Getting a rolling boil on a kitchen stove

4 gallons is a lot to do on the stove you may want to drop that to 2-3 gallons. When I was stove top I started with 2.5 gallons and made some decent beer. Also do a quick search for drop in water heaters. That will cut the boil time down a little.

 

depends.
consistency is important. adding your bittering hops at the point you reach a full boil is best. you want to boil your wort for 60 minutes. so technically if your wort is 200F, it isn't boiling. it's just hot. but it is not a mistake if you were to toss in your bittering addition at 200 and ramp up to full boil.

you may find that "boiling" for 60 minutes on a kitchen stove is really a 120 minute affair.

as for having a full boil, the activity of the boil is important, not only the temp. you don't need a raging cauldron, but a good rolling boil is just that. it helps to do more than just extract ibu's.
Cheers.

 

My first batch never came to a full rolling boil, I had a few bubbles here and there and that is when I started the timer for the 60 minutes, I feel like this was a mistake because my OG was pretty low and my ABV was a lot lower then I wanted it to be and what it should have been per the recipe. The beer still tasted great, but I wonder if I just stuck to 60 minutes regardless of a rolling boil or not, would it have been better? Lately, I partial cover the brew kettle and it boils no problem, I never go over 2.5 gallons, 3 when running some water through some specialty grains and I don't seem to have a problem at all getting it to boil. Depending on batch size, I generally stick to a strict schedule.

 

You want to start your 60 mins once the boil starts rolling, this will ensure you reach your target gravity, IBU's, and drive off DMS.

 

Gas or electric? I just did a 4 gallon boil on my stove top yesterday, and yes it took approx. 20-30 minutes for the wort to boil. It was a nice rolling boil, but nothing aggressive where it was splashing over the edge. My range is natural gas, which IMHO, is infinity times better than an electric range. Consider the wort boiling when it's boiling, even if it takes 30 minutes. If you add hops prior to the boil/60 min. consider it FWH.

 

If you can find a pot/kettle that is wide enough to stradle 2 burners you can essentially double your BTU input. I have a 8 gal kettle that fits perfectly on 2 burners. Another thing you can do is use your lid until it's almost up to a boil. If making an IPA the extra time it takes to get to a boil can be an advantage with First Wort Hopping (FWH)...if you lay off the caramel specialty grains, your beer should stay pretty light, too. Cheers

 

Consider too that the more aggressive the boil is that you'll probably have more water boiled off. So if you don't think you can get good bubbling during the boil (and you're doing a full boil for the size of your recipe), don't add too much extra water (if any) or you'll end up with a watered-down beer.

 

“Double, double toil and trouble; fire burn, and caldron bubble.” . . . Shakespeare

From the boil you want both heat and agitation. You want heat to isomerize your hop acids and the agitation helps proteins form (hot break). More is better but moderate amounts can be made to work. Example: New Belgium Brewery (Ft Collins, CO) never boils their wort over 203° and they achieve desired bitterness and clarity. Also, don't let those tiny bubbles hypnotize you, initially expect to find different temps at the top of kettle versus bottom (yes, I've measured). Ideally a good rolling boil eliminates this variation and maximizes your hop isomerization.

From a practical point of view; I would start my hop-timer when the surface of the wort reaches 210'ish (assuming sea level) which is probably good enough. If you start the timer earlier (sub 200) I would consider this FWH . . . some isomerization but at a reduced rate. I find when lautering it's more efficient to drain to a small kettle (1 gallon or less) then transfer to Mr Big which has a fire underneath. You obviously will have multiple transfers to fill the kettle, the advantage is early wort is heating versus cooling down in a large kettle waiting for the last runnings. If you do a mash-out, the wort will go into the kettle in the 160'ish range versus no mash-out and wort typically in the 140'ish zone. Every little bit helps.

For more science of boiling I found this article from BYO helpful.

Finally, you ain't a brewer till you've had a boil over . . . the story goes that Tony Magee (Lagunitas) set his stove on FIRE!

And what's with BA's spell-checker not being able to handle "isomerization"? . . . where's a Moderator when you need one?

 

.

if a boil over makes you a real brewer, I must be world class...


isomerization? may as well add

kegerator
keezer
Sanke
wort
and if it is foreign...
vorlauf
hefe
krausen
Reinheitsgebot
or taken directly from the BA glossary...
diacetyl
estery
lauter


and so forth.

 

Get a 2nd kettle and split your boil on two burners. Might save you some time. Depends a bit on your burners though.

 

You might try leaving the lid on until you get to the boiling point. That would heat it up faster and the actual boil would take care of DMS issues. The lid will definitely increase the risk of a boil over.

 

There are lots of heat stick builds for homebrewers. That is what I used when I was inside.

Here is one I quickly found. You get the idea. Look around and find a build that works. If you aren't handy enough with electricity pay a buddy that is in homebrew.

https://exbeeriments.wordpress.com/2012/12/21/heat-stick-1-homebrew/

 

Looks like a brewer . . . talks like a brewer . . . acts like a brewer: must be a brewer

 

I leave my lid on all the way until I get a boil, then depending on the weather (I brew outside) I either remove it completely or leave it 1/2 way. Never had a DMS problem.

 

Leave the lid full-on until you get a full rolling boil.

Then ... place a (13") fry-pan splatter screen under the lid which allows steam to escape while holding in the heat needed to maintain a rolling boil.

You'll need to tip the lid from time to time to drain off the condensate b/c you don't want it returning to the boil.

 

^^^ What???

 

http://www.amazon.com/Allied-Precis...&qid=1424311424&sr=8-1&keywords=bucket+heater

or split between two pots. Otherwise you're outside on a turkey fryer like the rest of us.

 

What what?