Mashing high

[ChristianSA]

What is the maximum mashing temp you have ever done?

I am thinking about mashing a low ABV mild as warm as possible to maximize mouth feel and recidual sweetness. I have mashed at 70C with good results but have never gone higher out of fear to denature the enzymes.

Any advice?

-Christian

[jwalts]

Low Ridin'

My advice is to mash low. Seriously. In my experience with low-abv beers, mashing high results in a syrupy viscosity that kills sessionability. You can prevent the beer from being too thin by using ingredients like Belgian dark candi syrup (http://darkcandi.com/d.html).

Joe

[ChristianSA]

Mmmmmm! viscous...

Hi Joe,

Thanks for the reply.

My advice is to mash low. Seriously. In my experience with low-abv beers, mashing high results in a syrupy viscosity that kills sessionability. You can prevent the beer from being too thin by using ingredients like Belgian dark candi syrup (http://darkcandi.com/d.html).

Joe

That is not really my impression. Being almost 100% fermentable I would believe that would actually have the opposite effect.

I have used dark candii syrup (both bougt and homemade) to "cut" the malt profile of dark belgians and stouts to provide them with greater drinkability.

Anyway having it a bit syrupy and viscous would be OK as I am aiming for <3% and would need all the help I can get to avoid it getting thin.



-Christian

[jwalts]

I suppose I should have said "seeming too thin" instead of "being too thin". Dark candi syrup combats the perception of wateriness by adding flavor complexity, even though the resulting beers are well-attenuated.

As for mashing high, I've heard of people going as high as 162F/72C. Because alpha amylase works so quickly (especially at elevated temperatures), it's hard to denature it before it's done with its job. I've even heard it postulated - maybe by Michael Lewis, but I don't remember - that brewers shouldn't worry about alpha amylase because, during the mashout and/or sparge (i.e. at high temperatures), the starches it breaks down simply break down on their own. I don't know if that's true or not.

You could experiment with different temperatures pretty easily with a with a scaled-down mash and some iodine. As long as iodine doesn't turn the wort black or purple, you should be good to go.

Joe

[jwalts]

Never mind about high temperatures breaking starches down during sparging. Since large starches can end up in finished beer, i.e. they survive boiling, I obviously mixed something up. Maybe the theory was just that alpha amylase works quickly enough at mashout/sparge temperatures that full conversion still occurs.

Joe

[Øl-sheik]

Hejsa,

I´m mashing up to 74 C, if I need a extra low fermentation degree. The apha-amylases is first fully denatured at 76 C, you mimimum mash out temperature.

[ChristianSA]

Hi Christoph,

What post-ferm. OG/FG do you get from doing that?

Is that for your Hvidtøl?


-Christian

[beerking1]

I brewed a beer that I did primary fermentation with Wyeast's Roselair blend. I used 33% mixed crystal malts, and mashed at 71C. The resulting wort was heavy, sweet, and very complex with 6 different crystal malts. Finished beer was dry and extremely well attenuated, thanks to the bugs in the blend.

[Moonlight]

Mashing high? Happy 420, dudes!

[Øl-sheik]

What post-ferm. OG/FG do you get from doing that?

I get a RDA (real degree of attenuation) of 60 %. I tried to lower that a little, but did not succeed. I guess using large amounts of special malt, would lower it further.

Is that for your Hvidtøl?

No, I stop fermentation of the Hvidtøl about 14 h after pitching yeast, and end up with about 1,8 % alc. We are doing stopped fermentation aswell for Danmarks most popular Ale, to get a RDA of about 50%. But this gives you many other things to consider, like diacetyl or sulfur that will remain in the beer in elevated levels.

[gitchegumee]

Hey Moonlight, THAT WAS FUNNY! Cheers to you!

[ChristianSA]

I get a RDA (real degree of attenuation) of 60 %. I tried to lower that a little, but did not succeed. I guess using large amounts of special malt, would lower it further.



No, I stop fermentation of the Hvidtøl about 14 h after pitching yeast, and end up with about 1,8 % alc. We are doing stopped fermentation aswell for Danmarks most popular Ale, to get a RDA of about 50%. But this gives you many other things to consider, like diacetyl or sulfur that will remain in the beer in elevated levels.

RDA of 50 - Wow! - That would explain why it is sickly sweet.

-Christian