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I threw one of these down this weekend. 100lbs of cracked corn, i ran it thru my mill to the consistency of grits. I think that helped alot. 50 gallon of water and ferm solutions enzymes. Hit 1.055 SG so about 7% potential. I am happy with that. These enzymes keep working even during fermentation I've found. Pitched ferm solutions 917 yeast last night and she was fermenting very happy this am. This process works a treat for me. Give it a whirl if you wanna build up aging stock.
ez

This thread should be a sticky.

You have prettier set up but mine is simple for a 8 gallon stove pot and extremely safe cuz if something goes wrong I can immediately take it apart

Hellfire burner wrote: ↑Thu Nov 04, 2021 11:57 am You have prettier set up but mine is simple for a 8 gallon stove pot and extremely safe cuz if something goes wrong I can immediately take it apart

That's the beauty of the easy large batch process, you can keep adding more batches of water and grain to your mash tun, so you don't need a 50g kettle. All you'd need is a blue barrel or similar, and some time.

I finally tried this, worked out great. Thanks for sharing.

I did 75# corn, oats, wheat malt, honey malt, high alpha enzymes and about 30 gallons of water.

I added the corn and oats in 3 batches, malts a few hours later after temp was low enough, then used ice to get to fermentation temp the next day.

Same gravity as usual, but one big fermentation instead of 3 smaller ones.

I'm about to try out my first "easy large batch mash" in my 60gal barrel that I got from these guys last year (https://www.ghbarrels.com/).

What volume is "safe" to mash/ferment in a large barrel? I've got the following weighed out, I just need to mill my grain
49.5# of corn (about half/half TS cracked corn/cornmeal)
16.5# of rye
15# 10oz barley
2# honey malt
Total of just under 84#. Using 2#/gal that gives me 42 gal of water.

This is pretty much the same ratios that I used previously in my first corn mash that I basically did the same thing, but in a half barrel keg.
viewtopic.php?f=32&t=81974&p=7650446#p7650446

Is that to much for a 60gal barrel? What's everyone else using? I've read through this whole thread, and believe that I should be OK, but figured I'd ask!!

Based on https://brewgr.com/calculators/mash-tun-capacity, I get a capacity of 48.7gal, so I should be good to go. Agree?

Thanks!
K

That should be fine. I can fit 50# and 25 gallons in a 30 gallon barrel with 3 inches head space for the cap to swell before it hits the lid.

I find different batches react differently to headspace needs and sometimes you get a mash volcano during the ferment if you don't have enough headspace.... Watch the activity and be prepared to move some into a secondary bucket or two to make extra headspace - At least until it calms down a little when it's very active...

Cheers!
-j

I do about 80 lbs in 40 gallons of water, in a blue hdpe barrel which is what, 55 gallons? I think you're fine.

I found this thread pretty recently... Anyone still around who does this? I have been making whiskey from malt extract. It comes out tastey but at a price (like $100/ 40l wash). I've read through this, but my set up is smaller. I could do a 40l wash with what I have. Has anyone tried just popping a BIB bag in their fermenter? Again, I am limited to about 20L in the boiler and 50l in the fermentor, if I fill it to the brim... Looks like most of you are fermenting on the grain. Any thoughts on mashing, pulling a BIB bag out and fermenting about 40l off the grain? I'm thinking of giving this method a try, but with a large BIB bag, pull the bag out once I have conversion, then pitching yeast. I have never done all grain before, even for beer I did extract only so far. I always felt there was a higher equipment requirement that I was not ready for, but this thread makes it look a lot easier than I thought. Any suggestions on a medium batch for me?

JakeB wrote: ↑Thu Jan 13, 2022 2:21 pm I found this thread pretty recently... Anyone still around who does this?

Have a look at Jimbo's easy 1/2barrel Wheated Bourbon and Gumballhead. It's one of recipe found in the Tried and True Recipes section. It uses the principle of this thread for the corn and eventually add other grains at a lower temperature. I'm a total newb at this and tried this recipe as my first AG mash. I have to improve on many things but I'm really happy on how the first try went.

