Jimbo's Single Malt AG Recipe

[Jimbo]

The recipe is tailored for a 15.5 gallon keg kettle (keggle, keg with the top cut out), 15.5g potstill and a couple 18+ gallon fermenters. You can scale it down to whatever your setup allows.

I like to do this recipe 40 lbs (18kg) of malt at a time, for a couple reasons. 1) 15 gallons (57l) of strike water for mashing fits perfect in a half barrel (15.5g) keggle. 2) It gives 2 10 gallon runs, perfect for a half barrel still. It works equally well with Wheat malt or Barley Malt. My preference is 100% Red Wheat Malt, really nice flavors. But traditional single malt whiskeys are nice too, especially if 25% of the malt is replaced with peat smoked malt for a scotch style recipe. Beechwood and Cherry wood smoked malts are also available at some homebrew shops and online. They are nice but very strong, use sparingly.

Ingredients:
23 gal water (87l)
4 tsp gypsum
40 lbs (18 kg) milled Wheat or Barley Malt

Mashing and Fermenting:
Bring 15 gal of the water, and gypsum to 160 degrees F (71C) (strike temp).
Put 20 lbs (9kg) milled malt in each of 2 20 gallon (75l) fermenters, or all 40 lbs in a bigger barrel if you have a 30+ gallon (113l) barrel.
Stir in half the water into each fermenter (7.5g, 33l) Temp should settle at 148F (64C)
Put the lids loosely on, and wrap the barrels up tight in blankets to hold the mash temp. Stir every 15-30 minutes.
After a couple hours remove the blankets and point a fan at the barrels, it helps cool them much faster to pitch temp.
When the temp is below 80F (27C), add 4 more gallons (15l) water per barrel (8g total), and take a large spoon or mash paddle and whip the mash up to a froth to aerate it well.
Pitch your favorite yeast. (Ferment on the grain) I use US-05 ale yeast, its high attenuation (ferments out dry) and tastes great. Be careful with temp, ale yeasts are best at 68F. Bakers at 80F. Use 2 packets per barrel, 4 packets total. Or 1 packet per 5 gal.

Distilling:
After its done fermenting (1-2 weeks depending on temp)
Pull 5 gallons (19l) of the clear liquid off the top of each barrel, for a 10 gallon stripping run.
Squeeze 5 more gallons each from the goo in each barrel and let it sit and clear overnight, to run another 10 gallon wash the next day. I use large nylon paint straining bags for this (3 for 2.99 at Menards)
Combine the 2 stripping runs and do a slower spirit run.
Make your cuts to taste and age on oak as long as you can keep your mitts off it.

Yield from 40 lbs (18kg) malt is about 2.6 gallons (10l) 60% (avg) before cuts. Do your cuts to your taste preference. I get about 1.4 gallons (5.3l) 67%, after cuts. For $48 (US) 50 lb bag of wheat malt this works out conveniently to about a case (12 bottles) of 80 proof, at $3.34 per 80 proof fifth. For barley 20% lower cost.

EDIT: If you want to scale this down, use 2 lbs malt per gallon water. Thats typical, and you dont need to seperate the 2 water additions like above. I did that to fit a 15 gal cooker and 40 lb malt bill. Convenient for those of us using kegs for cookers and stills. Also the mash water addition calculation is easy this way...if your grain is 70F, then the strike water needs to be 156 to hit a mash temp of 148 for 2lbs/gal mash. Doesnt matter if you do 5 lbs, 20 or 200. If your grain is not 70F or you want to go higher or lower on the malt/water ratio use this calculator http://www.brewersfriend.com/mash/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

Enjoy, and cheers!

[Jimbo]

Someone asked what the gypsum and backset is for.

Gypsum. This is mostly calcium. Yeast need minerals, they love calcium. It also helps drop the ph a bit. The enzymes that do the convertin in a mash need a ph in the 5.2-5.6 ph range. Water is around 7. BUT, malt will lower the ph some all by itself, how much?, impossible to say, it depends on the mineral makeup of your water. Ya, its nuts.

