Easy Large Batch Mashing

[Alzahra888]

Thanks for the math higgins.

After two additions of grain and boiling water, Once the doughballs are stirred out, my temp is at 180 to 183. I seal it up, and 2 hours later add my HT Amylase dose to the top of the polenta and cover it up.

Why wait the 2 hours for your HT Amylase? I thought the enzyme is more efficient at higher temps. But maybe they vary by brand?

[Alzahra888]

Currently at three hours post-mash in:


Grain Bill of Corn (cracked): 30 kg and Malted barley (Munich malt): 14.5 kg

Yesterday boiled 130 L of water in 2 kegs and a large pot on three different gas burners. Since one of the burners was slow and took forever i decided to get the others going and they boiled before the first so i have to ditch that regulator before I get stuck with it again under another 50l keg full of water.

Corn hydration & liquefaction

After about 1 hour, when mash temperature had stabilized:
• Alpha-amylase added
• Mash left to rest overnight

Mash was at all times stirrable and fluid


Day 2, 10am:

Mash in: Added ground 14.5 kg Munich barley malt

Temperature immediately after mixing:

≈ 58.8 °C

stirred thoroughly.

saccharification progressing

1 hour after malt addition
• Temperature ≈ 58 °C
• Mash tasted distinctly sweet
• SG measured from strained sample ≈ 1.043

3 hours after malt addition
• Temperature: 56.5 °C
• SG: 1.060

Not checking ph as I only have strips which suck and my 10th ph pen is worthless. They dont last even with frequent recalibration and even if they cost a fortune.

Planning to continue resting and cooling naturally.

Periodically stir when opening mash.

Tomorrow, when mash cools to 45C or below, I plan on adding 10 L trub and 15 L backset as well as a several cups of dark barley that I malted last year and toasted for four different toast levels. This time I will use the hard toasted and darkest one, can’t recall toasting temp or times but they are written on their containers.


THANK YOU

I really like this process particularly since i have been cooking lately at half this batch size. It sure beats standing over a cauldron.

Liquefaction from alpha-amylase worked well (mash never became gluey). Barley is converting effectively.
Gravity increase from 1.043 to 1.060 in two hours is better than i have been getting with glucoamylase enzyme based conversions by a long shot.

I expect rising gravity points might even allow for some few additional liters of liquid to reduce headspace to dial back to 1.067 or so. We’ll see, the target ratio after additions is roughly 3.4–3.5 L/kg

[Bee]

Get limited range pH strips. They are good enough.

[Alzahra888]

Get limited range pH strips. They are good enough.

IMG_8676.jpeg

Yes. Have those. They tell me something of course just a little too little.

[Yummyrum]

Obviously you need to use a limited range pH strip that is “in the range “ of what you are intending to test .

No point using a 3-4pH range if the sample is higher or lower . Use a full range pH paper or indicator to get you in the approximate range . ….even a badly calibrated pH meter would get you there .
Then use an appropriate pH paper tester .

But to be honest , I very rarely check pH
It’s more of a curiosity than a requirement

[Alzahra888]

My bad. I understood ‘limited range’ as the same as these. But hey, never claimed I wasnt “thick”. Thank you for the correction and thanks to Bee. I have yet to see a limited range stick. Went searching at the obvious places.

[Alzahra888]

Update:

8:00 AM (22 hours after mash-in)
• Temperature: 48.5 °C
• Specific Gravity: 1.075
• pH: in the 4s

2:00 PM (28 hours after mash-in)
• Temperature: 45.8 °C
• Specific Gravity: 1.076

[Bee]

Get them within the range you need to work within like these 3-6pH: https://www.amazon.com/3-6-Short-Range ... 41-2401958

Knowing within .5 points is good enough. Use the wide(r) range for initial analysis of your water. After mashing you should be under 6.

ETA: Your pH looks a little low. Probably should be 5-5.5 when you pitch.

[Alzahra888]

Get them within the range you need to work within like these 3-6pH: https://www.amazon.com/3-6-Short-Range ... 41-2401958

Knowing within .5 points is good enough. Use the wide(r) range for initial analysis of your water. After mashing you should be under 6.

ETA: Your pH looks a little low. Probably should be 5-5.5 when you pitch.

Thanks Bee. I do have a lot of buffer in there. 39 grams of Calcium carbonate (CaCO3). Two 50L brew bags,each holding a few handfuls of rocks and shells. Just to be safe I added shy of 3g calcium hydroxide. I am scared of this stuff cuz I never used it before. Even with that, ph stick colors [edit: DO NOT]move into the fives.


At 31 hours after mash in:

pitched 120g bakers yeast at 35C, OG 1.070

[Bee]

You might be better off building your water from scratch. https://www.brewersfriend.com/ is a great resource for that.
My water had so much crap dumped in it to prevent a Flint, MI that I had to build it from RO water. I was dumping ounces of high-molar sulfuric into it to get it right.

The opposite problem of yours, but I feel for you. Solution may be the same.

[Alzahra888]

You might be better off building your water from scratch. https://www.brewersfriend.com/ is a great resource for that.
My water had so much crap dumped in it to prevent a Flint, MI that I had to build it from RO water. I was dumping ounces of high-molar sulfuric into it to get it right.

The opposite problem of yours, but I feel for you. Solution may be the same.

Thanks Bee. I have had the app for a year or so. Opened it a few times but never put it into use.

Yes my water filters through a sandy aquifer and takes effectively zero minerals with it. I have not seen high-molar sulfuric before. What is that?

[Bee]

Thanks Bee. I have had the app for a year or so. Opened it a few times but never put it into use.

Yes my water filters through a sandy aquifer and takes effectively zero minerals with it. I have not seen high-molar sulfuric before. What is that?

Battery acid. EXTREMELY dangerous to use, but if your pH is high and your water has an excess buffering capacity (i.e. loaded with minerals), it WILL bring the pH down!
A brewer is FAR better off buying distilled or RO water by the gallon than resorting to powerful acids.


Most people don't seem to understand that alkaline water has 2 aspects to it - pH and buffering capacity. Buffering capacity comes from the mash proteins and, in my case, from bicarbonate content in the water. It is what resists pH reduction.