Jake, bigger is better. There's a lot of work for little return with a 50l fermenter.
Here's the way I heard it - Use a BIB bag to strain your mash into 5 gal buckets. A BIB fits in a boil basket that usually comes with stock pots. Put something heavy on it to let it squeeze itself or get a mop bucket with a wringer. After each "squeezing", dump the drier mash back into the barrel and scoop out more of the wet stuff. When it's all pretty dry, sparge it and repeat the process. Sounds to me like it makes brewing so much easier than trying to stir grain in a brew bag while it is cooking, all the while trying to avoid ripping the bag. There's a lot of stirring to be done, you should step up to a power drill & paint mixer too.

Oh, and don't forget the temperature holding issues. Larger batches maintain better/longer/more evenly for conversion.

OnceAlive wrote: ↑Thu Jan 13, 2022 2:58 pm

JakeB wrote: ↑Thu Jan 13, 2022 2:21 pm I found this thread pretty recently... Anyone still around who does this?

Have a look at Jimbo's easy 1/2barrel Wheated Bourbon and Gumballhead. It's one of recipe found in the Tried and True Recipes section. It uses the principle of this thread for the corn and eventually add other grains at a lower temperature. I'm a total newb at this and tried this recipe as my first AG mash. I have to improve on many things but I'm really happy on how the first try went.

Thanks Once. I have seen that thread, but did not read all that far in to it... might sound crazy, but Burbon isn't really my thing. I'll try it, may change my mind. I am pretty new to this too. About a year, 1 total failure (totally undeinkable due to poor cuts), 2 BW, 1 WPOSW, 1 SSS, 2 TFFV (first of these wasn't great, ran it again...), and 3 all DME runs done so far. By far all DME is my favorite but expensive. I'm thinking it's time to dip a toe in to AG and see where it goes... Fermenting a run with all LME right now, but thinking a first venture in AG is next.

Bee wrote: ↑Thu Jan 13, 2022 3:40 pm Jake, bigger is better. There's a lot of work for little return with a 50l fermenter.
Here's the way I heard it - Use a BIB bag to strain your mash into 5 gal buckets. A BIB fits in a boil basket that usually comes with stock pots. Put something heavy on it to let it squeeze itself or get a mop bucket with a wringer. After each "squeezing", dump the drier mash back into the barrel and scoop out more of the wet stuff. When it's all pretty dry, sparge it and repeat the process. Sounds to me like it makes brewing so much easier than trying to stir grain in a brew bag while it is cooking, all the while trying to avoid ripping the bag. There's a lot of stirring to be done, you should step up to a power drill & paint mixer too.

Oh, and don't forget the temperature holding issues. Larger batches maintain better/longer/more evenly for conversion.

Thanks Bee, that is not what I was thinking, largest BIB I can get right in to my 50L, then once I have conversion, pull it out and pitch yeast. I think you are right about the economics of time spent vs just bucking up and getting a bigger bucket and mop wringer as this thread suggests. Probably bang on about heat retention too... I think I'm going to take OnceAlives suggestion first though. When I have success with a first AG, I'll look in to upsizing my fermenting capability...

Also, there might be something said about flavour yield fermenting on grain vs off grain... I was almost expecting someone to chime in about that... In any case, I'm going to try the T&T recipe as my first go at AG, then take another peek over here once I have success...

Success will come more easily with the large batch method.
Around here, barrels are about $20.

Bee wrote: ↑Fri Jan 14, 2022 7:38 am Success will come more easily with the large batch method.
Around here, barrels are about $20.

Wow, that is cheap. I had been looking around, but even the 50L I got was $50. It was a shipping barrel used for health food products. The guy had his garage filled with them, apparently from working at a natural supplement manufacturer. I asked for a small price break, but no go unless you get 3 or more. I found a few places that sell 55 gallon barrels, both white and blue food grade plastic, but they are over $100 around here for good clean used condition. I'd have to look again, but I think it was $120. U line has brand new in 20, 30 and 55 gallon sizes but again very expensive, $100 and up, plus shipping. I just want to pull off at least 1 or 2 successful batches before paying that much for a barrel. If I could find a $20 one, I would just go for it. Probably expencive because I live in BC. They say BC stands for bring cash lol...

I did find some cheaper ones, but they don't say food grade, or either they don't say what was in them, or they say they were DEF, windshield washer, cutting fluid etc. I definitely don't want to mess with barrels that had chemicals like that in them...

