Question before embarking on first all-grain

[rich]

Hey Guys,

I'm going to finally give my first all-grain a shot.
My idea is to brew a brown ale. I have 6 lbs of pale ale malt, and a pound each of American Munich Malt, Dark Crystal Malt, and Chocolate Malt.
In terms os the American Munich Malt, the grains aren't cracked, and I don't have a mill, so I was wondering if there were any alternate ways of cracking the grains (rolling pin or something?)
In terms of the Dark Crystal Malt, and Chocolate Malt, will they be alright being thrown in the mash with the other grains? Will they, too, need their share in water?
Finally, I was wondering if the unboiled liquor can be stored in a room temp. fermenting bucket for a day or two? (it's snowing like hell here, and I am foreseeing much work tomorrow in clearing it out).
Gotta admit, I've got some gitters over the prospects of this batch.
Any feedback would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Rich

[Stodbrew]

In a pinch, a rolling pin can be used. It's not the ideal, but it will work. Just make sure you don't crush it too much. Crush it so the malt is in small pieces, not flour, and make sure the husk remains intact.

All of the specialty grains, crystal, chocolate, or whatever else you may use, needs to be mashed, as well. So, yep, throw 'em in.

I wouldn't leave the wort unboiled for very long. There are too many ways it can get infected and turn sour. Sorry, don't mean to scare you. It's really not that hard. Just relax, and drink a few beers, and everything will be fine!:D

Cheers!

Steve

[ray m]

I agree with Stodbrew about the rolling pin method, as well as putting all the specialty grains in the mash as well. Crush the specialty grains (including the chocolate malt) too.

As far as boiling the wort, I would suggest boiling as soon as you can-----the most I would wait to boil the wort is a few hours since there is the chance that, if you let it go a day or two, the wort will sour, especially if left at room temperature. If you must let it sit awhile before boiling, I would store it in a pretty cool place, but don't let it freeze.

If I may offer a suggestion about the amount of chocolate malt you're using----was 1 lb. specified in a recipe? That's an awful lot. A little chocolate malt goes a long way, especially in a mash. Since you're brewing a brown ale, I would use no more than 1/4 lb. You'll be amazed at the color and nice flavor this small amount will add.:)

[brewmonkey]

You need to boil the wort right after mashing unless you are into Belgian sour ales, in which case letting it sit out before you boil it will produce a very acidic wort with a nice tart/sour flavor. Think Rodenbach.

Let it sour for 24 hours and then boil it, pitch a Belgian yeast strain (WLP 530 is my favorite) and do a Rodenbach knockoff.

[OldHooky]

Originally posted by ray m

If I may offer a suggestion about the amount of chocolate malt you're using----was 1 lb. specified in a recipe? That's an awful lot. A little chocolate malt goes a long way, especially in a mash. Since you're brewing a brown ale, I would use no more than 1/4 lb. You'll be amazed at the color and nice flavor this small amount will add.:)

I have to agree. I had a recipe that called for .9 oz and I put 9 oz by mistake and it ended up like a porter.

[rich]

Hey Guys,

I guess I managed to pull the all grain off. I did have some problems maintaining the mash temp, since I was mashing right from my brew pot, and giving periodic blasts of heat, and stirring a lot. For the most part, I maintained the right temp, with the occasional drastic deviation. The OG did come out a lot lower than I wanted, so I had to cheat with some DME to boost it.
One thing though. In the past, I fermented in a bucket, and so was unable to see activity going on. This time, I used a carboy, and the foam (Krausen) has thinned out considerably, but there are no holes in it, whereas with the bucket, whenever I took the top off, only beer would be visible in the middle, with a ring of foam around the outer edge of the bucket and that would be it. Should I wait for the foam to completely dissolve before bottling?
Also, I was curious how slow the wort should be allowed to drain out of the sparge bucket when sparging. I set the spout at just a little more than a trickle. It took probably over an hour. Is this too slow?

Rich

[BucksBrew]

[i]
Also, I was curious how slow the wort should be allowed to drain out of the sparge bucket when sparging. I set the spout at just a little more than a trickle. It took probably over an hour. Is this too slow?

Rich [/B]

I am going to do my first All Grain this Sunday.

I've read that you should sparge 1 qt. per minute.