Beer Forum

I have a 15-20 gallon system and I don´t have a good supply of DME (nobody sell this in Brazil, and if they do, the prices are absurd).

So I am wondering about making mini-batches of all-grain beer to make my wort for starters. It would work like this:

- On a small kettle I would mash-in 2 lbs. pilsner malt (cheaper here) with about 8-10 qts. of water. Mash for 60 min at 155, then drain using a big strainer, no mash-out, no-sparge, directly into another pan. Wait 5 minutes for particles to settle, then transfer again to 2000mL or 4000mL (when I find one) erlenmeyer flasks. Boil, cool, then add yeast.

Does this sound about right? Any advice? Has anybody done this?

philbrasil wrote:I have a 15-20 gallon system and I don´t have a good supply of DME (nobody sell this in Brazil, and if they do, the prices are absurd).

So I am wondering about making mini-batches of all-grain beer to make my wort for starters. It would work like this:

- On a small kettle I would mash-in 2 lbs. pilsner malt (cheaper here) with about 8-10 qts. of water. Mash for 60 min at 155, then drain using a big strainer, no mash-out, no-sparge, directly into another pan. Wait 5 minutes for particles to settle, then transfer again to 2000mL or 4000mL (when I find one) erlenmeyer flasks. Boil, cool, then add yeast.

Does this sound about right? Any advice? Has anybody done this?

That sounds good to me. But to prevent too much pouring and repouring, I would use a grain bag.

After you complete your runnings into the kettle on your system, try one last small sparge and check the gravity. You may find you've got wort over 1.020 which will be great for a starter. I take this wort and use Mason jars and a pressure cooker to sterilize a bunch of starter. I keep these in a fridge with my yeast, so both are at the same temperature when I spin them up on a stirplate.

good advice. I tried the mason jar technique once, but I didnt have a pressure cooker, so I left boiling in a pot for 30 minutes, but I guess it wasnt enough..... Something grew in a week. A have a pressure cooker now and I might try this..

What are your all's thoughts on freezing just the wort - no yeast to be reused at a later time using the same methods as DME for a starter?

Freezing is ok however I would then (re)boil it then chill down in ice batch or similar, before pitching yeast into it.

I have been saving a quart of wort from each batch collected as it goes to fermenter to use to make the starter for my next batch. I store it in mason jar (no pressure cooker) in fridge for up to a month or so. I then just add enough pre boiled and chilled water to dilute it down to bet 1.030 and 1.040. When I'm ready, I boil it for 10 mins, adding yeast nutrient, and then chill in ice bath to pitch temp. Also, stir plate makes a HUGE difference. If you don't have one and feel you can't afford to buy one then build one. The parts are cheap and or free. That's what I did. Lag phase with an 18hr, 1 liter starter on my last batch of 1.057 beer with 1 vial WLP002 was 45 min at 63 degrees. Have'nt had a problem yet.