Another great article/exbeeriment from brulosophy.com taking on the question of squeezing your bag or not and does it really release undesirable tannins that lead to the mouth-puckering astringency some fear.
I recently switched from the batch sparge brewing method where I used a converted cooler MLT with a stainless braided hose to an electric Brew In A Bag (eBIAB) setup, which caused me for the first time to consider a curiously oft debated issue– whether or not squeezing the grain bag following the mash impacted the quality of the finished beer. Initially, the thought of squeezing a full bag of sopping grains suspended over my kettle wasn’t very appealing to me, largely because I prefer cleanliness and precision when brewing, and bag squeezing seemed like a good way to make a mess while simultaneously being less than predictable.
I found it interesting because I also squeeze the crap out of my bag and I was brewing at my LHBS on Saturday and the "old school" brewer next to me was giving me crap about all the tannins. I asked him if he liked the beer I brewed to which he replied yes and I said you didn't notice the tannins those beers so shut your brew hole! LOL
Worrying can spoil the taste of beer more then anything else! ~ Charles Papazian
LouieMacGoo wrote:I found it interesting because I also squeeze the crap out of my bag and I was brewing at my LHBS on Saturday and the "old school" brewer next to me was giving me crap about all the tannins. I asked him if he liked the beer I brewed to which he replied yes and I said you didn't notice the tannins those beers so shut your brew hole! LOL
LouieMacGoo wrote:I found it interesting because I also squeeze the crap out of my bag and I was brewing at my LHBS on Saturday and the "old school" brewer next to me was giving me crap about all the tannins. I asked him if he liked the beer I brewed to which he replied yes and I said you didn't notice the tannins those beers so shut your brew hole! LOL
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Hola y bienvenidos a los Borg!
Worrying can spoil the taste of beer more then anything else! ~ Charles Papazian
LouieMacGoo wrote:I found it interesting because I also squeeze the crap out of my bag and I was brewing at my LHBS on Saturday and the "old school" brewer next to me was giving me crap about all the tannins. I asked him if he liked the beer I brewed to which he replied yes and I said you didn't notice the tannins those beers so shut your brew hole! LOL
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Hola y bienvenidos a los Borg!
Thanks LouieMacGoo, great spanish!! [emoji482] [emoji106]
I used to squeeze the bag, sometimes I just let it drip now. My favorite method of squeezing is to put it in a large strainer and press on it with a plate. That way my hands stay cooler and cleaner. Don't do this too hard with the pot in a sink. You can dislodge the sink. Trust me.
Making beer and stew for the Zombie Apocalypse.
Never mind, there it is.
I propose high pH is more likely to extract tannins than the the force generated by some mild squeezing to coax out the most readily available liquid trapped more in between the grains than actually sqouze out of it.
While I sometimes still press on it, I often just let it drip in the colander while brewing. The additional wort gets added before the end of the boil.
Making beer and stew for the Zombie Apocalypse.
Never mind, there it is.
I squeeze the heck out of the grains. I use a strainer and a pot lid, and I keep twisting the bag to tighten it up as I go. I've won competition awards with the beers I've done this way.
Up Next: FedoraDave's American Ale Fermenting/Conditioning Natural 20 Pale Ale -- Bull Terrier Best Bitter -- King Duncan's Porter -- Schöenwald Schwarzbier -- Littlejohn's Ale Drinking: Crown Top Pale Ale
