Hi all
As a long-time lurker on these boards, I just wanted to pop out of the shadows to say thanks to everyone for the advice and help you've given me (albeit unwittingly I guess.) I've been a kit brewer for a couple of years but I've been looking to get into AG brewing for a while. The major stumbling block for me was the cost of the equipment for AG, or so I thought. I'd overlooked the BIAB bit of the forum until a few weeks ago and it was terrific to find an AG brewing method that seemed so simple and, well, cheap.
Having read virtually all of the posts in this bit of the forum, and having kicked the idea around in my head for a while, yesterday I finally took the plunge and did my first Mini-BIAB brew, aiming for a Yorkshire-style best bitter with an OG of 1042, using mainly Styrian Goldings in homage to TT Landlord. I used a 22 litre pot on my gas hob, having worked out the quantities for the recipe using Beersmith 2 (which I was pleased to see has a Mini-BIAB equipment profile, making things a lot easier for a newbie like me.) It seems to have gone really well, and I managed to hit my targets for both pre-boil gravity and OG pretty much square on. Now it's just the waiting to see if I've got something drinkable. It smelled pretty good, so here's hoping.
Reading everyone's posts on BIAB in this forum (and at BIABrewer) gave me a lot of confidence that the method would work, and a lot of pointers on how to do it properly. So, thanks again, and hopefully I'll be able to raise a glass to you all in about six weeks time.
BC
First BIAB - A Lurker Says Thanks
-
Beer O'Clock
- It's definitely Lock In Time
- Posts: 6641
- Joined: Sun Mar 28, 2010 5:30 am
- Location: An Aussie in Oxfordshire.
Re: First BIAB - A Lurker Says Thanks
Congrats on "popping your cherry". Oh, and welcome.
BIAB is extremely forgiving. If you follow the process according to what's been written here, then at the very worst you will have something drinkable (providing all the usual sanitation rules have been followed). Once you have a handle on your equipment (oo er missus) and process, then it is easy to produce great beer.
Again, well done.
BIAB is extremely forgiving. If you follow the process according to what's been written here, then at the very worst you will have something drinkable (providing all the usual sanitation rules have been followed). Once you have a handle on your equipment (oo er missus) and process, then it is easy to produce great beer.
Again, well done.
I buy from The Malt Miller
There's Howard Hughes in blue suede shoes, smiling at the majorettes smoking Winston cigarettes. .
-
jimp2003
Re: First BIAB - A Lurker Says Thanks
Nice one BC! Welcome to the forum and to our little sect on the dark side 
Hope the brew turns out well - I am sure it will - and don't forget to let us know the results.
Jim
Hope the brew turns out well - I am sure it will - and don't forget to let us know the results.
Jim
-
Tom_D
Re: First BIAB - A Lurker Says Thanks
Nice work on your first BIAB and welcome! There's no going back now! Let us know how it turns out.
-
EoinMag
Re: First BIAB - A Lurker Says Thanks
Well done, it's not that hard and it makes cracking beer, I've no idea why it gets some peoples backs up so much. It's never going to be a commercial method but as you say it has the beauty of getting around the heavy hardware need of the traditional three vessel method, I think that in itself annoys people sometimes as they wonder how you can do it without all the technology. Here's to your first BIAB and to many more 
-
Valley Commando
Re: First BIAB - A Lurker Says Thanks
Hi and welcome to BIAB! Glad to hear you taking the plunge.
I am currently chugging my way through the results of my first BIAB: I was not disappointed. The beer I made is not perfect yet (a little cloudy and still a bit green!), but its pretty damn drinkable: to the point that I have BIAB AG#2 planned for 15th Oct as the first batch is disappearing rather too well!
I hope this is the first of many successful brews for you. I can reccomend the 40L Buffalo if you decide you want a full length BIAB brewpot in future....
Kind regards,
VC
I am currently chugging my way through the results of my first BIAB: I was not disappointed. The beer I made is not perfect yet (a little cloudy and still a bit green!), but its pretty damn drinkable: to the point that I have BIAB AG#2 planned for 15th Oct as the first batch is disappearing rather too well!
I hope this is the first of many successful brews for you. I can reccomend the 40L Buffalo if you decide you want a full length BIAB brewpot in future....
