Extract question

Unfortunately not. When the malt extract was made, it was heated to high temps / boiled. The high heat denatured the enzymes.

 

Some grains can't be "steeped" because they require a certain amount of water, at a given temperature range, over an extended period of time, to convert. I put "steeped" in parentheses because you really are steeping grains when you mash, you are just doing so under the control of the above three factors. The presence of grains that do not need to be mashed are not required to add enzymes for conversion of base grains.

 

From what I understand: The point of doing the steeping for extract brewers is to add some color and flavor. It's not that you "shouldn't" steep them, it's that you shouldn't steep a whole lot of them. When you steep them, complex sugars are released. The complex sugars can not be broken down by the yeast you use. They could be food for contaminant microbes, or add to haze in your finished beer. But like I said if it isn't a whole lot, I wouldn't worry about it. Especially is it's from a kit / recipe that has some good reviews.

 

Correct. Time plus temperature plus mash thickness is all you should need for conversion, even with 100% base malt.

 

You might get some fermintables, but not much. I'm still learning the subject of all grain and starch conversion so I could be missing something. But that's what I've taken home from what I've read.

 

@crcostel some grains can be steeped but other grains need to be mashed.

An example of grains which can be steeped are crystal/caramel malts.

An example of grains which need to be mashed are base malts like 2-row malt.

You need to steep or mash accordingly.

Cheers!

 

Run it through a brew calculator to see how fermentable a grain is...add a few pounds of a base grain like 2 Row and see how many gravity points it gives you, then change it from 2 Row to a crystal grain like Crystal 20 and see how many gravity points is adds in comparison. http://www.brewersfriend.com/homebrew/recipe/calculator/

You'll notice there isn't much change overall, indicating that many specialty grains DO contain plenty of fermentables. Many specialty grains are just a base grain that has been roasted, kilned or cured differently to create the color and flavor.

 

I have never heard anybody discuss this before. I personally have only steeped grains (like crystal malt) separate from the extract.

Cheers!

 

Maybe, it depends on exactly which grains. Like someone else said, put it in some software to find out.

 

Ya, I was under the impression that the roasting / modifying removed most, if not all the diastatic property. Thanks, I guess I miss read somewhere.

 

Roasting destroys (or at least denatures) the enzymes, thus removing the diastatic power. It doesn't remove the sugars/dextrins that were produced. If steeping, the sugars/dextrins are available to be extracted into the wort. If mashing, the sugars/dextrins are available to be extracted into the wort, and any residual starches can be converted by the base malt's enzymes. For Crystal Malts and Dark Roasted Malts, the residual starches are very low, which is why it's okay to simply steep them.

(Diastatic Power <> Fermentability)

 

Theoretically? If you steep your specialty grains in wort (i.e. water that already has a lot of malt extract dissolved in it) as opposed to steeping them in hot water then adding this TO your wort, the extraction of fermentables from your steeped grains could be reduced slightly. To understand why, you have to think of it in really extreme terms. If you dissolved so much extract in the wort that it was saturated with sugars, you couldn't extract any more at all from your steeping grains.

In practice? The difference is likely negligible if you're only steeping a pound or two in a low or medium gravity wort.

The larger point - as others have mentioned already - is that the 'grains that can't be steeped' still can't be steeped like tea regardless of whether you steep them in water or wort. But you *can* mini-mash them in a bag by placing them in a small pot of water (~1 - 2 qt of water per pound of grain) and heating until the temperature reaches ~ 155 F (lower for better fermentability, higher for more body and residual sweetness). Hold it at that temp for at least 30 minutes. (Typical mash time is 60 min, but conversion happens faster than that in most cases). Remove the bag, rinse it with some water at ~ 170F and transfer the liquid to your kettle pre-boil.

 

Thanks for clearing this up for me. I knew it removed the diastatic powers, but I didn't think there would be much (hardly any) readily ferment-able sugars in any of the specialty grains. But that only applies to crystal and very dark roasted malts apparently.