Malt Conditioning - Why and How
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- čas přidán 5. 09. 2024
- Looking to have a better flowing grain bed but don't want to use rice hulls? Malt conditioning may be a solution for you. It is possible to pick a few more gravity points using malt conditioning.
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I condition my malt every brew now. It works. Helps to keep the husk intact and helps provide a good filter bed. I make lagers with cooked rice and pilsner malt. I don't need to use rice hulls. Try it. You'll be surprised and the aroma is amazing.
Thanks for the tip!
No brainer. Tried it once… never going back. So much better a result for the husks.
I have tried conditioning, but didn't really find any difference compared to not doing it. I do however run the mill with my drill at the lowest speed it can go without stopping, and I believe that does the trick of just shredding the husk rather than pulverise it. At the end it takes maybe a couple of minutes longer to mill the grains, but the extra time pays off, and I don't have to mess around with water and even more stuff to clean.
Conditioned malt, slow transfers, underletting gets you some ultra clear/clean wort
Yes sir!!
Great explanation of an underused technique. I’m especially intrigued to see if this can tame rye mashes - I always have a hard time with those.
Thanks!
Using biab, pulverizing is good and efficient. No stuck sparges, no prewetting the grain and the recirculation for an hour works great.
Yes sir!!
I have done this for years, I use a 3% by weight ratio, and the largest basin that I have to spread the grain and water out as far as possible, and leave it for 30 min to 2 hours before cracking the grain.
Brain thank for this video! I appreciate how you have been doing"short" videos on specific techniques or processes. Where I am at it is extremely difficult to get rice hulls and this might work for giving me piece of mind from getting a stuck mash.
Awesome! Let me know how it goes!;👍🍻
@@ShortCircuitedBrewers BTW I was unsubscribed from your channel, I might have fat fingered it but might want to let your subscribers know to check that they are still subscribed.
@@fastforwardx2937 oh wow thanks for that! 👍🍻
I can’t help but thank for helping me with my homebrewing. I watch all your videos and you have helped me so much with your videos. Keep up the great work! I’m about to buy a shirt and get some of your coasters and beer glasses. I look forward to every one of your videos. Thank you!
Also future patreon subscriber.
👍🍻
I really appreciate that feedback it keeps me going to know that people are getting help from my videos!! I do appreciate the merge support as well!! 👍🍻
James Hoffman does a similar video related to grinding coffee beans. In that case, adding water to the whole beans reduces the static electricity. The ground coffee comes out in clumps rather than it jumping out of the container.
Interesting I've not seen that before I may have to go search that out. Thanks! 🍻👍
I love the short videos! Keep em coming! It was interesting to see a side by side and how different they look.
Yeah! Thanks! 👍🍻
I haven't been conditioning my grain but these results have me considering it. My crush looks just like your dry example. Great tips. 🍻
Thanks!! Much appreciated! 👍🍻
I use pretty much the same container to condition grains ,it works a treat
I have used the Brewer's Friend description for grain conditioning and, once I did it, I became a believer. Grain conditioning has been a game changer for me. BF description recommended waiting 10 minutes and you don't. I agree with you and crushing immediately. I want the husks pliable, if the wait causes the hull to soften, that is counterproductive. IMHO. When I recommend the practice on forums, I will now refer to this video in the future instead of the BF description.
Thank you for the feedback! 👍🍻
Nice, succinct video. You do a great job with these. I have been conditioning my malt for years. I can't find the article I read about it that started me down this path but I wait 15 minutes after the last "spritz" before milling. Also, I shake the plastic container as I spritz. Seems to even out the moisture.
Cool good tips! 🍻👍
I’ve done it in the past when I was using a barley crusher mill and it produced the best crush. I did run into having “dough” stuck in my mill over time and needed to clean the rollers well however. But I generally don’t do it as I try to simplify my brew day and spend less time on non-critical steps. It is absolutely a solid approach for the best possible crush tho.
Yeah there's a little bit of a fine line between saturated enough to keep the husks intact and too wet and doughy. I have heard of people running a little bit of dry grain through the mill if it gets kind of gummed up to help dry everything out. 👍🍻
Thanks Brian, good to know the water volume is 2%. I imagine many people trying this without knowing that and ending up with a soggy mess and gummed up rollers then blaming the process not their execution of it.
