Of Mashing Or Raking Your Liquors

Suppose you take six bushels of malt, and two pounds of hops, and would
make of it one barrel of strong, and two barrels of small beer.

Heat your first copper of liquor for mashing, and strew over it a double
handful of bran or malt; by which you will see when it begins to boil;
for it will break and curl, and then it is fit to be let off into the
mash tub, where it must remain till the steam is quite spent, and you
can see your face in it, before you put in your malt; and then you begin
to mash, stirring it all the while you are putting in the malt: but keep
out about half a bushel dry, which you are to strew over the rest, when
you have done stirring it, which will be as soon as you have well mixed
it with the liquor, and prevented it from clodding.

After the dry malt is laid on, cover your mash tub with cloths, to
prevent losing any spirit of the malt, and let it so remain for two
hours. Meanwhile have another copper of liquor hot; and at two hours end
begin to let off your first wort into the under-back. Receive a pailful
of the first running, and throw it again upon the malt.--You will find
that the malt has sucked up half of your first copper of liquor; and
therefore to make up your quantity of wort for your strong beer, you
must gradually lade out of the second copper, and strew bowl after bowl
over the malt, giving it time to soak thro', and keeping it running by
an easy stream, till you perceive you have about forty gallons, which in
boiling and working will be reduced to thirty-six.

If you throw into the under-back (whilst you are letting off) about half
a pound of hops, it will preserve it from foxing, or growing sour or
ropy.

Your first wort being all run off, you must soften the tap of the mash
tub; and take a copper of hot liquor for your second mashing, stirring
up the malt as you did at first, and then cover it close for two hours
more. Meanwhile you fill your copper with the first wort, and boil it
with the remainder of the two pounds of hops, for an hour and an half,
and then lade it off into the coolers.

Contrive to receive the hops in a sieve, basket, or thin woolen bag that
is sweet and clean; then immediately fill your copper with cold liquor,
renew your fire under it, and begin to let off your second wort, throw a
handful of hops into the under-back, for the same reason as before: you
will want to lade a few bowls full of liquor over the malt to make up
the copper full of second wort; and when you have enough, fasten the tap
and mash a third time after the same manner, and cover it close for
another two hours; and then charge your copper with the second wort,
boiling it for an hour with the same hops.

By this time you may shift your first wort out of the coolers into a
working tub, to make room for the second wort to come into the coolers;
and then your copper being empty, you may heat as much liquor as will
serve you to lade over the malt, or, by this time, rather grains, to
make up your third and last copper of wort, which must be bottled with
the same hops over again; and then your coolers are discharged of your
second wort, to make room for the third; and when they are both of a
proper coolness, they may be put together before you set them a working.

During the time of shifting your liquors out of the copper, it is of
consequence to take care to preserve it from receiving damage by
burning: you should always contrive to have the fire low, or else to
damp it at the time of emptying, and be very expeditious to put in fresh
liquor.

Next: Of Working The Liquor
Previous: Of Brewing Beer

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