Skip to main content

Maximizing Mash Efficiency

Given that the Picobrew Zymatic is less efficient than some other brewing setups, I began doing some research into how to get the most out of it.  The Braukaiser web site has a very detailed discussion of their experiments into maximizing the attenuation of a beer.  A by-product of this experiment is a series of parameters that can improve mash efficiency.

Specifically, the following things are believed to positively increase brew house efficiency based on their experiments:

  • A mash length of 66 minutes yielded the highest efficiency, with efficiency dropping off above 66 minutes
  • Attenuation maxed out at an average mash temperature of 150-151F, but efficiency maxed out around a mash temp of 173F
  • Efficiency maxed out at a pH of 5.2
  • Efficiency of thinner mashes was higher than thicker, with 2.4 quarts per pound delivering the highest efficiency

With respect to the Zymatic, there is nothing you can really do about thinning the mash.  However, there are some things you can do to get more out of your grain bill, depending on what is appropriate for the style of beer you're brewing:

  • Increasing the mash time to at least 66 minutes from the usual 60 minutes is an easy way to increase efficiency and gravity without using additional grain, DME, or adjuncts.
  • If a sweeter, more full-bodied beer is appropriate for the style being brewed, mashing the grain at a higher temperature will help increase efficiency.  
  • If a more dry, well-attenuated beer is desired, mashing at 150-151F for 66 minutes should yield a very well-attenuated beer (assuming the yeast strain used for fermentation does its job).
  • Checking and adjusting pH to keep it in the 5.2 range will help improve efficiency.
This is all theoretical, but something I can test out in future brews by using the Advanced recipe editor to program in the appropriate times and temperatures.  If you don't want to go to that trouble, you may at least want to extend the mash time (especially with the single-step mash option in the recipe editor) to help further convert the grain.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Note that comments to this blog are moderated in order to minimize spam comments and things that might be offensive to readers.

Popular posts from this blog

2022 Batch 01 - St. Gambrinus Spiced Holiday Ale (Kit)

I purchased a St. Gambrinus Spiced Holiday Ale Kit from Great Fermentations in Indianapolis a few weeks ago and decided to get it made today... a tad late for the holidays, but it will give me a good idea if I like the recipe for next Christmas. The kit basically comes as a bag of crushed grain with a packet of Northern Brewer hops.  You supply your own spices and order yeast separately. Ingredients 8.5 pounds Two-Row Brewer's Malt 2 pounds Munich Dark Malt 1 pound Honey Malt 8 ounces Simpsons Dark Crystal Malt 0.5 ounces Northern Brewer hops (60 min.) 0.5 ounces Northern Brewer hops (30 min.) 1 package White Labs Edinburgh Scottish Ale yeast 1 tsp. Irish Moss (15 min.) 0.5 oz. Bitter Orange Peel (10 min.) 2 cinnamon sticks (I used 3) (10 min.) 0.5 tsp. Ground Ginger (10 min.) 0.25 tsp. Allspice (secondary) 0.25 oz. Ground Cardamom (secondary) 0.25 oz. Ground Cinnamon (secondary) 1 Tbsp. pH 5.2 Stabilizer added to mash after grain 6.8 gallons of RO water, treated with: 3 grams Gyps...
Post a Comment
Read more

2021 Batch 16/17 - Horseman's Pumpkin Ale Kit from Great Fermentations

Although there are a few pumpkin spice ales on the market that I enjoy (Hoppin' Frog's Double Pumpkin, Samuel Adams Fat Jack, and Heavy Seas Great'r Pumpkin come to mind first), I've yet to brew a pumpkin spice ale that I have been happy with.  Either I didn't feel like the base beer was quite right, or the spice mix was too "something" (insert random pie spice there) forward, it was too hop-forward, or it was wrong in some other way.  This year, I decided to try the kit from Great Fermentations in Indiana to see if I liked that any better than previous brews. Ingredients 9 pounds 2-row Brewer's Malt 1 pound Munich Malt 8 ounces Crystal 40L Malt 15 ounces Canned Pumpkin (not included in kit) 1/4 tsp. Brewtan B (my addition to kit) 1 ounce Glacier Hops 1/2 tsp. Brewtan B (my addition to kit) 1 tsp. Irish Moss (15 min.) 0.5 tsp. Ground Cinnamon (not included in kit) 0.5 tsp. Vanilla extract (not included in kit) 0.5 tsp. Pumpkin Pie Spice (not included i...
Post a Comment
Read more

2022 Batch 02 - Pecan Brandy Mead

I watched an episode of Moonshiners: Master Distiller   late in 2020 where one of the contestants made a Pecan Brandy that he (and the judges) described as being very tasty, like drinking a pecan pie.  I thought that sounded good, and although distilling it into brandy would not be a legal option for me, turning it into a mead would be quite possible and might be good. The recipe as described on the show was pretty simple... honey, water, yeast, and pecans. Ingredients 12 pounds of Wildflower Honey 2 pounds of Pecans, crushed and ground 4 gallons of water, treated with some gypsum 1 tsp. yeast nutrient 1 package of Premier Des Cotes champagne yeast Batch Size: 5.0 gallons (actual and estimated) Original Gravity:  1.090 (actual and estimated) Final Gravity:   0.984 (estimated) Brewing Instructions Bring water to a boil and sterilize wort chiller. Add half the pecans in a muslin bag.  Add the other half, in a different muslin bag, to the fermenter. Gradually add ...
Post a Comment
Read more