Executing the Mash and Sparge
Now that you know the theory and terminology, how about executing an actual mash and sparge? Here is a simple single-infusion mash using the Boat Brake Water Vapor or Pater's Uncle Enkel recipes. The stress on this brew is learning the technique!
Your First All-Grain Brew Day
Water Prep. Measure out your water. For the Boat Brake Water Vapor recipe, heat 3.25 gallons of strike water to 165°F for the mash (1.25 quarts × 10.5 pounds of grain / 4). For Pater's Uncle Enkel heat roughly 2.25 gallons of strike water to 165°F (1.25 quarts × 7.0 pounds of grain / 4). Heat an additional 7 gallons of water to 170°F for the sparge (adjust the volume once you have a better feel for your system's need, but extra hot water is always welcome on a brew deck).
Dough In. When your strike water hits temperature, start adding the malt. While rapidly stirring the water, slowly add the crushed malt into the vortex. Mix until all the grain is added. Slowly stir the mash, revealing and crushing any dough balls of malt that you find. Cover the mash tun and wait.
Saccharification Rest. Wait ten minutes after your last stirring and check the rest temperature. You should be near the target. If not, add hot water to boost the temperature or cold water or ice to cool. Stir and recheck. Don't fret a couple degrees difference. Wait sixty minutes.
Iodine Test. Confirm that you've successfully converted your starch by putting a small, liquid-only sample on a white plate and adding a drop of iodine. If the iodine turns purple, wait another ten minutes and try for a cleaner sample. If it stays the same color, you're ready to go.
Vorlauf. A fancy German word for recirculation. When you partially crack open the valve and pull the initial runnings from the mash, a ton of grain follows with it. As you continue to pull wort and return it gently to the mash, the grain bed and husks will set up and start to produce clear wort. Once the wort runs free of any large particulate matter, move on.
Sparging. The last unique all-grain step, the sparge is just a bulked-up version of extract grain rinsing. Aim for a sixty-minute sparge, so move slowly. Add enough hot (170°F) water to hold the water level an inch above the grain bed. Once you've gathered five gallons in the boil kettle, stop adding water and let the runoff continue until you have collected 6.5 gallons or so. Alternatively, monitor the gravity of your runoff and stop when the gravity reaches 1.010. Let the mash cool, while bringing your beer to a boil. From here on out, it's exactly the same as a full-boil extract batch.
Chilling. While the beer is boiling, clean and sanitize your carboys. Make sure to have your chiller ready to go. Immersion chiller users, add your chiller to the boil kettle just after adding the whirlfloc and yeast nutrient. Counterflow chiller users, rinse, clean, and sanitize your chiller prior to use.
Iodine is toxic taken in pure forms and tastes horrible in beer. Don't add any iodine test samples back to the mash!
Following the instructions above, you'll have executed a “fly sparge.” There are multiple approaches to sparging. Fly sparging is the method of choice because it maximizes efficiency and is practical on a large scale. Two alternative homebrewing philosophies to explore online are “batch sparging” and its radical cousin “no-sparge brewing.”