Backset. Backset is sour (low ph), it helps lower the ph (see above). But honestly, for this recipe, the backset is optional, since its all malt and malt lowers the ph. In all malt AG, ph rarely needs adjusting. For bourbons a different story, since its mostly corn, and straight corn wont lower the ph like malt. This is why bourbons are traditionally done as sour mashes. Meaning, recycle some of the mash into the next batch to sour it up (lower the ph).

[Jimbo]

When I first posted up this recipe I was debating simplifying it in a couple ways to make it more generic and scalable, but know many of you use kegs for your cookers and stills, so I left alone.

On more thought there's a couple things Im going to add that might help. If you do a 2 lbs per gallon mash, typical, and your grain is 70F, then the strike water needs to be 156 to hit a mash temp of 148. Doesnt matter if you do 5 lbs, 20 or 200. Also, I mash thicker and water down at ferment time, cause thats how much water fits in my cooker. Fine if you use kegs and do 40 lbs of grain, like that. But otherwise, you should just mash 2 lbs per gallon and be done with it, cool, pitch yeast. Simple. Ill go add them bits now.

I heard a funny quote on Drinking Made Easy TV show. "People make wort, yeast make beer".

Cheers.

[Halfbaked]

As all always thanks for your all grain post. I sent you a pm on this post months ago for the reason you moved it.

It looks like you are putting 160 degree water on malt and not cooking it. correct? If so are you putting in 2-15.5g keggles while it is hot. I assume you move it to a plastic fermentation vessel (big old food safe trash can)? What do you use (PICS please)? You mentions stirring for ariation. Would a drill and paint stirrer be good? You mentioned you liked red wheat. Is this your favorite all grain receipt?

Sorry if I read it correctly and asked to obvious question but it seems to simple and I thought all grains had to be a pain and lots of work.

[Jimbo]

haha were you baked when you wrote that half baked? funny. Anyway, ya, its my favorite, wheat malt makes a damn fine drop, and its the easiest too (all malt is easiest, doesnt matter if its wheat or barley)

Yes for the recipe as its written 160 is the strike temp (mash in water temperature) for 15 gallons of water in 20 lbs of malt. This recipe fills a keg cooker with strike water, and mashes 40 lbs of malt. Then water down to 23 gallons total in 40 lbs before fermenting. If you scale it or have a bigger cooker use 2 lbs per lb of malt as a general rule, and strike water is 156 for 148 mash temp. See calculator at bottom of recipe.

There's no cooking in all malt recipes. Just mash and pitch yeast.

No, all malt AG is not difficult at all. Do a mash gravity of 2lbs per gallon or thereabouts and mash in the 140's and you have a bucket of sweet maltose for yeast to eat.

Ill post pictures tonight of the 4 vessels used in this recipe. A 15.5g still, a 15.5g cooker and 2 18-20 gallon plastic fermenters (im not sure how big they are LOL)

[Dnderhead]

if PH is low then dont add so much backset,as simple as that.
some thank it adds flavor.but i never seen that.but it does lower the PH.
a low PH helps keep bacteria at bay and if you was using malted grain it helps the enzymes.
but not so much the yeast.
now for yeast a pH of 6 is good? as the wash ferments the pH will drop.if it drops to 4.5-5
its good. if you start with to low of pH then it can drop to low ,stalling or slow ferment.
as yeast like neutral(7) to slightly acid.so watch ferment,if you start with a pH of 6 and it drops
to 5? its ok but if it drops to 4.5 or below it will be slow or even stall.(at 4.2 it will kill the yeast)

[Jimbo]

Im gonna toss this in here , since its my thread There is HEAPS of good info to be learned in the interviews with master distillers in Scotland in the episodes of singleMaltTV on youtube. This one is my favorite, its the smallest distillery in Scotland so the techniques start to resound with what we do here on the uber small home scale. I hope you enjoy as much I do, listen close, good applicable tips to us are everywhere. Skip the bullshit youtubes from home distillers and watch these from the masters. Then for the details read HD cover to cover. If you like this one, there are several from many different distilleries in Scotland. Cheers. http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL66DCECCE3472189D" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

