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  • Building a lager

    Let's start with the recipe.
    5.75kg two row
    2kg Breiss caramel pilsen
    .5kg cara 47-50
    28g Hallertau 4.2 Alpha 60 Min.
    28g Saaz 2.5 Alpha 15 Min.
    14g CJ90 12-14 alpha 1 min. steeped for 5 min.
    1 Tsp. Irish Moss 15 Min.
    White Labs WLP-862 yeast
    Boil time 1:15
    What I use is batch sparging this will give me 65%-70% efficiency. I step up the temp slowly allowing a cooler mash will leave a drier beer. The fly sparge is a slower and slightly more efficient system it is also more expensive to set up temperatures are harder to keep and a smaller grain bill to get 75%- 80% efficiency myself I can kick in an extra .5kg of grain and call it done.
    Warm 12 liters strike water to 175 F put in to mash tun for five min before adding grain bill. Add cracked grain mix well making sure there are no dry clumps of grain this is done gently we are not looking for foam here. Rest for fifteen minutes.your temp should read 150F. Add 2 liters boiling water mix in let rest 15 min.Your temp should read 152F. Add 4 liters boiling water your temp should now read 155F. Let rest one hour.
    Attached Files
    Last edited by rjb222; 14-05-2008, 03:47 AM.
    http://www.winensuds.com/ Gotta love this hobby

  • #2
    The sprage

    Open the valve take off about 1 liter of wert.Put a couple of drops of wert on a clean white dish. Add a drop of Iodine or Idofor wait a couple of minutes if the Iodine turns purple then you need to wait longer if it stays the same colour then you have converted the sugars and are ready to continue.
    Attached Files
    http://www.winensuds.com/ Gotta love this hobby

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    • #3
      Recirculating

      Pour the 1 liter of wert back over top of the grain bed with out disturbing the bed. Do this a couple times until your wert runs clear. At this point I would like to make a point. It is important to hose your wert into the lower collector The temperature is too high you will oxidize your brew. While it is important to have oxygen in your wert to keep the yeast happy this is not the time to add oxygen. If the temperature is above 80F then splashing of any kind will oxidize your wert.
      Attached Files
      Last edited by rjb222; 14-05-2008, 03:49 AM.
      http://www.winensuds.com/ Gotta love this hobby

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      • #4
        First runnings.

        When the wert runs clear put the hose on the bottom of your brewpot and open the valve all the way this is not fly sparging the whole process of wert collection should take twenty min. that includes the second runnings.You will collect from the original 18 liters about ten to twelve liters depending on the beer gods.Close the valve.Have ready another 18 liters of sparge water heated to 190F pour over the grain bed and mix the grain bed and water with your spoon again gentle is the word you are not looking for bitter foam.Let rest ten min. collect 1 liter of wert pour it over the grain bed with out disturbing the grain bed do this a couple of times until the wert runs clear free of husks etc.collect the rest of you wert you should end up with about 28 liters of clean sweet wert.
        Attached Files
        http://www.winensuds.com/ Gotta love this hobby

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        • #5
          Start the boil

          Take a gravity reading you should be reading about 1.030 unadjusted at 150F a couple of points one way or the other will not matter. Turn on the heat I use a large out door cooker to get the boil going as quickly as I can. I keep a floating thermometer in the brew to track the temperature to let me know when I can expect the boil this is important as the hot break happens just at boil.While you are waiting for the kettle to boil do not walk away answer a phone or some thing other than watch the kettle as the enzymes are coming to the top and sealing your beer under a foam that will boil over if you do not stir it constantly and control the heat. You do not want to loose these enzymes they add flavor ,body and taste. They also contain a lot of the nutrients that keep yeast healthy.Once this white foam starts to come up you need to act quickly lift the pot off if necessary turn the heat down and stir until you get the hot break.This is the point at which timing starts and you can relax and make your first hop addition. You can now turn the heat down a little at a time you will not need as much heat as when you are heating up the kettle to the boiling point to maintain the boil.
          Attached Files
          Last edited by rjb222; 14-05-2008, 03:52 AM.
          http://www.winensuds.com/ Gotta love this hobby

          Comment


          • #6
            Timing

            Timing is one of the most important steps in the boiling process.Fifteen minutes before the end of the boil put in your wert chiller if you have one. This is important as the time in the boil it takes to sanitize anything is fifteen minuets and at this point anything that touches the wert needs to be sanitized. Make sure your chiller is clean as well before putting it in your brew as if it is on your chiller its going to be part of your beer. Add your fifteen minuet hops and the Irish Moss.
            Attached Files
            http://www.winensuds.com/ Gotta love this hobby

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            • #7
              Last addition

              With one minute left add your CJ90 hops.I was lucky enough to have a few whole cones to add. When the time is up turn off your heat hook up your hoses allow five minuets for the cj90 to steep.If you do not have a wert chiller wait five minutes and carefully move your beer to a sink with some cold water in it. A tight fitting lid on your brew kettle is real important when doing this you don't want to get an infection in your hard work. Place your brew kettle into the sink and add some ice lots of ice and keep running the cold water and adding ice on top and all around the kettle the goal is to get the temperature down to below 80F to rack over to your fermenter the faster that can be accomplished the better for your beer.
              Attached Files
              Last edited by rjb222; 14-05-2008, 07:45 AM.
              http://www.winensuds.com/ Gotta love this hobby

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              • #8
                finishing up

                Bring your temperature down to 70F or lower this is the time to oxygenate your beer more oxygen now the happier your yeast will be. I stirred the beer for approximately five minuets then pitched my yeast starter.I made a yeast starter the day before. I pitched 1/2 liter yeast starter WLP 862 Cry Havoc licensed by Charlie Papizan. This is a very versatile yeast. It is a lager yeast but will still work properly up to 74F and down to 52F. This gives the brewer a wide range of pitching temperatures. I pitched at 68 degrees. I left the carboy in the warm room to start the yeast for 24 hrs. Then moved into a cold room that maintains a temperature of 54F year around I wrapped the carboy in a space blanket to allow the temperature to slowly drop and not shock the yeast.
                Attached Files
                Last edited by rjb222; 14-05-2008, 07:50 AM.
                http://www.winensuds.com/ Gotta love this hobby

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                • #9
                  Time line

                  In approximately six weeks I will add final pics in this series when bottling is done.
                  http://www.winensuds.com/ Gotta love this hobby

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                  • #10
                    Excellent Robert....thanks for that

                    let me know when you want to add the pics and I will unlock it again...locked it at the moment so it doesnt get a lot of replies, cluttering the thread.....anyone with questions...please post them in the general beer forum
                    N.G.W.B.J.
                    Member of 5 Towns Wine and Beer Makers Society (Yorkshire's newest)
                    Wine, mead and beer maker

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