NB Double IPA

Mashing
1

I am going to brew the NB double IPA this evening. It is all grain. Any suggestions or tips? I am new to the brewing game. I have so far made 5 very good beers. Thanks!

2

First off I think that is a really great kit. We did the extract a few times and I’m sure the all grain will be better.

Since you gave use very little info other than you’re new to the brewing game I’ll toss out some general advice that I learned about brewing bigger beers by failing at them when I first started.

  1. Pitch enough yeast: Something we did not do. http://www.mrmalty.com/calc/calc.html go here and enter the gravity. You will need to buy multiple packs or make a yeast starter. This is the biggest reason for failed big beers in my opinion and if you can you should just buy yeast starter equipment now, it will be worth it.

  2. Watch out for temp control, big beers spit off a ton of heat so at a minimum I say set up a swamp cooler to keep it cool. Temp will also affect the yeast and how it works, it seems like most people, myself included, like to ferment near the lower end of the recommendations.

  3. Give it plenty of time. Wait at a minimum three weeks in the primary, probably four, and then if you are bottling or transferring to a secondary give it even more time to aged. It will be worth it.

3

do you know what your water make up is ? a water report will help you make the right salt additions ( if any ). proper mash PH is the key. cheers.

4

Thanks for all the tips. I also had called NB and asked a few questions and they were very helpful. I am very excited about this batch. Also the guy who taught me how to brew and has been brewing for many moons might stop by to help. Thanks again!!

5

My all grain needed to be boiled for 90 minutes to hit the right gravity with that beer. Very tasty and I agree with the above poster, pitch more yeast than you think you need.

6

One thing that i learned that no one told me was run off an extra gallon. The hops absorb a lot of wort and the extra wort from the mash can be used to make up the difference. If you don’t have any extra pots, just use a 5 gallon bucket. Good luck!