Beerworks All Grain Kit Instructions

PLEASE READ FULLY BEFORE STARTING.

All Equipment that will come into contact with the beer should be sterilised and rinsed before starting.

Mashing Transfer to a place to allow fermentation. This can be between 15 and 24 °C but as a

The first thing we need to do is covert the starches contained in the malt to fermentable and non-fermentable sugars. We recommend that our mash kits should be made using a single temperature mash.

Here is the suggested method

On the market you can find many different vessels for doing this from the popular Thorne Electrim Bru Heat Bucket to cool boxes fitted with kettle elements to many homemade versions. The main criteria are good insulation, being able to separate the sweet wort from the spent grain and being able to maintain a constant temperature.

Whatever type you are using the method is the same. Firstly heat the water to 75 to 80 °C. Then add the bag of grain slowly ensuring that it’s mixed well and there are no lumps.

This will then give you the “Total Liquor (litres)” shown on the front cover. Then stir well and check the temperature to reach 64 to 67 °C. We then need to maintain the “mash” temperature for 90 minutes.

Secondly when we are nearing completion of the mash we need to heat up “Mash liquor (litres)” as shown on the front cover of water to 80 °C. This is our sparging water which we will use to wash the grains. We need to use a sparging arm, watering can or jug to pour the water slowly over the grain.

This should take about 45 to 60 minutes in total (pouring and collecting) to collect the final volume. Here we are extracting all the goodness from the grains to produce the malt for our beer fermentation.

Boiling

Once we have collected the wort then we need to do a vigorous boil with the bittering hops for 90 minutes. Any additional hops (as labelled) need to be added for the last 10 minutes of the boil along with the Protofloc tablet.

Cool the wort (use a copper coil or piping and run cold water through it or even ice packs) as quickly as possible as this will prevent oxidation and reduce the chances of bacterial infection. Transfer this into your fermentation bucket (unless it’s already in it).

Fermentation

When the temperature has cooled to 15 to 24 °C add the yeast into the wort. Open the yeast sachet and lightly sprinkle over the wort. Stir in well and place the lid on the bucket.

Transfer to a place to allow fermentation. This can be between 15 and 24 °C but as a preference if we can maintain 18 to 20 °C then that’s really good.

Some people will do a transfer from the primary fermentation vessel to a secondary vessel after 3 days. They will typically use a wine fermenter with an airlock fitted while the primary fermenter will be a bucket with lid.

Final gravity of the beer will be as on the front page (Final Gravity). This is known by do a reading one day after another and making sure it’s the same. If in doubt then leave it a further day. When fermentation is complete the beer should be transferred to bottles or a barrel.

Bottling/Barrelling

At this point we can add some finings to the beer. We suggest this is done before bottling or barrelling. Add the finings to the fermentation container and leave for 24 to 36 hours to clear.

It doesn’t matter if this is not totally clear but will take out a lot of the bits floating in the liquid. Similarly heading powder can also be added. Now transfer the beer into bottles or a barrel.

Bottling

Bottles should be cleaned and sterilised and one teaspoon of sugar (priming sugar) should be added to each 500ml, the bottles sealed and then left in a warm place for 2 days to start the secondary fermentation. They can then be left in a cool place to clear.

Barreling

Barrels should again be cleaned and sterilised and then transfer the beer into the container. Add 125g (5oz) of sugar (priming sugar) dissolved in 200ml (1/2 pint) of warm water to the keg. Seal the keg which should be fitted with a suitable pressure release valve and leave in a warm place for 3-5 days to start the secondary fermentation.

Then transfer to a cool place to clear. Preferably place the keg in a place that doesn’t need to be moved.