For sure! 👍🍻
@@ShortCircuitedBrewers not understanding the 2% ... so 5lbs of grain x .02 = .10 so ... how much water is that? Or do you convert lbs to oz so 5lbs is 80oz / .02 = 1.6oz water?
Yup just math ,🍻👍
Great stuff, ive been thinking about start8ng this for a while and after my last milling it mafe my mind up.
Let me know how it goes! 👍🍻
I’ve been doing this a lot lately, I describe it as being “fluffier”.
What I do is simple do what you did but in the mill itself.
In the mill?
@@ShortCircuitedBrewers
NOT WHEN ITS RUNNING LOL! I pour 4-5 lbs of grains in the hopper, spray water and mix by hand, mill, repeat. Probably not as efficient as what your doing but it works and one less thing to clean. But anything more than 5 gal batches and I would do like you showed.
Haha.. ok I was confused!! That makes sense now. 🍻👍
Done as requested.
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Great interesting video I've never done this. I mill my grain really fine but I use a bag so I'm never too worried about a stuck sparge
Never tried this before. Very cool technique Brian. Thank you for showing! Love these quick how-to videos. Cheers!
Thanks Matt! 👍🍻
Great video as alway !! I have been wet milling for around 5 years now , if a person is just wanting to give it a try I recommend using the large heavy duty clear bags your grain comes in from the HBS .. I double my up which allows me to easily work the grain post spritz - then tie the bag shut for 15 mins while I get mill set up ( .032 is the setting I use for my foundry )
Good tip!! 👍🍻
I started conditioning grain with 2% water a little over a year ago and really like the results. The only difference is I let the grain sit for 15 minutes before milling to let the moisture soak into the husk.
Yeah you can do that. I never had to do that as long as it wasn't to wet..🍻👍
Using a mister and a wide tub is actually a great approach. Might try it at some point. However, unlike Brian, I personally like using a 23 litres bucket. It fits my grain bill for a 35 litre batch, and I can shake/roll/dance with the (closed!) bucket after adding the 2% by weight of water. Makes it easy to get uniform distribution of the humidity without having to sink your hands in the grain.
Gotcha. Let me know how it goes. ,👍🍻
I’ll definitely try this technique on my next brew day! I’m sure this method will cut down on the grain dust as well!😷🍻
Yes it does cut down on dust as well! 👍🍻
Great job! Really enjoy the educational videos keep it up! Very helpful information! They help us all become better home brewers!
Thanks for the feedback! 👍🍻
Enjoying the content. Thanks for explaining this!
Never heard of this technique before so I’m intrigued to try it. Thanks for the video!
Try it and let me know how it goes. Has some of the comments are said don't use it for wheat or rye it'll make a gummy mess. Everything else is fine! 👍🍻
I love your insight videos Brian, I’m on a steep learning curve for grain to glass brewing and follow your channel as each time I brew I do it a little better.
Great to hear! Keep it up! 👍🍻
Good stuff! Never heard of doing that.
Give it a shot it really doesn't take much equipment! 👍🍻
Thanks for this. I had a bunch of questions because I wanted to start doing this with my foundry. I set to credit card thickness, but started needing to add quite a bit of rice hulls to prevent a stuck mash. I’ll play with this and see how much of a difference it makes!
First time hearing about this. Thanks for the tip!
Great. It's a technique that a lot of large-scale breweries use. 👍🍻
Conditioning the grains also helps with 1) less dust, 2) less or no static electricity and 3) if you mill is getting worn it helps the rollers grab the grains.
All good points! 👍🍻
This is new to me! Love learning about new techniques and I'll have to give it a go! Cheers Brian!
👍🍻
I avoid the whole situation by crushing fine and doing BIAB. No stuck mashes or sparge issues, improved clarity and ease of brewing...downside is -perhaps- a little efficiency...I just want to make great beer, not great statistics on beermaking.
