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DescriptionMashing is a process wherein sugars in barley and other grains are converted from a complex form to a simple form that can be fermented by yeast. Mashing is done by heating a water-grain mixture to a certain temperature and holding it for a period of time. Enzymes native to barley grain are activated at specific temperatures to complete the sugar conversion. Mashing is used only in Partial or All Grain brewing schedules. Mashing is not required for extract brewing because the syrup extract is derived from grains that have already been mashed and converted. Steeping (the use of specialty grains in extract brewing) is not the same as mashing. While steeping can extract flavors from many grains, it is not very efficient at extracting sugars from the grains. Typical efficiencies for steeping is only in the 15% range (by weight) while mashing produces sugar extraction efficiencies in the 65-77% range. BeerSmith supports advanced mashing profiles including any combination of infusion, temperature or decoction mashing. The Mash StepThe mashing process is usually divided into steps. A step consists of holding the grain-water mixture at a fixed temperature for a period of time. In BeerSmith you can easily add and define a series of mash steps to create a mash profile. The simplest, and most widely used mash process is a single step infusion mash. It can be used with any modern well-modified grain that has less than 50% adjuncts. Here a measured quantity of hot water is added to achieve a mash temperature of between 152-158 F. This temperature is held for 40-90 minutes to convert the sugars. Steps SupportedBeerSmith fully supports the following types of mash steps: Infusion - In an infusion step, a measured amount of hot water is added to raise the temperature of the mash to the desired temperature. The step temperature is then maintained either with heat or by using some kind of insulating container (such as a large insulated water cooler or picnic cooler). For mash steps, BeerSmith calculates the amount of water to add based on the amount of grain, starting temperature, target step temperature and if desired the mash tun thermal characteristics. Temperature - In a temperature mash step, direct heat from a stove or burner is applied to the mash to raise and maintain the desired temperature. For this type of step, BeerSmith also provides a rise time parameter to measure how fast to heat the mash. Decoction Mashing - A German method wherein a portion of the mash is removed and boiled in a separate container. The boiling mash is then added back to raise the temperature of the overall mash to the desired step temperature. Decoction mashes are often done at higher water/grain ratios than infusion mashes. For Decoction mashes, BeerSmith computes the volume of the mash that needs to be decocted and boiled to hit the target temperature. Mash ProfilesBeerSmith uses the concept of a mash profile to apply a series of mashing steps to your brewing recipe. The idea behind a mash profile is to define, in a generic way, the mash steps. When a mash profile is applied to an actual recipe all of the water volumes are scaled according to the total grain in the recipe to maintain a constant water to grist ratio. This lets you create a mash profile that can be used across a wide variety of recipe sizes without having to manually alter the profile for each recipe change. A table of mash profiles are stored in the Mash Profiles View on the View menu. The best place to create a new profile is from this view. Creating a Mash ProfileFollow these steps to create a simple two step infusion mash. The first step will be at 118 F for 20 minutes, and the second step at 154 F. For our main infusion step, we will target a water to grain ratio of 1.5 which is a very normal value for conversion in an infusion mash. Since we also have the protein rest we will add 7 quarts for the first step and 8 quarts for the second which totals 15 quarts for our 10 lb batch or 1.5 qts/lb.
The mash profile should now appear in the main mash profile list. You can now apply this mash profile to any recipe by simply opening the recipe and choosing this mash profile. When you apply the profile to the recipe all of the quantities and amounts will be adjusted to maintain the water to grain ratios you described. |
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