Brewing basis ︰ familiar and unfamiliar basic malt (On)

Basic malt (Base malt) It is the first brewing raw material that every brewing enthusiast comes into contact with. No matter what style you brew, it is inseparable. When you are still grinding the malt with the original hand, you must hate this kind of malt. You have to shake it for 2 hours every time, saying that you are not so tired! However, it is this germinated grain with rich enzyme activity that provides enough sugar for fermentation to make brewing beer possible. What is basic malt? 'Is the most used malt! 'This answer is not accurate. For example, Munich malt accounts for only 10% of many recipes, but it is still the basic malt. Basic malt refers to those malt with rich enzyme activity. Even if 100% maltose is used, the enzyme in malt is enough to convert starch in malt into sugar. Only malt with the above characteristics can be used as basic malt. Most of the first recipes that many homebrew lovers come into contact with are'North American two-sided malt'(American 2-Row malt) As the basic malt, so in the subconscious of many people, the basic malt refers'North American two-sided malt'. In fact, the basic Malt also includes'North American six-sided malt' , Pearson malt, Munich malt, Vienna malt, British-style light malt, smoked malt, and a series of germinated grains with rich starch invertase, such as malt, rye, and swallow malt. Is there any national boundary in the territory of basic malt? The answer is yes, from malt origin to processing technology, different countries and even different manufacturers have subtle or huge differences. Such as pale ale malt (Pale ale malt) The statement will often appear in some rough recipes, if compared to American light ale malt (Such as North American two-sided malt)With English pale ale malt (Like Maris otter) You will find that there are great differences between them. North American two-sided malt provides relatively low grain aroma and has strong enzyme activity, which just meets the needs of West Coast IPA for refreshing, medium and low malt aroma flavor. However, if 100% Maris otter malt is used instead, it will produce too much grain/bread aroma, which is no longer like a dry, wine-rich West Coast style IPA. Therefore, there has always been a saying among foreign homebrew lovers, 'use local raw materials to brew local-style beer. 'Germany's local large wheat fields provide raw materials for local beer (1-2°l) : If you want a very clean grain aroma without the need for toast, biscuits, etc. , then choose it. In addition, in brewing high alcohol (6-10 V) In order to increase the drinkability of beer, we will choose North American two-sided malt instead of other basic malt in Britain or Europe. Although various manufacturers are now producing this kind of malt, there are also slight differences between them. North American six-sided malt (1. 8°l) The flavor of this malt is very similar to that of North American two-sided malt, but it has more protein and grain skin, which will cause cold turbidity and astringency (More skins lead to leaching more tannins). Such characteristics make this kind of malt more suitable for large wineries, especially when large factories often use auxiliary materials such as corn or rice. Of course, more grain skins also have some advantages, that is, they can help filter and avoid clogging. However, more protein supplements just meet the shortage of protein in corn, rice, syrup and other auxiliary materials. At the same time, North American hexagonal malt has stronger enzyme activity, which indicates that it has stronger ability to convert starch into sugar. However, this does not mean that only large factories will use this kind of malt. In fact, the use of North American hexagonal malt in home brewing can also produce good beer, but it should be noted that, we should do a good job in protein rest and control the temperature and pH of the washing water. British English pale ale malt (3-4 ° L) : This is a general term for a class of malt, such as the well-known Maris otter, including Pearl, Optic, Halcyon, and Golden Promise. In fact, there are also differences between these malts. Maris otter is famous for its rich grain/bread aroma. Of course, sometimes in order to enrich the level of beer malt, we will adjust the amount of MO malt according to the style when brewing, for example, North American two-sided malt is used to replace some MO malt to achieve a richer and more layered malt aroma. The name of Maris otter malt comes from the barley variety SpecialMaris otter, which was cultivated by Cambridge University and began to be planted in the 1950s s. Also well-known is Golden Promise, which is a Scottish malt with a unique sweet flavor. Of course, it is the best choice for brewing Scottish Ales. To be continued, the next announcement: the next 'brewing basis' familiar and unfamiliar basic malt (Under) ', We will continue to share other countries in the basic malt map, and will also introduce sprouted grains other than barley. Stay tuned!