Planning first AG BIAB brew thoughts advice please.

treebeard said:

5 Bravo Leaf Boil 60*min
5 Amarillo Leaf Boil 10*min
5 Citra Leaf Boil 10*min
10 Amarillo Leaf Boil 5*min
10 Bravo Leaf Boil 5*min
10 Calypso Leaf Boil 5*min
10 Citra Leaf Boil 5*min
10 Columbus Leaf Boil 5*min
20 Amarillo Leaf Hop Stand 10*min
20 Calypso Leaf Hop Stand 10*min
20 Citra Leaf Hop Stand 10*min
10 Bravo Leaf Hop Stand 10*min
10 Columbus Leaf Hop Stand 10*min
50 Amarillo Pellet Dry Hop 5*days
50 Calypso Pellet Dry Hop 5*days
50 Citra Pellet Dry Hop 5*days
50 Columbus Pellet Dry Hop 5*days
50 Bravo Pellet Dry Hop 5*days

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Fil said:

+1 Go for it,,, But I would aim for 15l max and simplify the hop bill too. as suggested above you can achieve a very hoppy aroma with a single hop for a fraction of the current hop bill cost. perhaps save the james morton style hop bomb experiments for when your confident with the mash and are familiar with the limitations of a smaller 30l kettle.

for a comfortable boil, consider leaving at least 4-5cm of pot wall above the still liquid level, any less and you could well spend the whole boil chassing spils n splashes..

Consider how you will lift out and suspend the 15kg+ of mass your grain bill will represent when soaking post mash.


if insistent of attempting a 23l brew DONT DO IT IN THE KITCHEN unless you live alone, all the splashes and overspills from the brew will deposit invisible sticky patches all over your worktop and floor and even if you chase every one with a damp rag you will miss 50% and every one will be a problem if not discovered by yourself and delt with over the next week or so.. TRUST ME!!

just my thoughts..

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fourbob said:

Good luck on your AG journey, Mr Beard!

I've recently invested in one of the Ace boilers after many having done many 10-12 litre stove top AG brews. So in some ways I was familiar with the process to begin with.

I found it useful to do a couple of simple half length brews to get used to the new boiler, so that I could check things like how accurate the internal thermometer is (not bad....) and how to use the different heater elements to get up to and hold mash and boil temperatures. At my first attempt I was all over the place with my mash temperatures and my efficiency was hopeless. Still, a 3% quaffing ale isn't the worst thing in the world.

My method now (which has survived the mighty test of two full (22l) brews) is to get it up to mash temperature, dough in the grain and leave it on the lower power element only for the mash - it seems to hold the emperature pretty well and the element only kicks in occasionally. Dunk sparge, while both elements are on to get it up to boiling, and top up during the boil as required to get the desired brew length. Once its reached a boil, I find that the single higher rated (1600w?) element is sufficient to keep it rolling.

I've introduced the dunk sparge stage (using my trusty Wilkos stockpot)which I think helps efficiency, but I don't have any stats to back this up.

Overall its been a great experience and the last 2 brews have gone pretty well - with the false bottom and bazooka filter, transferring to the fv is a piece of cake. (I no-chill overnight in the garage).

Enjoy your new kit and I hope you make great beer!

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Duxuk said:

Do you have a hook on a rafter or similar to hang your bag from? It's a massive improvement compared to holding a bag whilst it drains. I use my garage for this then ny spillage is much less important, if still a bit sticky!

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