If it's working. Stick with it! 👍🍻
Great video as always Brian.Have never tried this but am thinking I need to. Being here down under watched a video on The Home Brew Network a couple of years ago before I started all grain brewing. Great video would recommend if your interested.
Yep I've seen Gavin's video on it. Good stuff! 👍🍻
Never even heard of this. I do not yet have a mill, and my LHBS's mill sometimes leaves whole kernels. My brewhouse efficiency is all over the board and I'd love to be more consistent. Better crush on the kernels and intact husks sounds pretty great. Guess what's going on my Christmas list!
Haha nice! 🍻👍
@@ShortCircuitedBrewers speaking of, how about a "What to look for in a grain mill" video, or maybe a head to head comparison of some popular models? Thanks again for the tips and tricks type videos, keep em coming!
@@dexterne thanks for the suggestion! I'll see what I can do!
Thanks for this! Just got my first mill and I've read about this technique. I will definitely be doing it on my next brew.
Sweet let me know how it goes! 🍻👍
Great tip. I will indeed be trying this on the new little "HotRod" system. The big Breweasy seems to slow drain and the autosparge seems to run tooo fast even at a trickle, dropping the level in the boil kettle too close to the Boilcoil. It works, just not very well with the autosparge. I am forced to control the flow on the Riptide. I thought the crush was too fine, but opening the rolls and crushing larger changed nothing.
Let me know how it goes! 👍🍻
Great video like always. Ill try this method in my next brew for sure . Thanks for your great videos. Always a pleasure to watch it.
Thanks!! Much appreciated! 👍🍻
Nice tip! I've read about this in the past but never tried it. I might try it out soon now. Thanks Brian!
Let me know how it goes! 🍻👍
Really do enjoy this content. Something I’ve been thinking about to do for a while. Thanks again.
Thanks man! 👍🍻
Good video Brian! Been conditioning for some time, but really like the plastic tub idea to more evenly do it!
Yeah it work really well! 👍🍻
Nice Brian - I've done wet conditioning a bit in the past. Makes a big difference. Had to laugh when you talked about metric being easier/more accurate but then went on feel. 😊 though I agree, you can definitely tell when it's ready. Cheers
Lol yeah that was a tough one to verbally navigate! Especially with ky juvenile mins!! Cheers Mate! 👍🍻
Interesting! I never knew about this, been brewing for a long time and I love finding new things to try.
Awesome!! Glad to introduce you to something new Braj!! 👍🍻
Try it out once, and never went back, I always condition de grain, I leave 10% grain un conditioned for the lass batch on the mill, you need to clean the mill right away though, or as me, you will need to clean and brush a lot a few days later, never again stuck mashed, I actually mill thinner than credit card, I go about 0.035
That is absolutely a good tip to run some dry grains through the mill afterwards!! Thanks for mentioning it! 👍🍻
Why not, lets try it. Thanks
Let me know how it goes! 👍🍻
@@ShortCircuitedBrewers It might take some time for me to make a new batch, but I assure you I will try. I see interesting possibilities. Thanks again for bringing new ways
Thanks!! Much appreciated! 👍🍻
Very cool technique! Always wondered about that. Thanks!
Thanks! 👍🍻
Thanks, Keep up the good work!
Will do!! 👍🍻
I think I'm going to give this a shot during my next brew day. Have you ever experienced issues with your grain mill slipping where it just spins but the grains don't pass through to get milled? I ran into this the last time that I brewed and I wonder if the moisture of the conditioned grains might help.
It might. Usually that is a sign your gap is too tight..most lower end mills have only one roller that drives the grain through. Higher end mills pull the grain through with both rollers and don't have that issue..the conditioning will help since it softens the husks and they will go through the mill easier. 👍🍻
Love videos like this
Thanks for the feedback!
Thanks 😊 🙏
👍🍻
Going to give this a try. Thanks for a great vid!
Thanks! 👍🍻
Cool video Brian. I’ve never conditioned my grains before. I actually do a double crush because I’m using a DIY clawhammer system with the screen basket. Not sure if that’s the right way or not but thought it would give me the best efficiency. Sláinte
Thanks Brian! 👍🍻
My new Clawhammer system, I found that double milling improved my efficiency (as recommended by them). I wonder if this would improve that as well? Excellent video Sir!
