preheat my 5-gallon MT with a gallon of hot tap water, just to take the chill off. I hit my temps, which is what matters!

[euge]

I add my grain to water as well. The whisk is a great idea for busting up dough-balls. Next time I visit the restaurant supply store prices will be checked. Mixing in the grain effectively is a technique all on it's own.

[Mikey]

I add my strike water around the edges of the the cooler, so it goes to the bottom and wets from the bottom up. Based on that, I'm kind of add grain on top of water.

I would never use a whisk in my mash. Too much aeration.

[tubercle]

The Tubercle method:

 Add ~175f water to tun, stir until it gets to strike temp which is usually about 15f above desired mash temp - YMMV. Usually about 5 minutes less.

Add grain slowly and stir making sure all grain is wetted thoroughly. No dough balls to date.

Check temp to make sure it is desired range. Stir some more to lower or add readily available boiling water to raise. This is very rare since experience has indicated proper strike temp for certain water/grain ratios.

 Close and secure cooler lid and let nature take its course.

Open another beer.

[oscarvan]

I add my strike water around the edges of the the cooler, so it goes to the bottom and wets from the bottom up. Based on that, I'm kind of add grain on top of water.

I would never use a whisk in my mash. Too much aeration.

That gives me the idea to run the water into the drain valve of the cooler.... It would fill from the bottom up.

[Mikey]

I did that a few times with my earlier mash tun and it worked very well. I haven't done it with this one simply because I haven't figured out an easy way to plumb it. That, and running down the sides works about as well.


FWIW, I use a pump and go around the sides in a circle, several times, until I've added enough water. Then I start stirring very slowly with my mash paddled until I don't see anymore dough balls.

[kgs]

I would never use a whisk in my mash. Too much aeration.

A good thing to consider, but I don't "whisk" per se (the traditional circular air-into-mass whisking action, like whisking egg whites); I simply stir gently. The tines of the whisk (are they called tines? whatever)  slice through the wetted grain better than a spoon.

I do use the whisk, cleaned and sanitized, to aerate my wort after brewing. I slosh the wort into a sanitized bucket and whisk (this time just like for egg whites) for 5 minutes solid, then funnel it into the carboy. Probably only effective because I brew small batches.

[Mark G]

I mill my grains directly into the mash tun, so I add the water to the grains. Yes, I get some dough balls, but nothing that doesn't break up with a couple minutes of stirring.

[denny]

I would never use a whisk in my mash. Too much aeration.

Why is that a problem?  And if it is, couldn't you use the whisk to mix gently?

[bluesman]

I recently started adding grain to water and find that it's easier to dough in. YMMV