FIRST GRAIN MASH

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lance
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FIRST GRAIN MASH

Post by lance »

Hi again going to give grain a try went to the brew shop old mate there seems to know what he is talking about any way this is what he sold me pilsener 5.250g smoked beech 500g smoked peat250g 1kg dextrose method bring 16lt water up to 65c stir in grains hold at 65c for two hours stiring every 15m leave over night strain boil4lt water add to fermenter with dextrose add strained mash top up to 25lt add yeast aerate leave two weeks stir after 1 week how does this sound any comments tips are very welcome thanks
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bcook608
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Re: FIRST GRAIN MASH

Post by bcook608 »

Don't stir after the ferment is started. Let it run until the SG stabilizes (ideally around 0.995) plus or minus. Let the yeast settle to the bottom of the fermenter, then rack into your boiler and let er rip.

I would recommend starting with one of the tried and true recipes on the site rather than throwing what you have into a fermenter. Unless you told your HBS worker what you plan to do (which is a big no no) with your grain, you'll likely end up with a flavor profile that is better for a beer than a distilled product.
NormandieStill
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Re: FIRST GRAIN MASH

Post by NormandieStill »

Also your dextrose is a fancy sugar addition which will boost your abv at the cost of flavour. Better to have a lower abv and carry over more malt flavours than to make lightly flavoured rocket fuel. :wink:
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Saltbush Bill
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Re: FIRST GRAIN MASH

Post by Saltbush Bill »

NormandieStill wrote: Mon Jul 25, 2022 1:18 am Also your dextrose is a fancy sugar addition
As Normandie has pointed out , that's just the HBS guy helping you to spend your hard earned......plain ol sugar would have done the same thing at less cost.
lance
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Re: FIRST GRAIN MASH

Post by lance »

ok will put the dex in this one do not want to waste it but will leave out next time he did tell me that i would need a hi alco yeast as bakers is no good in hi alco wash so everything else looks good will start saturday
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bcook608
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Re: FIRST GRAIN MASH

Post by bcook608 »

I would wait and see what your SG ends up being. I'd shoot for something around 1.060 - 1.070 and then you can use basically whatever yeast you want without having to worry about stressing them. Just make sure you keep your fermenter within the desirable temperature range for whatever yeast you decide to use. Unhappy yeast = unhappy drinker. Sacrificing some ABV in your ferment to keep your yeast happy is better than being greedy with your ABV.
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Re: FIRST GRAIN MASH

Post by NormandieStill »

Plugging your "recipe" into an OG calculator with a rough guess at 18litres of water in total (I can't be bothered to work out the absorbtion of the grains and he only gave total volume), I get an OG with the dextrose of 1.097 with an estimated FG of 1.027 for a 9.14% wash. This is higher than I would aim for with AG. Take out the dextrose and your OG becomes 1.077 which is a little more reasonable.

Baker's yeast is good for 12-14% abv in general although this is relatively high gravity and you may start stressing it. Did he sell you a "hi alco yeast" as well? Does it have "turbo" written on the packet?

Personally I'd drop the dextrose and use it for a sugar wash at some future date. Or chuck it in after you've mashed in and taken a gravity reading to compensate for a poor mash (if this is your first attempt at an AG then stuff will probably not going perfectly according to plan... that's just how life works). Aim for an OG of around 1.070 and you should be fine. Baker's yeast will happily handle this without throwing a bunch of dirty esters.

And next time... maybe try Honey Bear Bourbon, or Jimbo's Single Malt AG (depending on where your tastes lie). These have been tested by lots of people here with confirmed results and if you have a problem it'll be far easier for the forum to help you with it. Good luck.

Posted at the same time as bcook
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Saltbush Bill
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Re: FIRST GRAIN MASH

Post by Saltbush Bill »

lance wrote: Mon Jul 25, 2022 11:07 pm he did tell me that i would need a hi alco yeast as bakers is no good in hi alco wash
If you need a special yeast that can tolerate that high of an ABV wash then your making you wash to high in ABV.
High ABV washes tend to make an inferior product......your friend at the HBS trying to empty your pocket again imo.
There are many many other better yeasts to choose from.
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Ben
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Re: FIRST GRAIN MASH

Post by Ben »

I would bring your mash temp down to 63c. As a heads up hitting and maintaining the temps is one of the most difficult parts of the brewing process. Figure out some way to insulate your mash tun, wrap it in an old sleeping bag, or use a big cooler to do the mash in. There are some calculators out there that will help, google search mash in temp calculator.

As far as straining goes, with your limited equipment I would recommend doing it after ferment. If you had a mash tun with a false bottom and are prepared to lauter and sparge that's one thing; but trying to mess with it early on is kind of a pain. Use your top up water to cool the mash down more quickly, ferment on the grain, separate the beer from the grain right before you distill.

Do a quick search on here for mop wringer, lots of people use that for grain separation after the ferment.