Kind regards,
VC
-
BedfordshireClanger
Re: First BIAB - A Lurker Says Thanks
Thanks everyone, I'll definitely let you know how it turns out. It's been gurgling away non-stop in the fermenting bin since about an hour after I pitched the yeast (Safale 04) so that's at least one hurdle cleared. I'll be brewing again in a couple of weeks, probably an American IPA (lots of inspiration at the Bedford Beer Festival this afternoon.) I'm thinking an OG of about 1062, with Centennial for bittering and Styrian or EKG for the nose.
@VC Thanks for the recommendation. Space and the indulgence of my better half permitting, I may well follow that up once I've got a few more mini-BIABs under my belt.
Cheers
BC
@VC Thanks for the recommendation. Space and the indulgence of my better half permitting, I may well follow that up once I've got a few more mini-BIABs under my belt.
Cheers
BC
-
RdeV
Re: First BIAB - A Lurker Says Thanks
Well done with your maiden BIAB, you couldn't have picked a better recipe to aim for IMO and glad all the material has been helpful. 
I'd echo Eoin's remarks too, BAIB is not difficult and requires bugger all equipment so its quite attractive to novice brewers keen to give all- grain a whirl, plus it just happens to make brilliant beer- why some folks get all uppity about this remains a mystery to me. Thanks to you as well for reinforcing what I've long believed.
I'd echo Eoin's remarks too, BAIB is not difficult and requires bugger all equipment so its quite attractive to novice brewers keen to give all- grain a whirl, plus it just happens to make brilliant beer- why some folks get all uppity about this remains a mystery to me. Thanks to you as well for reinforcing what I've long believed.
-
BedfordshireClanger
Re: First BIAB - A Lurker Says Thanks
So, a bit belatedly, the update.
I left the beer alone in the fermenter for two weeks, after which the airlock had pretty much stopped bubbling and I took a sample to check the gravity. It had dropped to 1015, and there it stayed for the next three days, despite a gentle stir to re-suspend the yeast. Sod it I thought, and barrelled it.
What amazed me though was that when I took the sample after 14 days, the beer had pretty much dropped bright. I've been a kit brewer for a couple of years, and so I'm just not used to clear beer after such a short time. Normally I'm waiting until the beer has been in the barrel for about a month. Possibly this is the difference between using the yeast that comes with the kits and the Safale? Anyway, naturally I tasted it, and although it was obviously really young, it was actually really good. I've got about another 3-4 weeks until it (in theory) comes into condition. I suspect it won't last too long.
In the meantime, I've already done my second mini-BIAB, not an American IPA as I'd planned, but instead I did a wheat beer with ginger and fresh rosehips. I barrelled that this weekend and I think it's going to be pretty good. I used a mixture of malted wheat and pilsner malt, Saaz, and 2oz each of ginger and rosehips with about 10 minutes of the boil to go. I used Saflager yeast this time, but again it was near-enough bright after two weeks - not quite as much as the first brew, but that's probably down to the wheat. I'm not sure much flavour has come through from the rosehips, though they've added a reddish hue to the beer, but the ginger really comes through. Not overpoweringly so, just a little pleasant heat and sweetness, and its definitely there in the aroma.
All in all, it's been a really encouraging experience so far. I've made two beers that even my largely beer-indifferent wife quite likes, and the beers aren't even ready yet. It fits well with the space I have available for brewing and storage (of both beer and equipment) and it's made the transition from kits to all grain much simpler and much less expensive than I'd feared it might be. Now I just need to buy an immersion chiller and a couple more Brita water filters and my brewday will become considerably shorter. I will say that one of the things that has made BIAB more straightforward for me has been using the mini-BIAB profile in Beersmith, which helped me hit my pre-boil gravity and SG targets dead-on both times I've brewed.
So that's my first month as an all-grain brewer. Good luck to anyone else lurking and thinking about taking the plunge with BIAB. I don't think you'll regret it (says the newbie!) but the beauty of it is that even if you find you don't enjoy it, you won't have lashed out on hundreds of pounds worth of kit to find out.
Cheers, BC
I left the beer alone in the fermenter for two weeks, after which the airlock had pretty much stopped bubbling and I took a sample to check the gravity. It had dropped to 1015, and there it stayed for the next three days, despite a gentle stir to re-suspend the yeast. Sod it I thought, and barrelled it.
What amazed me though was that when I took the sample after 14 days, the beer had pretty much dropped bright. I've been a kit brewer for a couple of years, and so I'm just not used to clear beer after such a short time. Normally I'm waiting until the beer has been in the barrel for about a month. Possibly this is the difference between using the yeast that comes with the kits and the Safale? Anyway, naturally I tasted it, and although it was obviously really young, it was actually really good. I've got about another 3-4 weeks until it (in theory) comes into condition. I suspect it won't last too long.
