Steeping Question

Is there a correct ratio of lbs. of grain to gal of water when steeping? I've read no more then 1 lb. of grain per gallon of water. Using specialty grains I typically use 1 to 3 pounds which would call for 1 - 3 gal. of water. in a 10 gal. pot 1 gal. barley covers the bottom, not enough to wet all the grains. I've just been steeping whatever amount of grain I've got in 6 gal., removing the grain bag and then boiling down to 5 gal.

Reply to
Bret Baggett
Loading thread data ...

Well... if you use a ratio around 1 qt water / 1 lb grain up to something like 3 qts / 1 lb, most folks would say you are "mashing." "Steeping" has no real upper limit of water. If you are steeping grains that don't need any enzyme converstion (mashing), then it won't matter.

If the grains need conversion, then it needs to be pretty thick. Grains that definitely need conversion would be those like Pale/Pilsner Malt, Munich Malt, Vienna Malt, etc. Crystal malts don't need mashing.

The definition of these terms and such is almost a religious area of discussion...

Reply to
Derric

If you are steeping grains

I'm afraid I'll have to disagree. Grains tend to acidify water, but too much H2O and you'll likely have it too alkaline, which could extract undesirable tannins from them. See Al Korzonas' Homebrewing Vol. 1. p.91. He suggests the 1lb/gal ratio. Also cautions against rinsing (and I would add, squeezing) the bag of grains, as doing so can also result in leeching of astringent tannins. Also says not to exceed 170F and one-half hour for steeping.

Happy brewing. John

Reply to
JS

I had another thought since my first answer. I was trying to visualize why the gal. of water would barely cover the grains, then I realized you're using a bag, which gives some vertical dimension to the grains, and the pot is so large that the vol. of water doesn't come up to the height of the grains. Am I right about this? If so, I would suggest using a smaller capacity pot for steeping.

Reply to
JS

DrinksForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.