2) Extract Brewing -- The process used by beginning home brewers.
3) All-Grain Brewing -- The full process which is used in breweries, but at home.
4) Production Brewing -- Some key differences between the experiences of home brewing and working in a microbrewery.
In my explanation of the all-grain brewing process I will be using my process as the example. It should be noted that terminology or methods vary widely and this is just how I brew. Take this for what you will and enjoy!
Step 1: Dough-In Mixing the Grain and Hot Water
Step 2: The Mash Letting the Grain soak, producing Sugar
Step 3: Recirculation Circulating the contents of the Mash for clarification
Step 4: The Run-Off Extracting the Sugar and Filling the Kettle
Step 5: The Boil The liquid is boiled with hops
Step 6: Cooling The liquid is rapidly cooled and aerated as it is transferred into the fermentor
The Brewing Rig
--Hot/Cold Liquor Tank: This vessel holds a large volume of water which is heated by a gas burner for mashing and Lautering and filled with cold water and ice for cooling the finished wort. I have a keg with the top cut out and a valve installed near the bottom. For ease, this vessel has been elevated so that it will use gravity to feed to other vessels.
--Mash/Lauter Tun: A Mash Tun is a vessel in which the grain soaks and allows the enzymes to convert the starches from the grain into sugars. A Lauter Tun is a vessel used to separate the grain from the sugars and other desired products of the grain. Most homebrewers have a combined vessel. Mine is a 5 gallon cooler with a false bottom and a sturdy valve below the false bottom.
--Kettle: A 5 gallon batch requires a brewing pot between 8 and 10 gallons in capacity to account for water which is boiled off and the boiling up of the wort. I have a Blichmann brewing pot which has a valve, graduated volume scale on the side, and a thermometer. The scale is one of the most useful features, but if you do not have one, you can use a measured bucket and as you add a gallon to your brew pot mark the water level on a stick or stirring paddle.
--Pump: With 5 gallon batches a pump is not required, but definitely helpful. The usefulness of a pump is most noticed during recirculation. Brewing pumps are magnetic impeller pumps which do not expose the wort or beer to the workings of the pump. It is important to have a valve on the output as you can run it with the output closed, but not the input. The valve on the output is how you regulate the speed of the transfer of liquid. If you don't use a pump, you will need to make sure all three vessels gravity feed from Liquor Tank to Mash/Lauter Tun, to Kettle.
--Chiller: Most home brewers invest in immersion chillers which are copper coils through which cold water is run. The cold water draws the heat out of the wort, but can take 30 minutes or more. A plate chiller is what professional breweries use and they are also made for home brewers. Plate chillers are highly efficient in the transfer of heat and can cool 6 gallons of wort to pitching temperature (approx. 70F) in under 10 minutes.
--Burner: There are many burners which will do the job. Some people convert them for natural gas, but I use propane with consistent success. On my setup the Hot/Cold Liquor Tank uses two small, inexpensive propane burners and the kettle uses the Blichmann burner. The Banjo Burner is also very good, but has to burn off its own paint before use.
The Process
Step 1: Dough-In
Doughing-in is the process of mixing the cracked (milled, crushed, etc.) grain with hot water in order to begin the mashing proces. The grain is usually at room temperature so you will have to experiment with water temperatures to achieve a final temperature between 149F and 157F. Because of how I mash I mix the grain with temperature which is approximately 10F hotter than my target mash temperature. I usually also add water and grain at a ratio of [1G/3lb].
So: 1 Gallon of water @ 164F PER 3 Pounds of milled grain = 154/155F Mash
Stir in the grain and water until all the grain is soaking in the water with no clumps.
Step 2: The Mash
Mashing is the process by which grains soak in water between 149F and 157F so that the enzymes are allowed to convert the starches to sugar. 149F will produce a drier beer as more sugars are broken down to a greater degree and are easier for the yeast to ultimately devour. Lower temperatures around 149F also require between 60 and 90 minutes to complete. Higher mash temperatures around 157F will result in a higher proportion of more complex sugars which will remain past fermentation, resulting in a sweeter or maltier beer. Higher temperature mashes can usually complete in 45 to 60 minutes. I mash around 153F and let it mash for at least 75 minutes to be sure it has completed.
So: 149F = Drier = 60-90 min. mash ///// 157F = Sweeter = 45-60 min. mash
Step 3: Recirculation
Recirculation (German: Vorlauf) is used to settle the grain bed so that it may be used as a filter by which to clean the liquid moving into the kettle. This may be done by pouring off from the bottom of the mash tun into a cup or other vessel and pouring it back, carefully, into the top of the mash tun. The most convenient way to accomplish this is to use a magnetic impeller pump with the valve on the exit side of the pump barely open. Once the liquid has been carefully and slowly recirculated and is running relatively clear of particulate it is time for the Run-Off.
So: Circulate the liquid from the bottom of the mash tun to the top to clarify and set up the grain as a filter
Step 4: The Run-Off
Running-Off means running 170F water through the mash tun with the grain (which is now set up as a filter) and extracting the sugars into the kettle. This basically means washing the grain. 170F water flows from the Hot Liquor Tank, through the grain, and into the kettle. Make sure the water level stays above the grain so that the grain doesn't collapse and cause your run-off to clog. Also make sure not to open the valves too much and, again cause the run-off to clog; take your time with this. Fill the kettle to a volume which allows for a gallon or more to boil off during the boil.
So: Wash the sugar from the grain and into the kettle
Step 5: The Boil
The boil sterilizes the wort and allows the hops to impart their bitterness. Boils are usually 90 minutes long with the main bittering hop addition occurring between 60 and 70 minutes. The longer hops are in the boil, the more bitterness they impart. Flavor from hops diminishes considerably beyond 15 minutes while aroma dissipates quickly after 5 to 8 minutes. A good, roiling boil will produce the most efficient and predictable results.
So: Make a timeline and add hops at your specified times
Step 6: Cooling
(Everything at this point must be sanitized prior to use)
Cooling the wort quickly is very important as chemical and bacterial process can and will be occurring as the wort sits out in the open at warm to hot temperatures. A wort chiller, through which you run cold water, can be placed in the kettle shortly before the end of the boil so that it is sanitary when you terminate the boil and begin to circulate water to cool the wort. A plate chiller is the most efficient way to cool wort quickly as it provides for the maximum exchange of heat so long as you monitor the wort output temperature and regulate the speed of the wort to maintain a temperature around 70F. Breweries aerate their wort after going through the plate chiller with bacteria-free oxygen to provide the yeast with optimal circumstances.
So: Get the wort to pitching temperature (70F) ASAP
This is just an overview. In time you will find what works for you. ENJOY!!!
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