Putting unmilled material in grist case

[Sir Brewsalot]

I seem to recall reading a post about this before, but my searches came up with nothing, so here goes...

I'm doing my first commercial batch of a Belgian Wit and have what I'd describe as a healthy amount of concern about a stuck mash. It's a 7.5bbl batch, and I'll be adding 50lb of rice hulls to mitigate this (total grain bill-475lbs including the rice hulls), so my question is:

Is there an easy way to ensure that I get a consistent distribution of the rice hulls (and for that matter the flaked wheat and oats that don't go thru the mill) in the grain bed? I was planning on just alternating these direct additions with the grain sacks I'm running through the mill. I figured that this layering combined with the way the grist case empties from the center should give me enough mixing action.

Sound reasonable? Other tips? Enough rice hulls? Too much rice hulls? Too much worry? Not enough relaxing?

Thanks,
Scott

[zbrew2k]

I would use about 10lbs to start with in your 7.5 bbl batch. You can add them to the mill, and probably not see any problems with that. Its best if you can stir them into the mash just after mash in although that may be impossible. So adding through your mill may be the only way. Trickle them in so they are distributed across the grist.

If that causes a long run off, then increase it by 5lbs and try again till it is what you seek.

I've had some problems adding too much (50bls per 20bbl batch). They can make grain out difficult also.

So don't worry! Relax!

B
PS: I use 1lb ground coriander, 20lbs of bitter orange peel, 1lb Black Pepper per 20bbl batch. Peels go in a giant bouquet garni in my whirlpool. Ground items into the kettle just before end of boil/transfer. Good Luck with the Wit, they are great for Summer!

[Ted Briggs]

I have found that I get a lot of rice hulls at the end of grist-in even when adding them throughout the process though the auger. I believe it is because my Grist case has a severe cone (60%) and the heavier grains "rat hole" though to the bottom. If you have a similar setup you may want to add them by hand into the tun as you grist-in.
I am curious to hear what "problems adding too much" zbrew2k had. I use 3 lg ice scoopers per bag- appx. 10% of grist

[Sir Brewsalot]

CRIMINI! I knew I was dumping in too much, but I had no idea I was off by a factor of 5!!!

Wait... another post. 10% of total grain bill... that's a bit closer.

Okay, so after putting in WAY too many rice hulls, and jamming up the auger twice during mash-in with them, I finally had to disassemble the downstream end of the auger and rig a big ol' cardboard funnel up in the mill room to get it to move. Egad. What a mess.

So while I'm screwing up this brew - can I bounce my corriander and bitter orange additions off of you guys? A prompt reply is appreciated, as the boil will be underway within the next 15 min. Still time to dial it in...

7.5bbl batch target OG=1.045
Ground corriander: 36oz (or 2.25lb) at 7 min left in boil
Bitter Orange peel: 40oz (or 2.5lb) at 20 min left in boil

And do we like to boil for 90 min or just 60?

I'd offer to buy you a beer, but after reading this, maybe you wouldn't want to drink any of mine!

Thanks,
Scott

[Greenbrewmonkey]

Hello Scott!

You could easily cut your additions in half, if not more. I would top out the coriander at 25 oz max and orange peel at 11-12 oz max. You could even go less as zbrew2k suggested. With spicing finesse is always best!

90 min boil for sure. Better protein coagulation, finer flavor, and better downline stability.

Cheers,
Ron

[Sir Brewsalot]

Hey, thanks. I scaled them back a bit, but not to the degree you've suggested. We'll see. And a small correction to my original post: My corriander was not powdered, but instead "crushed" by me with a Philmill this morning. That may drop back the utilization a bit I think (I hope!!!).

Orange peels: I only dropped back to 2 lbs, so that could be a problem. Thaty said, of the 2, I think I'd rather overdo the orange than the corr.

This is the first time I've made more than 10 gallons of this beer, so the scale-up process was less than perfect in many areas. I may be brewing another batch of it soon to blend with this one, and take the spicing back a bit... always a handy option.

90 minutes was my inclination, so that's one thing that was right on. Thanks! I'm knocking out now.

So tell me, what other resource do you know that can offer real-time brewing consulting to help the novice pro-brewer find his way... and for free.

This site rules. Thank you so much everybody.

Cheers,
Scott

[Greenbrewmonkey]

Best of luck with that Scott!

I've found (the hard way!) that it is easier to overdo the orange peel than it is the coriander. Especially bitter orange. If you notice a high level of bitter astringency in the finished beer, all else being equal (e.g. not from any of the myriad other things that can bring about astringency), it could be the large amount of orange. Orange is good as an accent, too much and watch out for those bitter oils! I hesitate (as in don't do it!) to go over 16 oz per 10 bbl. The odd thing about orange; sometimes less is more. I've used less, and tasted beers that have used less, and that end up with far more aroma.

Its an oddworld...

Cheers,
Ron

[gitchegumee]

I've never added rice hulls to any beer even with 50% wheat or 12% rolled oats. Just have to lauter carefully--slow at first, gradually increasing transfer rate while watching your differential pressure the whole time. And be careful! Coriander seeds are almost the exact same diameter as the plate-to-plate distance on small brewery heat exchangers. I powder them whth a coffee mill. Advise you to disassemble and inspect if knock out is longer than anticipated. Good luck.

[lhall]

We add rice hulls directly to the mash tun before milling in, making sure to wet them down well with the plate water. Since we have to stir the mash in by hand anyway, we can get the rice hulls evenly distributed. We use half a 50 lb bag per 600 lbs of grain, about 4 %. Measuring out the rice hulls is a big pain, so we eyeball half the bag and just cut open the bag over the mash tun foorway, letting the hulls "explode" into the mash tun!

Cheers,

Linus Hall
Yazoo Brewing