This is another good one, Daftmill, tiny farm distillery. More good tips, like how the fruity estery notes are in the early heads so he takes short fores for only 5 minutes. http://www.youtube.com/results?search_q ... rinGNtpmFI" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

[okie]

I'm glad to see the scotch lovers here. Like you, jimboy, I've been watching video's of Scottish distilleries and reading the web pages of them too. I took notes as to the way they each have a different mashing system, temperature and yeast. The amount of peat smoked malt too.

We definitely have to compare notes. I'm going to start with the malt and peated malt from my local brew store. I've done two using all 2 row and I'm finding the amount of peat is low in their malt so my next mash I'll try 40% smoked. If that doesn't do the job, I'll buy peat from Scotland and smoke my own. I'm a Highland Scotch fan and don't like a heavy peat scotch but the brew shop's smoked malt is very light flavored.

[Jimbo]

Some interesting math. Curious how the rest of you 'typically' fair on AG whiskeys.

My all malt runs, like this recipe, 40 lbs in 20 gallons are 1.061, 8% finishing at 1.000. Theortical max is 2 gallons at 80%. I get 1.4 gallons at 67% AFTER cuts and losses. Which is 1.17 gallons at 80%. 1.17/2 = 59% "Keep' to Theoretical max.

Curious how this stacks up to others. Not that it changes anything, or means anythign really, or even that anyone should use that ratio to make cuts. Cuts should always be made to taste. Just curious.

[Dan P.]

Jimdo, last AG run I did, of 27kg malt, got me 5 imperial gallons at %25 on the strip.
I'm not sure what the volume of my take on the spirit run was, but I collected between around 75% and 60% (so I guess that's an average of 67%??), giving me a little over an imperial gallon of 50% finished product.

[Jimbo]

Jimbo because of your recents successes with the sugar head after your all grain run, do you see it happening after your next 100% single malts?????????

Absolutely. Even using beer grains when done with those too. I just finished running the spirit run from the last bourbon gumballhead batch. I added the bourbon feints in and the feints from teh last gumball run. And the yield this time was insane. Got 6 quarts put up after watering down to 57% (was 78% keep cut) and 7 1/2 quarts feints at 72% for next go round. This time I added 13 lbs of IPA grains to the 50 lbs of malt and corn. I was stingy on the cuts this time, since I have some stock and in no need to maximize, and man this stuff is drinkable today as is, even before aging. I hope its not 'too' smooth after some months on oak. Had that happen too when puttin up straight hearts. Some heads and tails add character. Anyway, Im yammerin on...... short answer to your question. Yes.

[Jimbo]

Some interesting math. Curious how the rest of you 'typically' fair on AG whiskeys.

My all malt runs, like this recipe, 40 lbs in 20 gallons are 1.061, 8% finishing at 1.000. Theortical max is 2 gallons at 80%. I get 1.4 gallons at 67% AFTER cuts and losses. Which is 1.17 gallons at 80%. 1.17/2 = 59% "Keep' to Theoretical max.

Curious how this stacks up to others. Not that it changes anything, or means anythign really, or even that anyone should use that ratio to make cuts. Cuts should always be made to taste. Just curious.

YIELD MATH: For what its worth, The math above is 3.4 lbs of grain per 80 proof fifth, for 100% malt. My last 2 batches of Bourbon took 4.0 and 4.3 lbs per 80 proof fifth. Lower yield no doubt due in part to the poor grind on cracked corn. Cost wise, its no contest with malt costing 4 times as much as feed corn.

[Jimbo]

BTW, thanks for the idea jimbo. My first sugar head with spent bourbon grain is almost done. I wonder how it will work with a scotch grain bill since I won't be fermenting the ag wash on the grain.

