Basic All-Grain System Instructions

The Basic AGS contains:

Mash/Lauter tun

Sparge water tank

Setup

Cleaning. Rinse and sanitize all components before they come into contact with wort or brewing water. After the initial use, it will not be necessary to sanitize mashing equipment before use as long as it is surface-clean.

Assemble the mash/lauter tun. Locate the bucket with the 7/16” hole (smaller of the two holes) – this will be the mash/lauter tun. Insert the false bottom, elbow side up, in the bucket – it should rest flat on the bottom. Pass one end of the 3/8” ID tubing through the hole in the MLT and attach the end that is inside the MLT to the barbed elbow of the false bottom. On the outside of the MLT, cut the hose at a point about 6” from the bucket wall; splice the in-line valve into the hose.

Assemble the sparge water tank. Install the spigot in the bucket (make sure the gasket is on the outside). Hand tighten the nut on the inside. Fill the sparge tank with water to check for leaks. If you notice a leak around the spigot, you may need to either tighten or loosen the nut. An overtightened nut can distort the gasket, causing a leak.

Connecting and testing the system

1.Get set up. Your Basic All-grain system is powered by gravity. The sparge water tank will need to be the highest point of your system, with the boiling kettle the lowest point. The mash/lauter tun will need to be in between. Place the sparge water tank on a table or counter; place the mash/lauter tun on a chair or stool beneath it. The boiling kettle will rest on the floor beneath the MLT to collect the wort.

2.Connect the sprayer to the sparge water tank spigot. You will need to cut more hose to connect the spigot on the sparge water tank to the sprayer. Cut from the free end of the hose on the outside of the mash/lauter tun (not in between the in-line valve and the MLT, or from the section of hose inside the MLT). There should be enough hose left over on the in-line valve to go from the MLT to the bottom of the boiling kettle. Let the sprayer hang several inches down into the mash/lauter tun.

3.Attach the remaining length of tubing to the mash/lauter tun valve, and let the free end hang inside the boiling kettle.

4. Close the valves on both vessels. Fill the sparge water tank with a couple gallons of water.

5.Open the valve on the sparge water tank – the sprayer should deliver a gentle drizzle of water to the mash/lauter tun (you can adjust the flow rate using the valve on the sparge water tank).

6.When a few inches of water have collected in the mash/lauter tun, open the in-line valve. You should be able to easily adjust the flow of the water going into the boiling kettle.

7. The lid can be used on the mash/lauter tun during the mash and on the sparge water tank during sparging to help retain heat.

Getting ready to brew

This battle station is operational, commander. Please read through the entire mashing and sparging instructions that follow before starting to brew! And remember - Be careful! All-grain brewing involves working with heavy vessels full of very hot liquids.

Crash Course in Mashing

Mashing is the process of using heat, water, and malted grain to create a wort with fermentable sugars. The steps below describe the procedure for conducting a single-step infusion mash. This is the simplest type of mash schedule and is used extensively in ale brewing, and has been gaining favor for lager brewing as well.

Mashing Principles and Advice

In an infusion mash, water is heated to a given temperature, called the strike temperature. The warm water is mixed with crushed grain, and the mixture (now called the mash) stabilizes at a lower temperature which is the mash temperature. Because this type of mash rests at only one temperature, it is a single-step infusion mash – other mashes use multiple rests at different temperatures.

For a single-step infusion mash, use about 1.5 quarts of water per pound of grain in the recipe – so for a batch using 8 pounds of grain, you will need about 12 quarts of water for the mash. Collect and heat more mash water than you think you'll need.

At a temperature range of 140° to 167°F, enzymes in the mash activate and convert complex starches to simple sugar molecules that are fermentable by yeast. When the mash temperature is kept in this range for about sixty minutes, you have completed the saccharification rest. Refer to your recipe for the specific temperature – most recipes call for a mash temperature between 150 and 158°F for the saccharification rest.

When mixing the grain and water, stir thoroughly to break up any clumps.

It can be difficult to precisely measure the mash temperature - a mash contains hot spots, cold spots and temperature gradients. Stir the mash well and take several temperature readings to estimate the average temperature. A responsive, accurate and unbreakable thermometer is recommended.