Barrels used for cherries or olives can be sometimes easily found.

Can't remember how much I paid years ago for seventy or eighty litre olive barrels but some of those prices seem high.

Geoff

The Baker wrote: ↑Sat Jan 15, 2022 7:19 pm Barrels used for cherries or olives can be sometimes easily found.

Can't remember how much I paid years ago for seventy or eighty litre olive barrels but some of those prices seem high.

Geoff

Ya, they are high, even in Canadian dollars. There are lots of used DEF (diesel emissions fluid) barrels around for around $20, but something you would put consumables in safely, at least around here seems to always be overpriced. Maybe when things open up a bit, I can try somewhere in Washington or maybe further away from the Lower Mainland. As I was joking about earlier, everything seems overpriced around here... Land for storing said barrels especially, which could have something to do with it...

I'll probably do a few smaller batches first with what I have, then give in and pay way too much... Larger brew shops have them used, u line has them new, a few places in outlying areas have them used for a bit less than the large brew shops, but food safe and not previously used for chemical storage seems to be around $100 Canadian. I sometimes work at large food plants, I had thought of maybe asking about large barrels previously holding food grade acids and such... maybe that could work out for me... Some places have big piles of them, and their contents went in to their products, so those should be safe.

I bought this Brute trash can to start with. 20G for 38CAD, shipping was free.

JakeB wrote: ↑Sat Jan 15, 2022 4:22 pm

Bee wrote: ↑Fri Jan 14, 2022 7:38 am Success will come more easily with the large batch method.
Around here, barrels are about $20.

Wow, that is cheap. I had been looking around, but even the 50L I got was $50. It was a shipping barrel used for health food products.
<Snip>

If I could find a $20 one, I would just go for it. Probably expencive because I live in BC. They say BC stands for bring cash lol...

I'm positive the market is very local. Around here, I believe a lot of the barrels come from soda bottlers. There are also bread/cereal producers and just about every other food manufacturer. Look on places like Craigslist and Facebook marketplace. Around here, there are so many, places are desperate to unload them.

I did find some cheaper ones, but they don't say food grade, or either they don't say what was in them, or they say they were DEF, windshield washer, cutting fluid etc. I definitely don't want to mess with barrels that had chemicals like that in them...

All these blue barrels are HDPE and blue is the standard color for food grade. So, unless it's some photo-sensitive chemical, it's not likely to be stored in blue. Whatever barrels you look at, give them a smell. Of course you shouldn't buy them sight-unseen. They could be food grade and have stored garlic!

kmmuellr wrote: ↑Wed Jan 12, 2022 7:26 am I'm about to try out my first "easy large batch mash" in my 60gal barrel that I got from these guys last year (https://www.ghbarrels.com/).

What volume is "safe" to mash/ferment in a large barrel? I've got the following weighed out, I just need to mill my grain
49.5# of corn (about half/half TS cracked corn/cornmeal)
16.5# of rye
15# 10oz barley
2# honey malt
Total of just under 84#. Using 2#/gal that gives me 42 gal of water.

This is pretty much the same ratios that I used previously in my first corn mash that I basically did the same thing, but in a half barrel keg.
viewtopic.php?f=32&t=81974&p=7650446#p7650446

Is that to much for a 60gal barrel? What's everyone else using? I've read through this whole thread, and believe that I should be OK, but figured I'd ask!!

Based on https://brewgr.com/calculators/mash-tun-capacity, I get a capacity of 48.7gal, so I should be good to go. Agree?

Thanks!
K

Follow-up on this. It fits no problem. I've got 10 inches from the grain cap to the top of the barrel, and then another 2 3/4 inches for the threaded top of the barrel. I've got a 55lb bag of munich malt, and may get another for an all munich whiskey. 110lbs might be pushing the limits of my barrel!

I did three heat-ups of water added to 3 charges of corn. I kept 5 gal separately to do a beta glucan rest on the rye before adding it to the mash w/ the barley malt. Ended up w/ a 1.073 starting gravity. A combination of older DADY and older instant bread yeast has pushed the temperature from pitching at 90F to a high of 103F!!! I had it all wrapped up in blankets, since my basement is 63 degrees, but unwrapped last night, and the temp dropped to 94. 36hrs so far since pitching the yeast, so likely done pretty soon with that much activity!

