Sparging is the rinsing of the mash grain bed to extract as much of the sugars from the grain as possible without extracting puckering tannins from the process. Typically, 1.5 times as much water is used for sparging as for mashing (e.g., 8 lbs. malt at 2 qt./lb. = 4 gallon mash, so 6 gallons of sparge water). The temperature of the sparge water is important. The water should be no more than 170°F, as husk tannins become more soluble above this temperature, depending on wort pH. This could lead to astringency in the beer.
The definition of sparging is the function of rinsing your mash grains to maximize the amount of sugar available from the mash process, without extracting tannins. There are several ways to do this:
1) No Sparge/English Method:
In the No Sparge/English method, the wort is completely drained from the grain bed before more water is added for a second mash and drained again. The worts are then combined.
2)Fly/Continuous Sparge
This method of sparging usually results in better extractions. The wort is re-circulated and drained until about an inch of wort remains above the top of the grain bed. The sparge water is gently, and slowly, added, as necessary, to keep the fluid at least at that level. The goal is to gradually replace the wort with the water, stopping the sparge when the desired gravity or volume of wort has been collected. This method demands more attention but can (and most always does) produce a higher yield.
This is the standard way brewers have mashed for centuries and is efficient, time tested, and effective.
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