Doin' Brewin'- House Stout

Mash tun/brew kettle all bundled up for the mash

When you are a lil' brewer girl there are some things to consider about your brew set up.  Most involve lifting heavy things, which can be, well, too heavy.  Also, when I started brewing all-grain, I had limited space for equipment.  Brew-in-a-bag was the perfect option for me.  Seemed easy enough with not a lot of investment or space needed.  A giant brewpot with a spout was perfect for eliminating some lifting and pouring.  Stilts on my burner means I can drain the wort into a carboy, which is usually in a wheeled cooler, and off I go to the fermenting closet.  The only lifting that is left is to get the carboy up to the counter for transfers.  I think I can handle that.

I do a full volume mash in my kettle.  I think in the future I am going to change this approach.  I am going to make some markings in the kettle so I can do a thicker mash then fill with extra water to the appropriate level for pre-boil.  Sometimes I get some thin beers which could be a result of bad recipe design or from a super thin mash.  Either way, my kettle can barely hold all the grain and water for full volume so if I only accomplish making a little less mess, then so be it.

 Wrapped up the kettle will usually drop about 10 degrees through the 60 minutes.  I don't seem to suffer any negative consequences.  

On this cold winter day in the mountains, it seems as though a stout is in order.  I have brewed this recipe several times, tweaking bits of it here and there.  It always seems to please.

Batch Size	5.000 gal	Boil Size	5.750 gal
Boil Time	60.000 min	Efficiency	70%
OG	1.057	FG	1.014
ABV	5.5%	Bitterness	43.1 IBU (Tinseth)
Color	41.7 srm (Morey)	Calories (per 12 oz.)	187

Fermentables

Total grain: 12.250 lb

Name	Type	Amount	Mashed	Late	Yield	Color
Pale Malt (2 Row) US	Grain	10.000 lb	Yes	No	79%	2.0 srm
Carafa II	Grain	4.000 oz	No	No	70%	412.0 srm
Caramel/Crystal Malt - 40L	Grain	8.000 oz	No	No	74%	40.0 srm
Roasted Barley	Grain	8.000 oz	No	No	55%	300.0 srm
Chocolate Malt (US)	Grain	16.000 oz	No	No	60%	350.0 srm

Hops

Name	Alpha	Amount	Use	Time	Form	IBU
Northern Brewer	10.6%	1.000 oz	Boil	60.000 min	Pellet	34.6
Northern Brewer	8.6%	0.500 oz	Boil	20.000 min	Pellet	8.5

Yeast

Name	Type	Form	Amount	Stage
Safale S-05	Ale	Dry	2.232 tsp	Primary

Fermenting in the closet			Transfer time