When brewing, you may not hit the mash temperature called for by the recipe exactly. Don't panic — if you undershoot the target mash temperature by more than than a few degrees, you can add infusions of hot water to the mash tun, and if you overshoot you can add infusions of cold water. Be sure to stir well and measure the temperature after each infusion.

Avoid temperatures greater than 170° F until you are ready to finish the mashing process. Temperatures in this range will destroy the malt enzymes. If you measure temperatures greater than 170°F in your mash, quickly cool the mash by adding cold water.

A mash-out is an optional step after the saccharification rest, where the mash temperature is raised to 170° F for about five minutes. This accomplishes two things: it destroys the enzymes in the mash, preventing additional and/or undesirable starch conversion, and the combination of heat and more water makes the sugars more soluble and easier to separate from the grain.

Take good notes! At a minimum, you should log the time and temperature before and after every significant heat input.

Single-step Infusion Mash Procedure

1.Collect and heat the strike water. Collect 1.5 quarts of water for every pound of grain to be mashed. In a kettle, heat the water to a strike temperature of 175° F. Pour the heated water into the mash tun. Slowly add the grist (crushed grain) to the water in the mash tun, stirring well to prevent clumping. The temperature should stabilize at 154° F. Hot or cold water can be added to correct the temperature, but don't worry if the temperature is slightly off. Do not let the mash temperature exceed 170° F during this step, or you may destroy the enzymes needed for starch conversion.

2.Saccharification rest. Rest at this temperature for 60 minutes. You will need to insulate the MLT to help hold a steady temp – an old sleeping bag works great.

3.Collect and heat the sparge water. While the mash is resting, collect sparge water – 2 quarts of water per pound of dry grist in the recipe. Heat the sparge water to 170° F - (see the section Crash course in lautering and sparging, below).

4.Optional mash-out. When the saccharification rest is finished, conduct an optional mash-out by raising the mash temperature to 170° F - add very hot (200° F) water to the mash, stirring constantly, and rest at 170° F for 5 minutes.

5.Prepare to lauter and sparge. Once the sparge water has reached 170° F, transfer it to the sparge water tank and continue with the procedure for sparging given below.

Crash course in lautering and sparging

Lautering is the process of separating the newly-made wort from the spent grain in the mash/lauter tun. Sparging is the process of rinsing the spent grain with hot water to minimize the amount of fermentable sugar left behind with the grain.

Your Basic All-grain System is designed for continuous sparging, the most commonly-used method of sparging and one that achieves higher extraction of sugars than other methods. Continuous sparging is suitable for use with any type of mash schedule.

Principles and advice

After the saccharification rest is complete, the liquid portion of the mash – the wort – needs to be separated from the grain so it can be collected in the brew kettle to be boiled with hops. With the false bottom in the MLT acting as a strainer, the process of lautering is basically a matter of opening the valve and draining the liquid while the grain solids are left behind. However, if the wort is allowed to drain or run off too quickly by opening the valve all the way, the combination of suction and the weight of the mash can clog the false bottom or valve and slow or stop the flow of wort entirely. Run the wort off slowly.

When the MLT valve is first opened, you will notice that the wort is cloudy and full of grain particles. To clear the wort prior to the boil, it is recirculated through the bed of spent grain in the MLT, where the grain husks and kernels will act as a filter. Using two pitchers of about 1 quart volume, start a slow, continuous runoff and fill one pitcher; as you slowly pour the first pitcher back into the top of the MLT, fill the second. After a few minutes, the wort should be noticeably clearer (still hazy but not cloudy and turbid) and free from large particles.

After recirculation is complete, it's time to start collecting wort for the boil. At the same time that the wort is run off to the boiling kettle, the spent grains are sparged with hot water. The purpose of sparging is to rinse out and collect as much sugar as possible and to bring the amount of wort up to the correct pre-boil volume (the correct pre-boil volume depends on a number of factors and your equipment, but as a rough guideline it is usually about 6.5 gallons of pre-boil wort for a 5 gallon batch, or 13 gallons for a 10 gallon batch).

As with the mash-out, the hot sparge water makes the sugars more soluble and easier to separate from the grain. The optimum temperature for sparge water is 170°F. More than a few degrees cooler and sparging will not be effective as the sugars are less soluble; more than a couple degrees warmer and harsh-tasting compounds will be extracted from the grain husks.

