Half recipes

[Kiltlifter]

Maybe I could find this by searching through the archives but I'm lazy. I want to make a half batch (2.5 gallons) ... do I just cut all the ingredients in half including the hops, gypsum, Irish moss and bottling sugar?

[Payson]

yep.

[brewmonkey]

NO! Cutting or doubling a recipe does not always produce "half" batches or double batches. You should recalculate/formulate it as if it were a new recipe for that batch size.

[fretlessman71]

What would you expect to be different for a half batch size? I mean, we trust you, it just seems like halving the recipe shouldn't be an issue...

[Payson]

I assumed extract.... if it is indeed extract, how could there possibly be a difference?

[Kiltlifter]

Originally posted by brewmonkey
NO! Cutting or doubling a recipe does not always produce "half" batches or double batches. You should recalculate/formulate it as if it were a new recipe for that batch size. No experience doing this and all I have to work w/ is a program called Recipator or something like that. So I should be shooting for amounts that yield the same OG, IBU & color as the full batch? "Seems" simple enough. HA!

[Kiltlifter]

Originally posted by Payson
I assumed extract.... if it is indeed extract, how could there possibly be a difference? You are correct. I'm still a brewing infant.

[brewmonkey]

My bad, I was not paying attention to the extract part. However, you should re-calculate your hops with the batch.

When doing all grain you cannot simply halve/double recipes and get the same results.

[Bruno_78]

With all grain, do you have to recalculate grain bills because of mash efficiency?

[brewmonkey]

Originally posted by Bruno_78
With all grain, do you have to recalculate grain bills because of mash efficiency?

With an all grain batch efficiency plays a big part in the recipe. Since you generally only have 1 tun around for mashing in several factors come into play.

Simple issues like depth of the grain bed or composition of the grist will be effected by a change in recipe. If you take a grain bill for a 10 USG batch and reduce it to 5 USG, you would obviously have a thinner grain bed and could reasonably expect to see an increase in efficiency. Less would equal more if that makes sense.

[fretlessman71]

AHA! So, do the hulls tend to absorb a lot of would-be wort? Is there maybe a way to make a more efficient tun by making it flatter?

[MARK123]

I use a cube cooler (the $12 one) with a Copper manifold that is out 1 inch from the perimetor..and as I do a 1 hour sparge(slow but worthy) I believe you will get what u want!...You have to remember 1 oz of 15 alpha at 1.050 gravity....is not the same as 2 oz alpha at 1.010 gravity!.. see here...

http://www.hotv.org/tools/hopSchedule.html