Thanks!! It might? Give it a try! 👍🍻
Would love to see two identical brews side-by-side to see the difference in efficiency.
Good idea..
@@ShortCircuitedBrewers Diff in efficiency and the diff in babying the mash process. I am fighting with stuck mashes at credit card sized gap with grainfather and find i need to stir it way too much to keep the recirculation moving (and steady temp). Am going to try the conditioning on my next batch to see if that helps.
@@njayneer99 let me know how it goes!
Brian, I wouldn't necessarily recommend a finer crush when you do malt conditioning, at least from my perspective as I do a 0.0375 for all but rye malt with the Anvil Foundry and when I remember to do malt conditioning, I simply get a cleaner wort as the malt bed is just a better filter due to the husks staying in tact. I would recommend after soaking the grains in the water (direct or sprayed (direct is a PITA and yes that is an acronym)) and once it is well mixed in, to simply give it a minute or two before stirring it up once more and then give it about 10 to 15 minutes and the grains shouldn't be sticky anymore but as you mentioned they should be a little more flexible when you squeeze them. That rest before crushing them is key in my opinion and NEVER malt condition rye....once you do it and try to crush it, you will NEVER do it again...I promise you on that one.
Lol heard! 👍🍻
@@ShortCircuitedBrewers I had to buy metal brushes to scrub the rye off my grain rollers after trying to crush malt conditioned rye...I will never do that again. Never had that problem with any grains, except rye...I try to warn everyone as it sucked to clean those rollers as they were gummed up massively and almost caused my drill to overheat.
@@BitterRealityBrewing yuck that doesn't sound fun at all!
@@BitterRealityBrewing Sounds like the equivalent of using a file card to clean your files. Was it just a stiff stainless brush or softer brass one?
@@jasonz1810 I bought a set but sadly to get the rye out it took a semi-stiff one to get it all clean. Understand I probably hadn't cleaned the malt crusher since I had it which was probably like 6+ years and never had that issue before. I malt condition from time to time but it was the first time doing Rye which is a bit of a shock as I love putting rye in just about everything to some degree. I still malt condition from time to time (need to do it a lot more often as it really helps with the grain bed a lot) but I will never do Rye ever again.
Hey Brian, great video! This may be a stupid question but do you use straight tap water, or distilled? 🍻
You can use either. The distilled will last longer. 4-6 months tap water last about a month..👍🍻
I wonder if one living in a humid part of the country would this be necessary? Deep South Texas is sub tropical enviroment.
Lol no doubt!! I lived in North Central TX and it was 90+% humidity most days!! 👍🍻
Been intending to start conditioning the grain but for some reason I keep forgetting
It's easy to do. With everything else you have to do for brewing. 👍🍻
How does it go through the rollers? Does it cause any problems?
I have been brewing for 28 years. After my first stuck mash, I started using rice hulls whether I really needed to or not. I've never seen this method before. From what I gather this ONLY affects the hull of the grain and not the interior which remains the same. So it just keeps the hull intact correct? An increase in efficiency comes from a better runoff or sparge.
You got it! 👍🍻
In my experience I did not gain any efficiency. Perhaps I got the grain to wet and the mill just squeezed the grain not allowing the germ and endosperm to be exposed enough. I need to do this a few times to see if it is worth the effort and time.
Definitely try it again.the big bin like I talked about really helps make sure the grain doesn't get too wet. 👍🍻
BRAJ VIBES ENGAGED
Locked and loaded. Power up achieved!!
Thanks a lot brian! Do you not do this for certain types of grain or just in general with all of your grain bill including adjuncts like flaked oats wheat etc?
I would just do it with base malts honestly.. Crystal malt is fine. But I wouldn't do it with wheat or any flake that junks cuz it just turns gummy. 👍🍻
@@ShortCircuitedBrewers thanks a ton!
I used to condition my grain, but got out of the habit, mostly because it was a pain to do in a bucket. It never occurred to me to use a different container like the one you used here. Duhhhhhh! I'll go to Walmart and start conditioning my grain again. I used to let my grain "rest" for about 20 minutes after conditioning before I milled. Do you do that?
