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Author Topic: Do I need a rest?  (Read 6014 times)

Offline Hokerer

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Re: Do I need a rest?
« Reply #30 on: January 28, 2011, 04:13:55 pm »
Okay, let me ask you this.  If I increase the mash water to 4 gallons, I'd still like to sparge with at least 3.  My kettle is plenty big,

To get the most efficiency out of your mash, it's generally considered ideal if your first and second runnings are equal.  To figure it out, start with your desired batch size (ie. 5 gallons).  Then account for boiloff to get your pre-boil volume (ie. 1 gal/hr boiloff and 60 minute boil means you need 6 gallons).  Since you want equal runnings, your sparge should use 3 gallons and your first runnings should yield 3 gallons.  To figure out your strike volume, you need to add the 3 gallons first runnings plus whatever deadspace you have in your lauter tun plus the water that the grain'll absorb.  If you follow Denny's suggestion from earlier and use a Coleman Xtreme cooler to make it, your deadspace can be basically zero and for grain absorption, folks generally use 0.10-0.12 gallons/lb.  So your strike water would be 3 gallons (runnings) plus 0 (deadspace) plus 1.265 gallons absorption (11.5 x 0.11) equals 4.1265 gallons.  That comes out to almost 1.5 qts/lb which is just about ideal.
Joe

Offline tubercle

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Re: Do I need a rest?
« Reply #31 on: January 28, 2011, 04:38:33 pm »
Okay, let me ask you this.  If I increase the mash water to 4 gallons, I'd still like to sparge with at least 3.  My kettle is plenty big,

To get the most efficiency out of your mash, it's generally considered ideal if your first and second runnings are equal.  To figure it out, start with your desired batch size (ie. 5 gallons).  Then account for boiloff to get your pre-boil volume (ie. 1 gal/hr boiloff and 60 minute boil means you need 6 gallons).  Since you want equal runnings, your sparge should use 3 gallons and your first runnings should yield 3 gallons.  To figure out your strike volume, you need to add the 3 gallons first runnings plus whatever deadspace you have in your lauter tun plus the water that the grain'll absorb.  If you follow Denny's suggestion from earlier and use a Coleman Xtreme cooler to make it, your deadspace can be basically zero and for grain absorption, folks generally use 0.10-0.12 gallons/lb.  So your strike water would be 3 gallons (runnings) plus 0 (deadspace) plus 1.265 gallons absorption (11.5 x 0.11) equals 4.1265 gallons.  That comes out to almost 1.5 qts/lb which is just about ideal.

 Whew....
Sweet Caroline where the Sun rises over the deep blue sea and sets somewhere beyond Tennessee

Offline dons

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Re: Do I need a rest?
« Reply #32 on: March 15, 2011, 11:28:46 am »
Okay, a follow up by The Noob as requested by a couple of you.

The beer is "not bad".  Short of hops, but that's what I get for using my common sense and not following the directions.
It actually is continuing to get better, albeit still watery, as it ages - I figure in 40 or 50 years it might be what I'm looking for.

I do have a question.  After 10 days I opened a bottle.  Absolutely NO fizz at all and no carbonation to it.  However as time elapsed each bottle became more and more fizzy.  Today, I renamed the batch Old Faithful - upon opening I'm left with about an ounce of beer (yes, I do save the foam and drink later).  I have never ever seen an eruption like this since the Mt. St. Helens pictures.  I do not want to reopen this thread - because I'm still trying to assimilate all the great info you gave me - but is there a definitive reason that this is happening?  I have to think that it goes all the way back to my bottling WAY too early and/or the yeast went dormant on me for some reason.  Then it started up again after a couple of weeks in the bottle.

I'm going to start another of the same recipe but follow it more closely and take hydrometer readings every day until I'm sure the yeast is calm enough to bottle.

Thanks again for all your help.
Don
I've finally figured out my problem.  I have Cenosillicaphobia.

Offline denny

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Re: Do I need a rest?
« Reply #33 on: March 15, 2011, 11:31:45 am »
There are generally 3 reasons for the situation you describe....

1.) bottling before fermentation is complete
2.) contamination/infection
3.) overpriming
Life begins at 60.....1.060, that is!

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Offline smokeeater

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Re: Do I need a rest?
« Reply #34 on: March 15, 2011, 11:53:07 am »
If your Fg was 1.016, I would guess that for your recipe it wasn't quite done fermenting.  I would have expected a recipe like that to finish around 1.012 or lower.  When you bottled, the yeast kept chugging away at the final couple pints, then started in on the priming sugar.  The first couple bottles you drank just hadn't carbed yet.... then the later ones were over-carbed.

Another issue would be stirring in the bottling bucket.  I assume you have had success in the past with bottling, so you should know that the sugar needs thoroughly mixed in to the beer.
You can't drink all day if you don't start in the morning.