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Like with last time apparently, it's been awhile since this beer. And as with last time, there has been significant equipment changes. The Unibrau system continued to be a disaster regarding the temperature controller so I upgraded to an Auber Instruments Cube 5e on a 240v 30 amp circuit. This is my first brew with this new temperature controller and 5500 watt heating element after the old Unibrau controller overheated and melted electrical connections for the second time.

Preboil SG: 1.032

Original gravity: 1.037

Final gravity: 1.015

Volume in Fermenter: 5.3 Gallons

Other than the temperature controller change, the last time I brewed this I used S-33 yeast. This time I used S-04. Because my kegged beer supply has run low due to the break in brewing, I split this across two 2.5 gallon kegs. One went straight into the kegerator to be force carbonated while the other is being naturally carbonated.

Mash process:

Added grains at 158F. Stirred initially and again after about 15 minutes. I mashed at a pretty consistent 158F for one hour while recirculating the wort. The temperature controller occasionally showed spikes to 160F, so I may need to adjust its temperature correction a bit.

Fermentation

I pitched the yeast at 66F and then set my temperature controls to maintain 66F. After fermentation started, a bit over 24 hours later, I bumped up to 67F which really maintains between 66F and 67F. After 48 hours I bumped up to 68F and then the next day up to 69F. After that I slowly increased the temperature to 70F and 71F (which mostly holds between 70 and 71F) and then let the weather handle the rest. I honestly expected a bit more attenuation using the S-04 and am questioning my hydrometer readings.