Rolling on Down the Line

Conducting an ale boil is an art. Depending on what you do and when you do it will determine to a great extent the bitterness, flavors. aromas, and other characteristics of your final palette pleaser. Most ales require a 60-90-minute boil to ensure a proper bitterness to offset the sweetness of the malt. Some experts now appeal that a boil should never go beyond 60 minutes, stating that additional hops can be added at the start of the boil to ensure proper bitterness in the final product.

Sample Boil Process:

1. Transfer the wort runoff you gather from the sparging process to the boiling pot.
2. Bring the wort to a boil.
3. Add 1 oz. Chinook hops (13.5% IBU), begin boil countdown
4. At 45 minutes, add .5 oz. Centennial hops
5. At 30 minutes, add .5 oz. Centennial hops
6. At 15 minutes, add .5 oz. Cascade hops, 1 T Irish Moss, wort chiller (sterilization)
7. At 5 minutes, add .5 oz. Cascade hops
8. At shutdown, float 1 oz leaf Cascade hops in the boiling wort through the cooldown process.
9. Move the pot next to a sink where you can connect your wort chiller or cool the pot of wort with cold water.
10. If desired, create a whirlpool in the wort by stirring the pot in a consistent, clockwise pattern. This will help the particulate matter settle toward the center.
11. Keep the pot covered with clean cloth to avoid airborne pests to sneak in.
12. Reduce the temperature as quickly as possible without disturbing the liquid (other than gentle movement in a clockwise pattern for first 10 minutes of cooldown)

Equipment Checklist:

- Large boiling pot (7+ gallons)
- The wort gathered from the sparging process
- Hops for your recipe (boiling / bittering hops, and flavor and aroma hops)
- 1 gallon spring water (optional)
- Stirring spoon
- Irish moss
- Other additives

Done boiling? L et's rack it and ferment it!

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