Probably work great. If youre not fermenting on the grain youll have that much more life left in the grain. Im really happy with how these bourbon grain sugarheads turn out. Just disappointed I havent done this all along. Cant wait to see how they are at 4+ months. Thats when AG's aging on oak hit some mystical magical threshold for me and just become down right caramely delicious. Longer is better of course, but shorter is not quite done, if you know what I mean.

[seabass]

I'll probably do the nuclear aging with the sugar head and drink it while I'm aging the AG stuff.

[Halfbaked]

Jimbo, So after a few good subjects on yeast and harvesting and sterilizing and on grain fermentation and tastes I have another question. Imagine that. So if you are going to harvest yeast from your single malt like you mentioned in a couple of threads do you think there would be a flavor increase in your single malt if you finished your mashing and went back up to 180 and sterilized it and let it ferment and finish in 7 days and then let it set and another 7 or 10 or 20 days? Or do you think it would be better run it when its ready?

[Jimbo]

I dont know if conditioning whiskey mash (pasteurized) has any benefit really. If you go too long tho the yeast autolyses (rots) and throws gunk back into your hooch. That takes a while tho. Few weeks. For AG recipe's not pastuerized (typical) I certainly would never go longer than a week. Thats IMO. Others feel free to do as you may.

[Jimbo]

I just ran some efficiency numbers over in my Bourbon recipe. Here's the numbers for this all malt. Quite a bit higher, as expected (no lumpy corn that yields poorly)

PPG is points per pound per gallon. For example 2 row barley 'typical (85%) PPG is 31. So 1 pound in 1 gallon of water will make 1.031 SG

Some other PPG's (typical yield) we use around here. Sugar 46, Wheat 30, Corn 33. http://homedistiller.org/grain/yield/typical" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

This All wheat malt recipe works out like this then....

40 lbs wheat malt x 30 = 1200 points.

If you ferment out to 1.000 it takes 773 points to make a proof gallon. (From the alc calculator at the parent site.)

My 'keeper yield' from these 1200 points of grain was 1.4 gallons at 67%. The math looks like this....

1200/773 = 1.55 proof gallon. 1.55/0.67 (my keep proof) = 2.32 gallons. But I only got 1.4 gallon. So, 1.4/2.32 = 60%

Note this is not taking into account running feints in the spirit run. If/when you add feints the yield increases dramatically.

Cheers.

[midwest shinner]

A quick question Jimbo, you add your feints to your sprit runs? Not to the stripping run?

[Jimbo]

I usually add them to the stripper. Logic being, its the shit that didnt taste great, so why not run it twice more. But Ive done both and at some point its like slicing a blond hair trying to taste a difference.

[White_Lightning_Rod]

Posted this in a diffrent thread just adding it here since it is relevant

Hey Jimbo been reading up on your wheat single malt and Im sure that is what I am going to do. Picked up 50lbs of wheat this morning gonna start malting it tonight when I get home from work. Thinking 2 12 gal ferments 10 gal water 2 gallon backset and 25lb malt each. That is after I get 25 lbs malted I think I have room enough to do probaly 10 lbs at a time max without it being too much trouble so it will be a couple weeks before I can malt up enough to start my first ferment. So here comes my question, this recipe is basically the same as yours from the thread on the 100% wheat single malt. For backset could I use backset from any recipe, for example Im on my 3rd generation SF could I just save and freeze 4 gal from that next time I run. Or would I be better making up a small batch of wheat whiskey using this 2lbs of malt and 5lbs wheat flour I have from the other experiment to say 6 gal and running it in my old stock pot setup basically just for the purupose of having an all wheat backset, of course saving the feints and adding them in when I strip the single malt it as well. I guess the question would be would the SF backset change the flavor negativly? would it be enough to matter IYO? Would I benefit greatly from creating an all wheat backset to use or would it not be worth the effort if it was you?

Jimbos answer

Backset influences flavor. I certainly would not use a sugarhead backset in an AG recipe.

