How to do Brew in a Bag: Easy all-grain beer brewing for beginners

[@mongonius]

The more step by step newbie details the better. Thanks!

[@codebowl]

Love this, thanks to Northern Brewer for supplying you with the items required to get this video out!

[@DointheMost]

They’re great! I really appreciate their support.

[@vbence12]

Starting to get pretty chilly where I live, so I look at you guys living in warm climates with envy. Hopefully your vids will get me through this winter break.

[@Vykk_Draygo]

Nice! Gotta love BIAB. For bags, I highly recommend Wilser's BIAB bags. Any bag will work, but his are next level. I've retired my old bag to just holding fruit. It's so nice to have a bag that is tailored to fit your setup exactly, and the cost is super reasonable.

[@DointheMost]

Great tip. I’ll have to check it out! Thanks!

[@lsh3rd]

For a beginner, I like scaling recipes down to 2.5 gallons… it really makes the bag easier to handle in my kitchen, and instead of a wort chiller, I have a plastic tub that the pot will fit in and use an ice water bath. It makes things even simpler with less stuff to buy.

[@DointheMost]

I definitely enjoy making small batches in the kitchen. Certainly makes for a chill brew day!

[@RobinYee-xc9vf]

Spend 15 dollars for a glass of beers , twice a weeks ...

[@RobinYee-xc9vf]

Homes brew beers will cost over 1000 dollars, on cooking wa , a, b, c, d. , e, ....on and on ... feels like pro .....hops, walt , all grains , waters, boiled,...no ways ,need to do or halfway through..... crazy's

[@rosco6033]

@@RobinYee-xc9vf You don't make any sense

[@timothyrichards5823]

Excellent video! I’m a convert to “brew in a bag” and when I have a larger grain bill and need a sparge step added, “mash in a bag” using a cooler converted to a mash tun. I love the simplicity and the fact that I can mash large percentages of wheat, rye, etc…and not end up dealing with stuck mashes. Seemed like you lost quit a bit more water to your grain than I seem to. Keep up the outstanding videos.

[@DointheMost]

I hadn’t considered a hybrid technique like this - I love this idea. You have my mind swirling with potential for different brew styles, like a parti-gyle maybe!

[@timothyrichards5823]

@@DointheMost yes. Parti-Gale is awesome with mash in a bag as well.

[@perotross]

Saw you on one of Man Made Mead's videos and decided to check your videos out. Excellent content and great video and editing. This simple process of BIB just might convince me to give it a try. Great job, I will be checking out your other videos for sure!

[@williamcox3273]

Brilliant video during my lunch break. Brewed one batch of beer and got a lot of sediment. Hope itll be clearer next time!

[@TheBruSho]

Great overview! BIAB is in my opinion the BEST way to start brewing all grain. A very simplified way to get started and makes amazing beer!

[@DointheMost]

It is definitely a great gateway for not having to be a “buying all the things!” person right off the bat. I was very fortunate to inherit an all grain set up that easily saved me 70% of the cost of getting up and running with a mash tun, etc. But BIAB has been fun as well.

[@94Vape]

I like my brewzilla 35 litre brewing vessel, it has the pump, elements, recirculation arm, and of course the grain basket, I find the baskets are easier to handle and sparge, deffinatley reccomend it, only thing the difference between electric and gas the gas deffinatley heats up quicker

[@CarlPapa88]

Just speaking from KZbin education, the basket that Claw Hammer makes looks awesome for all grain.

[@stormhawk31]

PRO TIP: Credit to TheBruSho - use an oven rack set over your kettle to rest your bag on, then squish the bag between the kettle's lid and the oven rack to squeeze the liquid out of it and back into the kettle. Total hand burn prevention! 😊

[@DointheMost]

Great tip! We love Trent’s channel!

[@TheBruSho]

That’s funny cuz I love DtM!

[@cheekysaver]

Canning racks work too. I am not a pro… just a use what you have kinda gal. No wort chillers there either. A Rubbermaid container with lots of ice and water… like 2 to 3 gallons of ice made in the deep freeze in blocks. 10 min cool down on 3 + gallons…. With some stirring. Beer has so many options. The possibilities are limitless.

[@drsimmons74]

I’ve been waiting on this one. Thanks man

[@DointheMost]

Of course! We have another BIAB video in the works as well.

[@javierchirinos28]

Great video, congrats on the kid again, hope all is well.

[@DointheMost]

Thank you so much!

[@DarkStar666]

I just made a (1 gallon) Belgian-style witbier, came out pretty good. Making a pecan porter this weekend. I have a 1 gallon minikeg that solved the packaging problem nicely for not too much $ (I don’t drink much so this works for me)

[@DointheMost]

Pecan porter sounds so perfectly seasonal! How did you impart the pecan flavor?

[@cheekysaver]

Although I understand and appreciate you taking time off with baby….totally can’t wait to see! (If you choose to share that with us!)

[@stormhawk31]

BIAB is awesome. So glad you decided to do this video. I really hope y'all do more of these. BTW, the heavily modified Wampus Cat I mentioned on that video came out well, but I can do it better, and I'm planning it out now.

[@DointheMost]

Awesome! As always, feel free to email over notes!

[@stormhawk31]

@@DointheMost I'll send you the whole recipe, and I'd love to share the modified version going forward, because it'd be great if a more experienced bearer tackled this crazy thing as well. Y'all might get better results than I would. Where can I find your email address? Edit: Never mind; I found it. 😊

[@stormhawk31]

@@DointheMost OK. I emailed you. Thanks!

