Took the plunge...First All-Grain

Hey guys, just finished my first AG. It was a 1554 Clone, and hopefully it'll turn out well. I batch-sparged, and Beersmith said I ended up with about 78.3% efficiency. I probably screwed something up along the line. Oh well. Here's the recipe:

BeerSmith Recipe Printout - www.beersmith.com
Recipe: 1554 Clone
Brewer: Ben
Asst Brewer:
Style: Belgian Specialty Ale
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (35.0)

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Batch Size: 5.00 gal
Boil Size: 6.00 gal
Estimated OG: 1.052 SG
Estimated Color: 27.2 SRM
Estimated IBU: 21.2 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 75.0 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amount Item Type % or IBU
5.00 lb Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 51.3 %
2.00 lb Biscuit Malt (23.0 SRM) Grain 20.5 %
1.00 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt -120L (120.0 SRM) Grain 10.3 %
1.00 lb Vienna Malt (3.5 SRM) Grain 10.3 %
0.50 lb Special B Malt (180.0 SRM) Grain 5.1 %
0.25 lb Roasted Barley (300.0 SRM) Grain 2.6 %
0.50 oz Northern Brewer [8.50%] (60 min) Hops 15.6 IBU
0.50 oz Saaz [4.00%] (30 min) Hops 5.6 IBU
0.25 tsp Irish Moss (Boil 15.0 min) Misc
1 Pkgs Abbey Ale (White Labs #WLP530) Yeast-Ale


Mash Schedule: Single Infusion, Full Body, Batch Sparge
Total Grain Weight: 9.75 lb
----------------------------
Name Description Step Temp Step Time
Mash In Add 12.19 qt of water at 170.5 F 158.0 F 60 min

Congrats on your first AG! The recipe looks tasty and I hope it turns out for you. New Belgium definitely has a winner with their 1554. It's a GREAT belgian Strong Ale. What did your measured SG look like?

Congrats on your first AG! The recipe looks tasty and I hope it turns out for you. New Belgium definitely has a winner with their 1554. It's a GREAT belgian Strong Ale. What did your measured SG look like?

Ended up with 1.054.

Just out of curiosity, what do you think you screwed up?

Sounds to me like you did very well!

Well, I don't think I did the batch sparge right, and I think I ended up with a bunch of debris in my boil pot. Although, this time I forgot to get hop bags from the LHBS, so that might have a lot to do with it (usually I use the bags)...I vorlaufed about 2-3 pints of wort, and then returned it gently to the mash, but I got a stuck sparge almost about half way through, and I ended up stirring. I think this is due to the length of braided hose inside my Ice Cube...I've got a 16" loop inside, and I might increase that to be possibly double the size. How big is too big, and how small is too small?

I figure I probably screwed up my OG...I measured 1.052 at 78 degrees, so the correction BeerSmith gave me was 1.054...

Also, I went to the LHBS yesterday morning to get the ingredients and I forgot to take the yeast out of the bag and put it inside. It might have overheated in the 102 degree weather we had yesterday. Hopefully not. I've never overheated yeast before, so I'm unsure of the consequences. It wasn't outside for more than 4-5 hours.

Thanks to everybody for inspiring me to take the plunge to AG. It is much cheaper, and if the beer quality is as good as I've heard (and tried), then it'll be an investment well-made of both money and time!

Well, I don't think I did the batch sparge right, and I think I ended up with a bunch of debris in my boil pot. Although, this time I forgot to get hop bags from the LHBS, so that might have a lot to do with it (usually I use the bags)...I vorlaufed about 2-3 pints of wort, and then returned it gently to the mash, but I got a stuck sparge almost about half way through, and I ended up stirring. I think this is due to the length of braided hose inside my Ice Cube...I've got a 16" loop inside, and I might increase that to be possibly double the size. How big is too big, and how small is too small?

I figure I probably screwed up my OG...I measured 1.052 at 78 degrees, so the correction BeerSmith gave me was 1.054...

Also, I went to the LHBS yesterday morning to get the ingredients and I forgot to take the yeast out of the bag and put it inside. It might have overheated in the 102 degree weather we had yesterday. Hopefully not. I've never overheated yeast before, so I'm unsure of the consequences. It wasn't outside for more than 4-5 hours.

Thanks to everybody for inspiring me to take the plunge to AG. It is much cheaper, and if the beer quality is as good as I've heard (and tried), then it'll be an investment well-made of both money and time!

Yeah...you're screwed...

No, I think you did fine, although your concern with the yeast is a valid one...

Most people see a lot more post-boil break material in an AG batch than in extract brews, so I'm sure that in combination with your increased hop trub explains the extra debris.

Just out of curiosity, after you stirred to relieve your stuck sparge, did you recirculate again?

My guess would be that your hose braid is too long, if anything. Most people don't bother with loops, T's, or what have you--just a straight line down the middle of the tun should get the job done.

Also, take a look at how dense the weave of your SS braid is. My guess would be that most people who have slow or stuck sparges using this equipment are using very tightly-woven braids. If you can find one that's less dense, it will probably help, and as long as its not so loose that it doesn't filter out noticable chunks of husk, it should be fine.

Welcome to the wonderful world of AGB and the inevitable longer brew days that follow.

Well, I just racked my all-grain to secondary last night, and I must say that it tastes pretty decent, although it had a pretty horrible aroma while I was tasting it. Oh well, I know it's not done yet.

But, I thought I'd share my particularly bone-headed move. I put my airlock on last night while I was on the phone with my wife (she's visiting family across the country) and so I was a little distracted and I didn't notice that I forgot to put the cap in my 3-piece airlock...DUUUUH. I did notice this morning though before it could be contaminated too much...There was a lot of pressure in there when I put the cap inside, so I'm not too worried. Just one of those things where you just want to punch yourself in the eye for doing.

Congratulations on the first ag.--Eric

Wow, that's a huge load of biscuit. Where did you track down the recipe? Glad to hear it turned out well. Good luck with the new hobby.

Wow, that's a huge load of biscuit. Where did you track down the recipe? Glad to hear it turned out well. Good luck with the new hobby.

Victory (Briess biscuit) is one of the malts that New Belgium keeps in silo's.

A good tip to help out during vorlauf is to make a square of aluminum foil with small holes punched in it. Float this on top of your grain and just pour your vorlauf straight on it, works great for not disturbing the grain bed.

Wow, that's a huge load of biscuit. Where did you track down the recipe? Glad to hear it turned out well. Good luck with the new hobby.

I found it on another forum...Took some digging as it was posted about 2 years ago...It's in secondary now, just waiting for kegging day, so we'll see how it turns out.

I'd love to hear how this turned out.[/img]