Introduction
To execute a great beer in the brewery is, in a very LARGE
way, science. To execute a great beer conceptually, on the other hand is, in a
very LARGE way, art. Both the science and the art require experience, knowledge
and creativity. Years ago I conceived a project that would captivate the
scientific and artistic mind of the brewer: single malt beers. I’m very happy
to say that we are finally doing it.
Think of it this way, if we completely understand the
behaviors of various malts we have more control of any subsequent beers that we
generate. This gives us artistic ability through scientific testing.
We have partnered with Best Malz out of Germany to do a
series of single malt beers with all of their base and specialty malts. The specialty malt beers will differ in that they
will be blended with a base malt. The base malt will be selected based on least
amount of color and flavor.
Now it’s time for the experiment:
Purpose – Base Malt
Series
The purpose of the study is to understand the effects of
various malts in the brewery, and the resulting beers. We will control all of
the variables of the brewing process except the type of grain used. We believe
that each grain will affect the following variables that we can measure in our
brewery: extraction rate, change in pH, attenuation, and color. This will also
affect many variables that only you
can measure with your nose and tongue.
Materials
·
Water (R.S.M.’s finest) enough to get that
kettle to 16 bbl of beer!!!!!!!
·
Yeast (Cali ale baby) ~5gal pitch 1million cells
/ ml / °P
·
715 lbs base malt grains (our variable)
o
Best Malz – Pilsner
o
Best Malz – Vienna
o
Best Malz – Munich
o
Best Malz – Heidlburg
o
Best Malz – Red X
·
Hops (Northern Brewer – single addition at 60min
for 16 IBU)
·
Brewer (the Citizen)
·
Brewery and all its stuff (Cismontane Brewing
Company)
Method
We will brew a beer where all the ingredient’s processes
will be exactly the same with every batch. The one variable that will change is
the type of malt. Below is a list of the controls:
·
Mash temp: 152
·
Quantity of grain: 715lbs
·
Run off from mash to kettle: 465gal
·
Hop Addition: 35oz Northern brewer with 10.9%
alpha acid at 60 min
·
Boil time: 120 min
·
Yeast: California ale yeast pitching rate
1million cells / ml / °P
·
Fermentation temp: 66 °F
·
Water: We will add water to the kettle to have
16bbl of beer before we transfer to the fermenter.
Data
Currently under collection….