Good news for you is backset is really optional in an all malt mash. malt drops pH by itself and pH rarely needs adjustment. (Beer brewers dont use backset, for example, and rarely have issues). With high adjunct recipes like bourbons with 70% unmalted corn, backset becomes more important.

Id say skip the backset, youll be fine. Put 2 tsp of gypsum per every 5gal water in to kick the pH a little and give the yeast calcium they like. It will run fine. You can get it at homebrew shops. If you dont have that, just let it rip without. All malts are pretty forgiving, lots of DP for conversion, and pH usually right in the sweetspot, unless your water is horribly whacked, which isint typical.

Wish you would have asked that question in my recipe. So other folks trying it can see. Be sure to post up over there your results. Id like to see it land in T&T someday, and see more people trying all malt AG's. They are the easiest of the AG recipe's and should probably be first on everyones AG list. Cheers.

[Halfbaked]

sampling is the best part.

[Domiz]

Very nice! Thats a beautiful porch and yard there Domiz.

Have you made this recipe yet? Let us know here how it went for you.

Cheers!

Thanks Jimbo, i did this recipe two time for my second and third batch, so i'm not so expert to do a very good product, but one of this batch was full of barley flavour, that is very nice, but a bit strong. Now i have a big pot of 100 L with a bazooka filter to do the mash (I don't ferment on the grain) and a big chiller so i think to do better with this new equipment, because my problem is do the mash.
bye

[White_Lightning_Rod]

Well things went as planned mashed in the malt this evening per instructions got the fan cooling down the last 10 degrees rite now so I can pitch the nice yeast starter I started last night. Checked gravity just now and its up to 1.050 a little lower than I'd hoped but overall no complaints. Especially since I malted the wheat myself. plenty of pics to come Thursday when I get back to my desktop.

[White_Lightning_Rod]

This is the best sweetest smelling mash I have ever made even sweeter smelling than all sugarheads to Jimbo

[Domiz]

I will do this recipe next week so what do you say, Jimbo, if i put a 20% of grain in this mash recipe to replace part of the barley malt? because i red on the site of Bushmills that they do in this way.

[Jimbo]

Sure, what kind of grain Domiz? They will all work nice and each add unique flavors. Wheat, Oats, Rye, Corn all work well like this. Even some oddball ones if you can find them, spelt, triticale, sorghum, quinoa, etc. I recommend taking all the water content, bringing to near boil and pouring over the milled raw grain to steep cook it, then when temp hits about 69C add the malt, it should settle around 64-65.

The finer the raw grain is milled the better it will convert.

[Domiz]

For grains i mean the grains for flour type "00", but I think to add sorghum, it's common in my country! thanks for the advice!
Today i have done a big lid for my new pot of 100 L capacity and i soldered a tri-clamp ferrule to use this pot as mash tun and big pot still, so i have to do a big batch to test my new baby! ahah

[Jimbo]

Sounds great, and Im happy to see your BAP (BigAssPot) falls just within our HD guidelines for home distillation size Nice work!

Interesting (useless?) factoid - In Africa, Sorghum Malt, not Barley Malt, is used as the main malt grain to make Guiness Foreign Extra Stout. Sorghum is also gluten free, so makes a gluten free beer, for those intolerant. Of course that matters little to stillers as it doesnt come over in the vapor.

Cheers, let us know how it goes.

[White_Lightning_Rod]

Hey jimbo quick question on this recipe. With us-05 how long do your ferments take? I'm staying between 61 and 63f the first couple days the gravity dropped nicely but the last 3 days I've been sittn at 1.01. It doesn't look to be stalled there are still bubbles and a bit of a cap but the gravity hasn't changed for 3 days.

[Jimbo]

61-63 is nice and cool. THat will be a nice ferment but might take a couple more days. 68 is usually a week. Cooler may push you to 10 days. If youre at 1.01 you wont get much more out of it. It finishes them last couple points real slow. Id say give it 2-3 more days then run it.