Anvil Foundry Brewday Hazy Juicy IPA [ 5 Brewing Tips ]

In this video I’ll walk you through my second Brewday with the Anvil Foundry 10.5 gallon system and share 5 tips that improved my brewing experience on this electric system.
The recipe:
Grain bill:
8 lbs 8oz Briess palt malt 2 row- 8 lbs 8 oz (70.8%)
1 lb 8 oz Wheat Malt - 1 lb 8 oz (12.5%)
2 lbs Flaked Oats - 2 lbs (16.7%)
Hops:
1 oz of Amarillo
0.5 oz of Galaxy
0.5 oz of Mosaic
And I substituted 1 oz of citric for 1 out of Simcoe
3 days: Dry hopped with:
1 oz of Simceo
1 oz of Amarillo
0.75 oz of Galaxy
10 days: Dry hop with:
2 oz of Amarillo
2 oz of Simco
Yeast:
Imperial Juice
Check out the Beer Junkies: • How To Design and Brew...
5 tips I learned from brewing on this system:
1. Add rice hauls to mash. A viewer suggested this after I had trouble recirculating the mash during my first attempt with this system. I noticed this really helped keep the water flow consistent throughout the mashing stage.
2. Monitor recirculated wort level. I noticed the external value needed to be adjusted a handful of times during the mash. I found a slower wort flow kept my water levels high enough in the kettle for more consistent temp during the mash. When the wort level get too low, I found temperatures became very inconsistent due to the sensors placement at the bottom.
3. Use hop bags or a stainless hop strainer. Using hop bags this time around prevented a stuck pump during knockout. I purchased a stainless hop strainer for my next brew day.
4. Upgrade to 240 volts if it’s an option. I feel confident I could get away with using 120v during a brew day with a little patience, but 240v is hands down the way to go if you’re able to add a 15 amp 220 circuit in your home brewery.
5. Add a whirlpool attachment for chilling and cleaning. Anvil sells a whirlpool arm are called a Whorly. This makes cooling down the wort more efficient and it can also double as a cleaning system aid.
Cheers!
#homebrewing #hazyipa #Anvil #Blichmann

[@Homebrew58]

I've been using an Anvil Foundry for several years. First the 10.5 and now the 6.5. I always throttle down the flow of my recirculation as slow as possible. Using that Anvil supplied hose clamp I crank it down until it looks like the hose is completely pinched closed. The biggest issue and subsequent fix that I've found is that there is an inherent flaw in the design of the machine. Water between the malt pipe and the outer kettle does not get pulled into the recirculation flow. It's basically dead space and that water does not come in contact with the grain. When you lift the malt pipe at the end of the mash it is in effect like dumping a gallon+- of water into your mash. One experiment in which gravity readings were taken at three different places show 11.6 brix (1.0467) taken from the basket... 11.5 brix (1.0463) taken from the end of the recirculation hose... and 0.8 brix (0.0031) taken from between the malt pipe and the kettle wall. The solution is A: lift the malt pipe two to three times during the mash to incorporate that dead water into the rest of the mash or B: eliminate the malt pipe and use a BIAB bag. You could see a 10 point increase in your mash efficiency.

[@justhomebrew]

I wonder why I have issues with the hose clamp. I do clamp it down quite a bit, but I have to adjust it several times throughout the mash due to either too much flow or not enough. I have a friend who also brews on a Foundry and he seems to achieve a perfect flow without any adjustments. I'm tempted to swap the entire pump with my Riptide, but I think it's just technique. I'm determined get the mash flow just right with the equipment that came with system. I'm close. Interesting experiment with the gravity readings! I'll give the lifting the basket technique a shot next time I use the system. I'd like to avoid using a BIAB if possible. I don't want to install a hoist in my garage. Thanks for the comment! You have a couple more years of experience than me using this system. I do like it, mostly for its simplicity. I am considering downsizing to the 6.5 system since I also brew on a 10 gallon HERMS system. I like the idea of brewing smaller batches more often:) Cheers!

[@BlichmannEngineering]

Fantastic video...as always, John! Keep brewing strong.

[@justhomebrew]

Thanks for the feedback! I’m really digging this all in one system. I have a few more brew days planned this summer, so stay tuned;-)

[@johnmyers473]

Great job! Love my Anvil and thanks for the tips!

[@justhomebrew]

Thanks for the feedback! This Anvil Foundry is a pretty cool little system. Cheers:)

[@justhomebrew]

I simply run water and cleaner through the arm. This whirpool motion does a pretty good job getting the kettle close to clean after 10-15 minutes. Cheers!

[@Brandenton1]

Outstanding video, and appreciate the 5 tips. In regards to the rice hulls, is there a ratio of hulls to grain? How do you know how much to add to the grain bill?

[@justhomebrew]

Thanks for the comment! As for the rice hulls, Anvil suggests 1⁄2 pound of rice hulls per 10 pounds of grain. I've been playing around with 1/2 pound to 1 pound of rice hauls for my brews. I've run into a few stuck mashes, so I like to over do the rice hauls to avoid a stuck mash. I've also reduced the amount I grind my grains to keep more of the husk in the mix. I'm still trying to figure out the right ratio as well, but .75 pounds seems to be the sweet spot for me;) Cheers!

[@jtc95]

Thanks! Do you find Anvil’s instructions on sparge water to be accurate (so do you sparge with 1 gallon of water or more)? Trying to dial in my system and am wondering if I should mash thicker and sparge a bit more than they suggest or not. Thanks again!

[@justhomebrew]

Thanks for the question! I don’t recall the exact sparge volumes off the top of my head. I use Beer Smith for all my calculations. I’ll get back to you on this one. Cheers!

[@ulissessanchez6832]

Looks more like a hazy pale ale. For your grain bill the srm looks a bit brown but it could be your light. Great vid.

[@justhomebrew]

Thanks for the feedback! It could have been more on the brown side. Cheers!

[@curtpick628]

I use Jaded scylla as my chiller. Super fast. And great product

[@justhomebrew]

That is a serious immersion chiller! I’m sure it’s pretty quick compared to the anvil chiller. It would be an interesting comparison.

[@curtpick628]

@@justhomebrew ya that chiller they supply could be much better.

[@justhomebrew]

I think it does a decent job, but doesn’t have the efficiency compared to your chiller. One huge improvement I found was adding Anvil’s Whirley pool arm. It does a nice job circulating the wort around the chiller.

[@curtpick628]

@justhomebrew ya it suffices in a pinch. Like you, I hate the vinyl tubing and clamps. Mine always leaked

[@Sethbrews]

What modification did you make there to the anvil bucket fermenter ? Cooling?

[@justhomebrew]

Hey Seth, I drilled 2 holes on the lid and added a larger heat exchanger. It’s called a temp twister. www.morebeer.com/products/temp-twister-cooling-coil.html?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIrMWJvLmmggMV0ezICh1hQgpnEAQYAiABEgLZovD_BwE. I just added a few 90 degree connectors to reduce stress on the coil. Cheers!

[@sheaskateboarding]

Would love to see a video just on the anvil whirlpool arm.

[@justhomebrew]

You got it. I’ll plan to shoot that one in the near future. Cheers!

[@beersgood1993]

I am curious how you use the arm for cleaning. @@justhomebrew