Skip stirring the active ferment, you need O2 for the yeast to breed, but once they have completed that phase (first phase of ferment) you are better off to abstain from messing with them, let the yeast do their thing... they are exceptional at it. Don't mess with the ferment until you are ready to distill it, take a gravity reading 2-3 days after you think its finished, if you have hit the final gravity target you are good to go.
:)
lance
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Re: FIRST GRAIN MASH

Post by lance »

rightee ho thanks everybody will will stir in at 63c let stand tip in fermenter take sg reading and strain when finished
NormandieStill
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Re: FIRST GRAIN MASH

Post by NormandieStill »

You want to start with your water a little hotter, so that when you add the grains it falls to your target temperature. Google strike water calculator to calculate your strike temperature.
"I have a potstill that smears like a fresh plowed coon on the highway" - Jimbo

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lance
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Re: FIRST GRAIN MASH

Post by lance »

update did everything as above think i might of stuffed it sg after 12hrs was1.1 just in the green i have never used one before added extra water bad move sg now80 yeast been in 6hrs nice crust on top with cracks will this be alright i dont think i should have added the extra water??????????
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subbrew
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Re: FIRST GRAIN MASH

Post by subbrew »

What are you fermenting in? Using an airlock? If there is a crust the yeast are probably doing their thing. The extra water just means will be a lower ABV mash. But the yeast will still make alcohol.

I don't understand your sg readings. 1.1 is high given the recipe you described, although possible if the water was a bit light and you added the dextrose against recommendations. And an SG of 80, I will assume you mean 1.080 in which case that is close to where you should be.

Anyhow, seal it (with air lock of course) and leave it alone for two weeks. Good time to take up fishing to keep yourself from messing with it.
lance
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Re: FIRST GRAIN MASH

Post by lance »

had another look at hydrometer first reading was13%1.100 after water added 10.5%1.080 the grain is all at the top of fermenter about 6 in thick and dry does this sound right???????
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bcook608
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Re: FIRST GRAIN MASH

Post by bcook608 »

It sounds like you should have a look through this board: viewforum.php?f=61

It will give you an idea of what you should be looking for in your ferments.
I understand that you're new to the forum and you're excited to get into AG, but it would appear that you haven't done all of the required reading. If you had, you would know that a thick krausen is common in AG ferments and is a sign of an active ferment.
lance
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Re: FIRST GRAIN MASH

Post by lance »

ok ran it yesterday first 80ml kept for cleaner next two jars where best grain taste ever 160ml them next came a strange taste like asprin took 2.5lt at 40% then 1.2 lt at 20%abv any commets???? so i am going to give odins cornflake and rye a go made it today with 5lt back set from ag and bakers yeast 50g going strong all ready
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Ben
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Re: FIRST GRAIN MASH

Post by Ben »

Sounds like you just did a stripping run. Run it again and make cuts, https://homedistiller.org/wiki/index.ph ... %27s_Guide, https://homedistiller.org/wiki/index.ph ... _fractions

Cuts are important for safety and flavor.

Most whiskeys are at least double distilled. Brings the alcohol up further, concentrates flavors, removes more stuff, etc. Usually you will make 3 stripping runs, strip until the total alcohol percentage of the runnings is around 20%, put all those low wines back in the still and run a second time.
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lance
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Re: FIRST GRAIN MASH

Post by lance »

had a read very good just a few things can i add stripped rum and stripped ag together for sprit run what abv should i be looking at how much do i need to do a run in a 30lt boiler if i have taken the foreshots off do i do it again on the sprit run thanks
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Re: FIRST GRAIN MASH

Post by NormandieStill »

lance wrote: Sun Aug 14, 2022 11:39 pm had a read very good just a few things (1) can i add stripped rum and stripped ag together for sprit run (2) what abv should i be looking at (3) how much do i need to do a run in a 30lt boiler (4) if i have taken the foreshots off do i do it again on the sprit run thanks
1) That would be a rumsky. You can do what you want... it's your hobby. In the worst case you make something undrinkable and either bin it or redistill it to make something more neutral.
2) abv where? In the pot? <40%. At the spout? It'll land where it lands depending on what's in the pot.
3) It depends on how you're heating it. With an internal element you need to ensure that the element is going to still be covered at the end of the run. With gas or another external heat source you can run with as little as you want. Personally, to ensure a decent yield and make for easier cuts, I aim to run my 30 litre boiler with at least 20 litres in it for a spirit run. Preferably more.
4) Personally I don't bother with foreshots on either stripping or spirit runs. By that I mean that I don't take fores on stripping runs and since the first two or more jars (~250ml) out on a spirit run are always headsy, they get chucked into the firelighter jar. (On the rare occasions that I remember I catch the first few drips out of the still on a stripping run - the ones before it's fully up to temp - and I chuck them. But generally I work on the principal that even the start of a hard stripping run is smearing like hell so I'd rather not throw the baby out with the bathwater.)

Some of these questions are elemental enough that you might want to read (or reread) some of the compulsory reading.
"I have a potstill that smears like a fresh plowed coon on the highway" - Jimbo

A little spoon feeding *For New & Novice Distillers
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Saltbush Bill
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Re: FIRST GRAIN MASH

Post by Saltbush Bill »

lance wrote: Sun Aug 14, 2022 11:39 pm i add stripped rum and stripped ag together
But why ? It might be a good idea to learn to make one or the other properly before starting to make weird arse combinations that might or might not work.
Would you mix Ice cream and steak and kidney pie? :?
Slow down , read more, you will get better results than jumping from place to place.
lance
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Re: FIRST GRAIN MASH

Post by lance »

yep some silly ideas everyone say i am a sausage short of a bbq. just got a lot of rum sitting here thought i might speed it up by adding it not a good idea will continue with the corn flakes till i have 25lt 40% then run it again in 50 #jars happy days thanks for the advice and patience
lance
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Re: FIRST GRAIN MASH

Post by lance »

up to gen 3 first 2 where done in 4 days corn out before ferment left the corn in this one and is still bubbling after 7 days? will have to leave it another 7 days before i can run it ? i am guessing that it is getting some sugar out of the corn ?
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