I want to step up and brew my first all grain beer next spring. Some recipes call for step mashing and I want to use coolers instead of brew pots that you can add heat to, is step mashing that critical or can I get away with this with the coolers and 1 mash temp?
Did you know there was an “All Grain” forum? :oops:
Most (all?) modern malts do see benefits with step mashing. Singe temps are fine.
You can do infusion step mashes, where you add water at higher and higher temps to raise you mash for each rest. This would be easier to do with a cooler setup. You have to plan for a thicker mash up front, but it will thin out as you add the infusions. Most brewerys I have been to, including the one I work at use a single infusion mash and it works just fine with todays highly modified malts.
Most malts today will not need a step mash. If you are just starting out I would stick to single infusion mash first before getting into step mashing. Unless you are using what they call under modified malt the single step will work just fine.
I moved this to the AG forum BTW.
I have done some step mashes, but I really can’t think of any beer I brew where I fell I “have to” do one. I would feel perfectly comfortable brewing basically any beer I can think of with a simple infusion mash.
As mentioned above, step mashing by adding boiling water to raise the temp at each step actually works very well. I find it works better than adding heat to a brew pot- more controlled.
But I also agree step mashing is not really that necesary any more. Single infusion is fine for pretty much everything.
On the other hand, once you have a few AG batches under your belt, it may be good practice to do some step mashing just to improve your skills. It is really not that difficult and can be a usefull tool for trouble shooting botched strike temps.
Those of you who say a step mashing is not necessary (I generally agree BTW), how do you feel about doing a protein rest when brewing a witbier or other beer with a high % of unmalted grains? I think even Jamil recommends doing a protein rest when brewing a witbier.
I rarely brew witbiers, but I did a protein rest when I brewed one last summer. It was actually pretty easy using the infusion temps suggested by Beersmith.
+1 
(the only reason I step or decoction mash now) :lol:
Brew On
Step mashes are a waste of time and effort, IMHO. I mash 90% of my beers at 149-152 F for 40 minutes. Done.