For a continuous sparge, use about 2 quarts of water per pound of grain in the recipe – so for a batch using 8 pounds of grain, you will need about 16 quarts of water for the sparge.

Your Deluxe All-grain System is designed to use a continuous sparge, where the sparge water is delivered to the MLT at the same time and at approximately the same rate as the wort is run off. In a continuous sparge, the wort is run off until there is about 1 inch of liquid left above the level of the grain bed, then the valve on the sparge water tank is opened. As the wort continues to drain from the MLT to the brew kettle, the sparge water maintains the level of liquid 1 inch above the grain bed.

The delivery of sparge water to the MLT should be gentle and steady. If the flow of sparge water is too fast or strong, it can create channels in the grain bed and lower efficiency.

The sparge is finished when the gravity of the runoff is SG 1.008/approx. 2° Brix (yay refractometers!) or the correct pre-boil volume is reached, whichever comes first.

Continuous Sparge Procedure

The steps below describe the procedure for continuous sparging, the most commonly-used method of sparging and one that achieves higher extraction of sugars than other methods. Continuous sparging is suitable for use with any type of mash schedule.

1.Get set up. Your Basic All-grain system is powered by gravity. The sparge water tank will need to be the highest point of your system, with the boiling kettle the lowest point, with the mash/lauter tun in between. Attach tubing to the valves on the SWT and MLT, with the sparge sprayer resting inside the MLT just above the grain bed.

2.Recirculate the wort. Attach tubing to the mash/lauter tun ball valve. Slowly open the valve on the MLT and collect the runoff in an intermediate vessel(s) – two 1 quart measuring cups or pitchers work well. Fill one pitcher, then switch the tube to the other pitcher, and gently pour the collected wort back on top of the grain in the MLT. Make sure you keep the grain bed covered with liquid; do not allow it to go dry! Adjust the flow rate out of the MLT if needed. After a few minutes, the wort should be noticeably clearer (hazy but not cloudy and turbid) and free from large particles.

3.Begin collecting wort in the boiling kettle. Move the end of the outflow tube to the boiling kettle and run wort off until the level of liquid inside the MLT is about 1 inch above the grain. Immediately continue with step #4.

4.Begin sparging. Open the valve on the sparge water tank to gently disperse the hot sparge water over the top of the grain bed. Balance the flow rates so that the grain bed is always covered with liquid. As in recirculating, do not allow the grain bed to go dry until sparging is complete.

5.End of sparging. The sparge is finished when the gravity of the runoff is SG 1.008/approx. 2° Brix or the correct pre-boil volume is reached, whichever comes first.

6.Begin the boil. Move the kettle to a burner (it's very heavy and hot – be careful!) and proceed with the boil. Clean your all-grain system thoroughly and rinse it with hot water; store components dry to keep them ready for the next brew day!

Good things to know

Stuck mashes and sparges

A stuck mash or sparge occurs when the runnings from the mash/lauter tun slow to a trickle and stop because the filter bed of husks has clogged. Sometimes suction and the weight of the mash can compact the grain bed and exacerbate the problem. This may be caused by running wort off too quickly crushing the grain too fine, putting too much sparge water on the grain bed, losing too much heat in the lauter tun, and/or using glutinous adjuncts like wheat, oats or unmalted barley.

To remedy a stuck mash, close the valve and stop adding sparge water. Gently stir the mash to get the grain up into suspension (adding a bit of sparge water may help). Slowly begin to draw wort off, repeating the recirculation step before re-collecting wort. In extreme instances you may have to remove the mash, clean the mash/lauter tun, put the mash back in the lauter tun, reheat the mash to 168° F, and start over.

Other mash schedules

Some recipes may call for a series of different temperature rests within the same mash (for example, 122°F and 152°F). This schedule requires a multi-step mash or a decoction mash. A detailed explanation is beyond the scope of these instructions; please see the list of Resources and Further Reading, below, and experiment!

Other sparging techniques

In recent years, other sparging techniques – most notably batch sparging – have become quite popular with homebrewers. While none are as efficient as continuous sparging in terms of ingredient usage and yield, each method offers advantages in the way of simplicity, effort, and time. A detailed explanation of each is beyond the scope of these instructions; please see the list of Resources and Further Reading, below, and experiment!

Resources and Further reading