What is wrong with my mash?

Discussion in 'Homebrewing' started by ghostinthemachine, Dec 26, 2015.

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  1. HerbMeowing

    HerbMeowing Maven (1,295) Nov 10, 2010 Virginia
    Trader

    Drain pour. ;/
     
  2. ghostinthemachine

    ghostinthemachine Initiate (0) Aug 14, 2015 Louisiana

    NOOOO!!! I think this will end up being a tasty imperial pale ale haha
     
  3. GetMeAnIPA

    GetMeAnIPA Pooh-Bah (2,559) Mar 28, 2009 California
    Pooh-Bah


    Ahh, I was thinking 1.062 post, probably pump those Ibus up. You'll probably gonna end up with a dipa now.

    Why the iodine test? Are you having efficiency or attentuation issues? I am still new to brewing, @10+ all grain batches via biab and I've never had the need to use iodine. I get 70%+ effiency and get good attenuation. The wort always tastes nice sweet when I am done with mashing. I do full volume 90 min mashes.

    A 4 hour mash is probably why you got so much more sugar.
     
  4. ghostinthemachine

    ghostinthemachine Initiate (0) Aug 14, 2015 Louisiana

    I normally do 90 minute mashes. The wort didn't taste sweet at all so I checked with iodine to see if there was any starches present. I iodine turned jet black so not very much conversion. It was a full volume mash. 8.5 gallons of water to 15.5 lbs of grain. I wish I had had a hop shot instead of an ounce of magnum so i could have upped the IBUs.

    I am going to figure out what I have to add to the water before my next brew day.
     
  5. utahbeerdude

    utahbeerdude Maven (1,374) May 2, 2006 Utah

    Although you will get conversion with mash pH close to 6.0, it will be slower than optimum. Kai Troester has an excellent web page related to the effects of various parameters on the mash efficiency and wort fermentability. Everyone interested in mash chemistry should read this page.

    Your problem is your water is really, really lousy for mashing. The ions mostly come from dissolved sodium bicarbonate, which gives you a lot of alkalinity without any Ca or Mg to ameliorate the effect of this alkalinity in the mash (as pointed out by @hopfenunmaltz).

    You basically have two options. (1) Use distilled water and treat it using salts and/or acids. (2) Treat your existing water with salts and/or acids. The upside to (1) is you can produce good water for any style of beer. The upside to (2) is it is cheaper. The downside to (2) is your existing water will need more salt and/or acid treatment in order to get the mash pH where you want it. Also, your existing water is pretty high in sodium, which may or may nor be ideal for at least some beers.
     
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