[@johnburke8337]

Lowkey hoping this leads to a fun update on the Wampus Cat Braggot. IDK what you'd call that but it would be cool to see

[@DointheMost]

Definitely something I’ve been kicking around!

[@reneaclark7689]

Some of us are here for the personality content... thanks for the video :)

[@DointheMost]

I appreciate you!

[@ToneDefNC]

Do you feel that aeration of the beer before pitching the yeast is beneficial? I've always read that it helps the yeast and I usually pour the beer from one bucket to another a couple times before pitching.

[@brandonmonroe7050]

Nice set up. I know this is a beginners guide but do you normally add beer salts like calcium chloride and Gypsum to your water? I'm wondering if the salts are really nessasary

[@timothyrichards5823]

BTW. A lot of us love the personality content!

[@DointheMost]

Haha, I appreciate that!

[@stormhawk31]

QUESTION: Considering that alpha and beta amylase work at different, though close, temperate ranges, if you wanted to get the absolute most out of your mash, couldn't you start at the higher temperature range and do a longer mash, letting the temperature drop to capture the effects of both enzymes? Maybe start by holding the temperature high for a bit, before allowing the drop to begin?

[@DointheMost]

Beta amylase denatures starting at 160 so it really is about finding a balance, but in general, long mashes will improve efficiency if held at the right temp. Some folks have done overnight mashes with great success.

[@Vykk_Draygo]

If you want to utilize both enzymes most effectively, you actually go the opposite way. Start low, like 145, then ramp to 158+. This will generally create a very dry beer though. And just to be clear, that isn't all that goes into it. My last all grain batch was a Philly Sour table beer. I mashed at 158, and I got about 93% apparent attenuation. I'm not exactly sure why that happened, though it's quite nice for a light, spritzy table beer.

[@silentr0b]

To build on what BC mentioned, Beta actually starts denaturing in the 150s, and rapidly denatures (i.e. almost none survives even the few minutes to start working) over 160. You would be better off starting low and ramping up than starting too high and dropping. A common mash schedule is one mash rest around 145 for 30 minutes, then raise the temperature to around 158 to get the Alpha amylase going. But you will also usually have pretty good results with a single mash rest around 152 where both enzymes can be pretty active. The other thing to consider is that there is a tradeoff between fermentability and body. For a beer like this with an OG in the low 1.040 range, having an FG too low could make the final product a little thin. The higher mash temp he used led to more body and quite possibly a better beer.

[@stormhawk31]

@@Vykk_Draygo Thank you for that. That was actually really helpful for what I'm working on.

[@stormhawk31]

@@silentr0b This is also VERY helpful and informative. Thank you!

[@KD9ZHF]

You’re dreamy.

[@fabiolindquist1555]

I got 4 years doing Beer using the BIAB method

[@DointheMost]

How do you like it? I think I prefer the control of the more traditional method, though I did like paring down the time on brew day.

[@fabiolindquist1555]

@@DointheMost It's the best method for me, I live in a small apartment, I use just one kettle, on my regular stove

[@CarlPapa88]

The 1 beer I've brewed (Cream Ale), I wasn't really impressed. I think, like you said, cooling your wort quickly can limit any off flavors from the hops during a slow cooling. Definitely need to pick up or DIY a chiller.

[@CaptBeefy]

I use my engine crane to lift/hold my bags 😅

[@roberthickmon2442]

It's Will-lam-ette not Will-a-mette. Love your show

[@CarlPapa88]

An Okie thing maybe. Haha

[@tsimmons4730]

Recommend covering what needs to be done to the bottles before you put your beer in them.

[@DointheMost]

Not a bad idea. Sanitize, sanitize, sanitize!

[@kentaltobelli1840]

What efficiency did you get? Surprised you didn't stir the grain to break up dough balls. Also "twang" is a trigger word for homebrewers that I interpret as "oxidized," maybe avoid using that to describe your delicious beer!

[@DointheMost]

Haha I’ve never heard it used to describe that. NB’s instruction sheet describes it as “tart” but I didn’t want to give the impression it is sour at all. Target grav was 1.043 and I was straddling the line between 1.041-1.042 so not too shabby.

[@kentaltobelli1840]

Wow nailed it! Surprisingly low ABV, but I guess it's supposed to be light and refreshing. Thanks for the response, love your laid-back approach (probably because we don't see the furious cleansing before and after ha).

[@DointheMost]

@@kentaltobelli1840 Haha - yes. I leave out the hours of cleaning and sanitizing and tear down! I do think another 1%ABV would be nice and wouldn’t wreck the mouthfeel at all.

[@l0tus4life]

Baby 🍼 Baby 🍼 Baby 🍼 TLC song Congratulations big daddy!!!

[@DointheMost]

Thank you friend!

[@Rubio_Eric]

Time to cut that grass brah🤣

[@DointheMost]

That’s what the rabbit tractors are for. All that grass is rabbit feed!

[@Rubio_Eric]

@@DointheMost nice! I saw the chickens back there too. Ive been thinking about doing that also

[@vtbn53]

Why do all these "Easy" BIAB examples use such exotic and hard to get ingredients????? Surely malted barley is all you need?

[@danbrown586]

At a minimum, no, you also need hops (otherwise it isn't beer) and yeast (otherwise it won't ferment as desired). If you don't care what your beer tastes like, just get whatever amount of those three things you want and do as you like. But if you do care, you might want measured amounts of specific malts, with certain hops and a particular yeast. Depends how picky you are about your beer.