StillSmart

Thanks for that.....I've read a little more and watched a vid or 4 on you tube so a bit more noused up now about the procedure. I'm still not sure how much grain to use in the approx 70degree water for the first mashing step....i.e. Before letting it stew for an hour and then sparging to get it up to a 25 litre total ??
I'm guessing about 4 kilos in 12 litres of hot water .....does that sound about right?

Where on earth is Robert ??

Others might differ on this but a suggested yardstick I read in earlier days, which I tend to work to. is 3 pints of water to 1lb of grain.

Decimalised, I think that works out at 3.75 litres of water to 1 kg of grain. Remember, there is a marked absorption of water by the grain during the mashing process so a reduction of the initial quantity of water used will be noticeable.

How much grain you actually use will be a personal decision but I tend to use 6kg per wash. Others might well not use as much. Due to the consistency of the mix, I doubt many use much more.

My choice of grain quantity is an attempt on my part to maximise flavour from the grain I am using. We each have our personal equipment to use and, to some extent, the capacity of such can well effect the decisions as to quantities.

I hope this is of help.

[quote="H12rpo"]Thanks for that.....I've read a little more and watched a vid or 4 on you tube so a bit more noused up now about the procedure. I'm still not sure how much grain to use in the approx 70degree water for the first mashing step....i.e. Before letting it stew for an hour and then sparging to get it up to a 25 litre total ??
I'm guessing about 4 kilos in 12 litres of hot water .....does that sound about right?

Where on earth is Robert ??[/quote]

Robert is just back from his first vacation in 3 years,in a part of Wester Ross with no mobile signal and no internet. Lots of previously unfished brown trout and some interesting sea fishing, both rod and creel.

I divide a 25Kg sack of malt 6 ways, and start with around 10 litres of water.

HTH.

Robert.

Thanks Robert,
When you say creel fishing are we talking lobster and crab with pots?? If so well done you, I've always thought that must be very satisfying way of catching.

Right oh! Mashed it up (4kg) and sparged etc
All looking good ......the SG is 1040
Smells just like the local brewery :-)

What mash temp did you use?

It started at 73 and after an hour it was still up around 65
I got some on my hands and it was wonderfully sticky so I'm guessing the mashing worked well. The SG is about right too I think
We shall see

Fingers crossed. Temps really do make a difference.

H12rpo wrote:It started at 73 and after an hour it was still up around 65
I got some on my hands and it was wonderfully sticky so I'm guessing the mashing worked well. The SG is about right too I think
We shall see

Iodine test..

I meant to post this last night, but staggered off to bed instead.
First a link for those that don't routinely check new posts.
viewtopic.php?f=17&t=4650

Second H12rpo, I wanted to say that, yes a good all grain brew really does smell really good. Sadly I tend to make quite a floor mess with those.
I weigh one against the other
Looked at the cost of another 25Kg sack of heavily peated today..

Don't expect too much from your first all grain whisky/whiskey; when you learn to use a feints receiver with it, it will improve. If you wish.
Look back through my OP, I can't post it all again!

Best of luck

Robert.

TBH I'm not a fan of the peated (smoked) whisky...laphroag leaves me cold.. having said that, I've read that the glenmorangie clone would use an amount of peated in the grain bill. If that's true I can't say I've detected that peaty taste or smell on glenmorange .....perhaps I overindulged on vindaloos and fecked up my palette who knows?
The all grain wort is happily bubbling away with just 30grams of bakers......I'll add some mauri tomorrow if it arrives via courier!

Iodine Test. Mentioned by packapoo

Yes! A very good point I feel.

It's very reassuring to have confirmation that all available starches have been converted. And such a simple test to carry out.

Seems to have all but stopped bubbling now???
How long does a barley mash usually take ?

Mine take about this long.
Low sugar content wash and fast ferment.
Don't leave it hanging around.
If activity has ceased, Rack and Roll.
Take a gravity reading, don't expect it to be below 1.000.
4% is about average in a malt distillery mash.
HTH

There is a reason AG Malt Whisky/Whiskey tastes so good, it takes effort to make it, and time to age it.
I have tried shortcuts, and gone back to the slow method, I do sometimes cheat on the aging.

Robert.

It's a bit of a faf this mashing stage. My second attempt was using a straining bag suspended in a cooler box type of mash tun and whilst it's worked quite well it's still an awful mess. The mash tun (cooler box) has a spigot in the bottom to drain the wort which is great and it has one of those bazooka type filters on it.
Here's the question.........is is easier to forget the bag and just mash directly in the box let it sit for the required hour and then drain and then do the sparging again directly in the box?
It seems to me that the mashing /stirring will be easier without the staring bag as well as the squeezing everything out of the sparge, but then cleaning the feckin thing out will be a bastd!

Any observations on less messy method welcome