In the meantime, I've already done my second mini-BIAB, not an American IPA as I'd planned, but instead I did a wheat beer with ginger and fresh rosehips. I barrelled that this weekend and I think it's going to be pretty good. I used a mixture of malted wheat and pilsner malt, Saaz, and 2oz each of ginger and rosehips with about 10 minutes of the boil to go. I used Saflager yeast this time, but again it was near-enough bright after two weeks - not quite as much as the first brew, but that's probably down to the wheat. I'm not sure much flavour has come through from the rosehips, though they've added a reddish hue to the beer, but the ginger really comes through. Not overpoweringly so, just a little pleasant heat and sweetness, and its definitely there in the aroma.
All in all, it's been a really encouraging experience so far. I've made two beers that even my largely beer-indifferent wife quite likes, and the beers aren't even ready yet. It fits well with the space I have available for brewing and storage (of both beer and equipment) and it's made the transition from kits to all grain much simpler and much less expensive than I'd feared it might be. Now I just need to buy an immersion chiller and a couple more Brita water filters and my brewday will become considerably shorter. I will say that one of the things that has made BIAB more straightforward for me has been using the mini-BIAB profile in Beersmith, which helped me hit my pre-boil gravity and SG targets dead-on both times I've brewed.
So that's my first month as an all-grain brewer. Good luck to anyone else lurking and thinking about taking the plunge with BIAB. I don't think you'll regret it (says the newbie!) but the beauty of it is that even if you find you don't enjoy it, you won't have lashed out on hundreds of pounds worth of kit to find out.
Cheers, BC
Re: First BIAB - A Lurker Says Thanks
Good to hear BC. Keep the BIAB flowing! I noticed a big improvement in taste when I did my first BIAB and it seems that you have too.
In the the pursuit of a more objective opinion, I am currently doing an experiement of returning to kits and extract. The aim is to if BIAB makes a big difference or just my brewing process has improved.
Keep it going,
Dan
In the the pursuit of a more objective opinion, I am currently doing an experiement of returning to kits and extract. The aim is to if BIAB makes a big difference or just my brewing process has improved.
Keep it going,
Dan
-
simco999
Re: First BIAB - A Lurker Says Thanks
That's weird - after 25 AG brews I'm giving Ditch's stout a go. Got the kit through today - will brew next week.
Same as you I'm just curious as to how it will turn out. I've done AG stouts in the past but if I can get good results with a kit I'll be happy.
After all the aim is to brew great beer - I don't care how!!!
BTW - I should add I did kits in the past - maybe just not the right ones. I do remember Coopers Ozzie lager was pretty good.
Same as you I'm just curious as to how it will turn out. I've done AG stouts in the past but if I can get good results with a kit I'll be happy.
After all the aim is to brew great beer - I don't care how!!!
BTW - I should add I did kits in the past - maybe just not the right ones. I do remember Coopers Ozzie lager was pretty good.
Re: First BIAB - A Lurker Says Thanks
Sim, nice one. I have a coopers dark ale + 1 kg DME in the FV now. I have done the stout a few times, so thought I would try something different. I also steeped a little crystal and chocolate malt, see if that brings a bit of life back into a kit beer. One thing I noticed was that the brew day seemed to be finished before it really got started 
...
Next up, I am trying an extract brew. 2kg DME, 350g crystal malt, hopped with fuggles and EK goldings. Its going to be interesting to see these tastes to a BIAB.
Have you put down the ditch's stout?
Dan
...Next up, I am trying an extract brew. 2kg DME, 350g crystal malt, hopped with fuggles and EK goldings. Its going to be interesting to see these tastes to a BIAB.
Have you put down the ditch's stout?
Dan
-
Brewtaster
Re: First BIAB - A Lurker Says Thanks
Re the Cooper's dark ale - i'm normally a BIAB man but was given the DA kit as a birthday present - brewed it and tried ita month later and didn't think much of it. tried a month later - still not v. nice. Then last week 3.5 months after brewing i decided to tidy shelving in garage, thought i'd just pour the DA down the drain. Decided to try one last time - and it's now very nice, mellow smooth and rounded. So pls bear this in mind if it's initially disappointing. Still got a Cooper's Canadian Blonde kit on shelf....