Trying to understand the whole process of iodine conversion. Those who step mash and those who don’t when do you test? How much iodine does it take, just a drop right? Is a hydrometer a tool you can gauge your conversion based on gravity points? Any tips for a successful mash? Clarity can’t be that great, so how do you “Check for it” other than iodine, or is that the only way?
Most test at about the 1 hour point or whatever time they figure conversion should be complete. A few drops of wort without grain in it on a white saucer and then add a drop or 2 of iodine.
While I don’t argue against them, I never perform an iodine test.
I don’t do iodine test either. I maybe did one or two back in the day and found them random and unreliable. If you mash in a cooler, hit your mash temp fairly accurately, and mash long enough, you will get conversion.
Yes, I think a more useful test is for the gravity of the mash. You can have conversion of the starches in solution, but bad extraction for other reasons (crush, etc).
I never do an iodine test. The majority of my beers are mashed at 152F for 60 minutes. If I were to mash at 148-150F, I would go for 90 minutes. My conversion rates are always above 90%, even though the only numbers I really care about are pre-boil and post-boil gravity. I never step mash, either. I do have one wheat beer recipe that is 70% wheat; for that beer I use a decoction mash.
When I first learned to brew some many years ago, I tried a lot of tricks and variations and other things that are sometimes recommended (iodine, funny gadgetry, etc.) After I learned the true meaning of “relax, don’t worry, have a homebrew,” and stopped all the shenanigans and tomfoolery, my beers showed a definite improvement, and my frustration level went way down.
Totally agree with this. And I find the iodine test to have no value since it’s easy to screw it up. Unless you really mess up, you WILL have conversion in 60 min.
So I was brewing yesterday, all done and yeast is going strong. I am trying to identify how and why there is so much sediment in my brew. My first thought was bad conversion, or a bad mill (shop guy struggled with his mill, one roller got backed up with grains and stuck),but idk. there is 4L of sediment 5.5 hrs after pitching yeast, had not reached high krausen yet.
Batch was a Dunkelweizen, trying a full batch without decoction (per your suggestion/debate/advice denny). Hoping to make one with decoction later this weekend, if life does not get in the way…
11.75lbs of grain 7.2G
49.02% Wheat Weyerman
21.96% Pale Chateau
9.41% Munich Light 7L Best
7.85% Flaked Wheat Chateau
7.84% Brown Sugar (Kroger ;))
3.92% Chocolate Wheat Weyerman
So 60%ish wheat remaining Brown Sugar, munich, and pale. I had a very cloudy wort, but I figured it to be from the almost 8% flaked wheat, a full lbs. I got a HUGE conversion after the a multistep mash.
I did a rest at 114F and held for 30 mins 1.35qt/lbs
then stepped up to 133F for 10 mins @ 1.50/qt
then finally 1.95/lbs for a thin mash at 152F for 50 mins (added chocolate wheat in this step) pH 5.5.
Checked gravity and saw a much bigger than expected 1.052 @ 68F in my hydrometer. As far as I see that is 87-88% efficiency. I, assuming I am more than good to go at 90 mins, mashed out for 15 mins. 169.2F was the highest “hot spot”. So I just thought I would scale back on my sugar addition in the kettle since I went over. But now like I said before I have a HUGE amount of sediment in my fermenter. It doesn’t seem right, 4L is usually what I end up with. Not start out with. So I am told from my brew buddies that gravity points are not indication of the mash being complete, and I thought it was. So I never thought to check with a starch test. Although NOW I am worried that this is going to be a pain to get all cleared up. Not that it would effect the flavor of my product, but a hassle to my process. Unless I am wrong and it will jack up the flavor… would it?
This is what my vorlauf looked like, this is after 12L pulled and dumped back in. IDK what the deal was, but my fermenter smells heavenly.
This was 4:00 yesterday only 30 hrs after pitching yeast
Yeast is super healthy though, its a great looking fermentation.
pH is a wee bit on the high side. Might have something to do with it. What did you do for sparge or is a no sparge?
With the flaked wheat and the beta glucan and protein rest, you likely got a huge amount of teig in the mash. I wouldn’t worry as it’s a weizen.
I batch sparge… and teig? Wth is teig, bout to ask google
Probably not Texas educators insurance group… German for dough or pastry? And this…
I couldn’t make this up…
Teig
A female who’s irresistible looks and charming personality makes men flock to her. Usually but not limited to being a cougar-type, a freak in the bed, unpredictable, and makes even the strongest of men become whipped: possibly from her time interacting with a succubus at her workplace
Dough on top of the mash. I get a lot of it using Pils malt.
Maybe. But the other definition was WAY funnier 