I've done that in the part as well. Doesn't hurt anything. And if you over saturate the grain it lets it dry out so your mill doesn't gum up. 🍻👍
Great info. I'll have to ry it when I start doing all grain again. Friends have been giving me extract kits to brew. Once I'm through with those I will have to try this. Does this formula look right for this method? 10 lbs = 160 Oz*.02 = 3.2 oz of water Just want to make sure I understand. Cheers!
Looks right to me!
Won't the wet grains rust my mill rollers?
Seems like it could introduce unwanted water in the mill.
Has anyone had any issues like this ?
You don't get the grain that wet. Grain will absorb a lot of water. All.you want to do is wet the grain enough to get the husks pliable so they come out intact.. this is why I say to wait for a little be before milling after conditioning. Never had any issues with the rollers rusting in my experience with it.. 👍🍻
@@ShortCircuitedBrewers Great, I'll try that. So far I've been pretty happy at how my mill crush the grain, it doesn't seem to shred the husks and the grains is properly mill into tiny pieces and there's only a very small to nothing amount of dust/flour in the end.
When you do this and then mill the grains, do you have to use the grains pretty quickly, or are they ok overnight? Cheers
I would avoid overnight as the grain can begin to turn sour by creating lactic acid.
Did it make your mill gummy? Any effect on your mill??
Nope not at all. You just have to make sure you don't oversaturate the grain.
Do you ever have an issue where the grain gets all stuck in the mill doing it this way?
I accidentally started mashing grain that had me been milled properly one time and strained it w my BIAB as best I could but than it was the biggest pain ever trying to mill after that cause it kept getting clumped up and sticking in the mill.
I've not had any issues with that but you have to make sure you don't oversaturate the grain. As I showed in the video and explained you want to wet and stir the grain until the husks just become pliable. If they're too saturated they'll definitely come up your mill.
I even let the grain sit for an hour after spraying it wet and never had issues with clumps. Maybe you used too much water?
And, oh: don't do that with Rye or Wheat! Those will clump. I mill them seperately (even smaller gap).
@@kroddn3511 haha rye wheat glue is all the rage!! Lol
I work in a home brew shop. How long do you think it will take before my customers start asking me to spray down their grains before I mill them? 🤔
I would consider doing this if I had my own mill, but at work I could only imagine it making a bigger mess.
Oh man...just say no in the homebrew shop!! 👍🍻
Of course, their problem would be by the time they brought the conditioned, crushed grain home, and maybe brewed with it a day or two later, the lactic acid bacteria would be starting to grow and sour the grain. Fine if you're doing a sour, not so good otherwise.
Oh!! That's a unintentional side affect!!
Does this improve efficiency for reasons other than "better lautering"? I grind my own grain for my Spike Solo system and have had some early issues with stuck mashes, but since then I've just happily thrown rice hulls in and move on with my life. From a "cost versus effort+time" perspective it seems like a no brainer to just keep using hulls.
If that's working and you're happy stick with it. This video is just showing people some other techniques. 👍🍻
@@ShortCircuitedBrewers Cool, just making sure I hadn't missed something materially different in terms of outcomes. Its definitely a technique I'll remember for when I'm doing a "big" beer where I'm pushing the limits for my mash basket volume, cutting 1-2lbs of hulls at that point could become significant.
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When I biab i normally mill finer than normal. Is conditioning helpful when using a bag?
It won't hurt anything. It's not as critical on biab as the bag helps with it. But the finer you grind the more flour you produce. Which can cause your beers to be cloudy. If you're going for that then of course it's good but if you're not then conditioning might help produce less flour but crush the grain a little finer. 🍻👍
@@ShortCircuitedBrewers word!
😁😁
I'd like to try this, but are you sure about your calculations? You say, to calculate the water needed, you divide the weight of your grain by 2%. So, for 10 lbs of grain, I'd need 10/.02, or 500 lbs of water - a little over 59 gallons. Are you sure that's right?
2% of your grain weight in water. Which would be 26 oz by weight.
@@ShortCircuitedBrewers That would be multiplying - your video clearly says to divide by 2%.