-doughed with 5.4 gal to reach mash temp of 149, 75 minute mash
-raised to mash out of 170 for 10 min
-2 gal of 168* water for a single batch “sparge” (I remove the bag from my kettle and place in an empty fermenter with the sparge water for 10 min, and teabag it a bit …took a brix measurement, got about 1.75 gallons @ 1.018/6 brix from this step)
-I squeeze my brew bag like it owes me money after the sparge, collected 7.25 gallons at 12 brix/1.048 pre-boil, so 348 total gravity points
by my calc, this is somewhere between 87 and 89% efficiency (10.8lb total grist, times maximum yield of 36-37 points per gallon per pound, or 399 gravity points…divide 348/399 = 87%).
I am considering adding some water volume, but is this possible? Help!
[quote=“abrown001”]Don’t squeeze your bag. You’ll get husk/tannin harshness.
87% is possible. Hope the beer turns out well.[/quote]
I had heard that when I first started brewing (particularly for steeping grains), but heard about other bag brewers that squeeze, so I’ve been doing it for the last 15 brews or so. Never experienced a tannin problem, except of course, for Biff.
I usually get around 80%, but I recently got 95.67% efficiency on a 7 gallon batch. OG was 1.056, finished at 1.004. I lost 0.75 to trub in the fermentor.
Despite popular opinion, you can squeeze the bag with no ill effect. From what I understand, this is due to the buffer effect of the full water volume in the mash, so I suppose it could be a pH thing. I’m also suspicious that “tannins” are another one of those over-rated homebrewer concerns (see also; chill haze, hot side aeration, etc…)
[quote=“CliffordBrewing”]I usually get around 80%, but I recently got 95.67% efficiency on a 7 gallon batch. OG was 1.056, finished at 1.004. I lost 0.75 to trub in the fermentor.
Despite popular opinion, you can squeeze the bag with no ill effect. From what I understand, this is due to the buffer effect of the full water volume in the mash, so I suppose it could be a pH thing. I’m also suspicious that “tannins” are another one of those over-rated homebrewer concerns (see also; chill haze, hot side aeration, etc…)[/quote]
Excellent post CB & very true.
Squeezing the bag will not result in extracting tannins. This is definitely a PH problem & a major concern for fly sparges. I squeeze the bag pretty hard to get as much wort out as possible. The only downside of squeezing the bag is a bit more loss to trub in the kettle after the boil. Don’t be too concerned about getting cold break into your fermenter either, it’s actually quite beneficial to the yeast. I no chill my beers & get a bit of cold break in my cube & when I transfer this to my fermenter, cold break & everything goes into the fermenter.
I always squeeze the hell out of the BIAB bag and have Never had a problem. Fearing the tannin
is a myth that needs to be dispelled; like hot side aeration (boiling). Hmm, maybe Denny would consider writing a Myth Dispelling or Homebrewing Common Sense book?
That would be awesome. I find it amusing how many homebrewers will argue tooth and nail on forums that you “can’t do that!”. I think this is the main reason that new-comers are so anxious about brewing and why we see so many “is my batch ruined?!” posts. Luckily not everyone believes this and are willing to experiment. If I believed all the doubters then my brews would be hazy, unfermented, undrinkable swill. List of things in my brewing process that I’ve read “can’t be done or else you’ll ruin your brew”:
Double mill the grain - “You’ll get off-flavors, tannins, and clog the bag”
BIAB - “you’ll get horrible efficiency”
Apply heat while bag is in the mash - “you’ll burn your bag”
Squeeze the bag - “you’ll get tannins”
Splash the hot wort (usually while squeezing) - “you’ll get hot side aeration”
No-chill - “you’ll get infections, unpredictable hop utilization, and chill haze”
Sprinkle dry yeast with no rehydrating - “You’ll kill all your yeast”
Ferment in food-grade buckets from Lowes - “You’ll get plastic off-flavors”
Don’t use a secondary - “you’ll get yeast autolysis”
I’m sure there are more brew myths, but these are the ones that come to mind. I used to use a standard 3-vessel brew system with chiller, and I unfortunately used to preach some of the above misconceptions. I (slowly) started to experiment and realized that not everything I’ve read is true, and now I only do BIAB/no-chill. I still have the HLT, MLT, and chiller, but it’s been over a year since I’ve used them.
I also squeeze the bag, works pretty well. Usually end up with a quart or two extra in the carboy post boil…I should probably start adjusting for that…
Efficiency has been good. Brew in a bag is pretty fun.
Clifford, that’s a pretty good list of myths up there. This might make for a good 'nother topic.
FWIW, I almost always BIAB, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. What a fantastic way to brew, for novices and advanced brewers alike. If you can make tea or make soup, you can BIAB. My average efficiency is still around 85%, more by design than anything else, as I know I can get into the mid-90s if I really want to, but I backed off on the crush when I thought it was weakening the beer flavor. It’s a long story, but anyway… BIAB is really the way to go. The ONLY downside, if any, is possible clarity issues due to lack of lautering, i.e., often the beer is hazy when it might otherwise be crystal clear. But this probably ain’t nothing that can’t be fixed by either filtering or gelatin or whatever. And personally, I don’t really much care how hazy my beer looks. Often it is not a problem either.
[quote=“dmtaylo2”]Clifford, that’s a pretty good list of myths up there. This might make for a good 'nother topic.
FWIW, I almost always BIAB, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. What a fantastic way to brew, for novices and advanced brewers alike. If you can make tea or make soup, you can BIAB. My average efficiency is still around 85%, more by design than anything else, as I know I can get into the mid-90s if I really want to, but I backed off on the crush when I thought it was weakening the beer flavor. It’s a long story, but anyway… BIAB is really the way to go. The ONLY downside, if any, is possible clarity issues due to lack of lautering, i.e., often the beer is hazy when it might otherwise be crystal clear. But this probably ain’t nothing that can’t be fixed by either filtering or gelatin or whatever. And personally, I don’t really much care how hazy my beer looks. Often it is not a problem either.[/quote]
I have a pale ale on tap right now that I brewed in a bag and it is not hazy after a week or 2 in the keg, it has a nice brightness. I did cold crash it before kegging, so that may have helped. Brewing in a bag really is fun and easy.
…took a brix measurement, got about 1.75 gallons @ 1.018/6 brix from this step)