The Brewing Process Basically Explained
"Ingredients"
Malt
Malted Barley, the basis of most beers.
If you are a beer drinker it is highly likely that you have heard th term malt, but what is malt or malted barley to give it it's full term.
The basis of the great majority beers is malted barley that is mashed or steeped in hot water to extract the fermentable sugars from the barley grains prior to fermentation, these sugars aren't there by accident, they are induced by the malting process carried out by the skills of a Maltster. Barley which is grown specifically to lend itself to malting is taken from the farm to the maltster and there begins the process. The grains are steeped in hot water and spread out as a bed and allowed to germinate, the act of germination and sprouting alters the chemical makeup of the grain and turns the starch within into sugars that can be mashed out and fermented by the brewer. The process is halted after the sprouting stage and the now malt is kiln dried again and may be further roasted to impart different levels of flavour to the grain for different beer flavours, providing lot's of scope for the brewer to taylor the final taste of his beer. Other grain products like maize, wheat and even rice are also used in beer making giving further scope to brewers to "design" beers providing a vast choice for beer connoisseur.
Hops
Hops For Bitterness And Aroma.
Like malt, various varieties of hops are used in the brewing process to impart many different flavours and aroma's to a beer, it is the flower of the hop plant that is used in brewing and is harvested by the grower stripped of its flowers then dried, vacuum packed before supply to brewers. Hop flowers contain an oil that is extracted when they are added to the wort during the boil, usually at two different stages, the first addition to create the bitterness in a beer and a second addition shortly before the end of the boil to impart aroma to the beer.
Yeast
Dried Brewers Yeast
Yeasts used in homebrew circles are mostly of the dried variety unlike commercial brewers who use liquid cultures. This tends to be a convenience factor and the fact that brewlengths (capacities) are smaller. Dried yeast can be cast onto wort to begin the fermentation process but ideally it needs re-hydrating prior to use, this is normally achieved by making a starter culture using warm water or a small amount of the new wort prior to adding to the bulk wort.
Water
Water. . . Bring Your Ingredients To Life.
An unassuming ingredient but nevertheless a vital one both in the brewing process and the final product.
Both commercial and home-brewers generally use the water available to them through the tap or from private water sources.
Water is very different in it's makeup in different parts of the country and will impart various flavour characteristics to a beer dependent on the source, not all of them pleasant in hard water areas. One source that is said to be a typical of what constitutes an "ideal" water is that found in the Burton upon Trent area. Many brewers will make chemical adjustments to their water to emulate Burton water but equally others allow their own water supply to give an identity to their beers.
Water born of chalk soils often needs a small amount of treatment with salts to "sweeten" it somewhat otherwise it's hardness can impart off flavours to a beer.
"Brewing Method"
The Hot Liquor Tun
Heating the water or "Liquor"
The brewing process starts with the water and heating it up to mash temperature.
Water that is used for brewing is refered to as "Liquor", this is plain water which if neccessary is treated with edible salts to adjust the Ph and the hardness to taylor it to how the brewer wishes.
This is carried out in the Hot Liquor Tun, where it is heated either by electrical elements or gas burner to bring the water up to a temperature of approximately 65/68 degrees C ready to add to the malt grain or grist as it's known.
Mashing In
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