K

I like the idea of keeping the rye seperate so you can hit the rest. Nice job.

JakeB wrote: ↑Thu Jan 13, 2022 2:21 pm I found this thread pretty recently... Anyone still around who does this?

Just made an easy large batch of bourbon. Started late Friday night, had her bubbling by Sunday mid-morning. This is my third time using the method, but I won't be using 5 gal buckets for AG ever again.

Shine on. If you were mashing in a 62 gal pickle barrel in the cold and using another barrel to run an aquarium heater to heat water to keep it warm what armrest your ideas to get a barrel or device big enough to set it in?

Hmm. Well, my mind works different and when faced with the same dilemma, I decided to instead get 2 barrels, and each a 32 gallon round bruts to put in them. That way I was fermenting in (2) 30 gallons, instead of (1) 55 gallon. But I also adjusted my process to only do vodka and rum in winter (less grain to haul through snow, and I don't trust boiling water mash in Brute strength plastic), and I don't need temp control for the summer.

But, I reckon that if I needed a solution, I would go all the way up to cutting the top off a used 250 gallon water tote, or even check the dimensions on something like this



I usually try to estimate close to double of the barrel to put it in, but shape matters. The tote would give you room to put 2 or three barrels that size in there, but then it starts looking less hobby scale, I suppose. I just don't like drowning potentials around the house, so I'd be more likely to go the second route. Doesn't seem like a bad thing to have around, anyways.

That's just my 6 am spitball ideas on it though, lol.

DasBeast007 wrote: ↑Mon Jan 24, 2022 9:02 am

JakeB wrote: ↑Thu Jan 13, 2022 2:21 pm I found this thread pretty recently... Anyone still around who does this?

Just made an easy large batch of bourbon. Started late Friday night, had her bubbling by Sunday mid-morning. This is my third time using the method, but I won't be using 5 gal buckets for AG ever again.

This is how I do my flaked corn mash. Always works well.

Currently I am doing my first yellow label yeast mash which did not involve boiling the water. 10 gallons of water with 22 pounds of flaked corn. BIAB. Ferment on grain. All I did was take hot water straight from the hot water heater. Add a crushed Camden tablet. Stir hard. Add flaked corn and stir. Wrapped it all up with blankets, stirred occasionally until the temperature came down to pitch temp. Added rehydrated Yellow Label yeast. This ferment is just finishing up.

I use this method with malted barley as well. For barley I need to add more heat so my water hits 160* F. When barley is added it drops to about 150*F. Stir and wait. I add some enzymes so the enzymes will still work during the fermentation stage. Always works well.

I pitch a large dose of yeast and make sure my ph is on target. Have not had any infections to date.

This was exactly what I was looking for!
Even though I haven't run my first batch yet, I'm already looking at ways to scale up and make things more efficient!

I'll be switching to large batch mashes and eventually building a keg still.

ShineonCrazyDiamond wrote: ↑Tue Feb 01, 2022 4:06 am Hmm. Well, my mind works different and when faced with the same dilemma, I decided to instead get 2 barrels, and each a 32 gallon round bruts to put in them. That way I was fermenting in (2) 30 gallons, instead of (1) 55 gallon. But I also adjusted my process to only do vodka and rum in winter (less grain to haul through snow, and I don't trust boiling water mash in Brute strength plastic), and I don't need temp control for the summer.

But, I reckon that if I needed a solution, I would go all the way up to cutting the top off a used 250 gallon water tote, or even check the dimensions on something like this



I usually try to estimate close to double of the barrel to put it in, but shape matters. The tote would give you room to put 2 or three barrels that size in there, but then it starts looking less hobby scale, I suppose. I just don't like drowning potentials around the house, so I'd be more likely to go the second route. Doesn't seem like a bad thing to have around, anyways.

That's just my 6 am spitball ideas on it though, lol.

If I needed to go 250 I could get a square caged tote I think they call it an icd. I was hoping for something a bit smaller. If you come up with anything else hit me up. Thanks Shineon

Did you see that link? You could put the barrel in that. It also has a built in c02 release screen. I think it's almost perfect for a barrel bath.

I saw it. I have to look at it a little closer. If that work it would be very nice. I wonder how it take heat?