BSU #1 - How Beer is Made: The Ingredients
Hi, and welcome to the first entry in my "educational" series about beer. In this series I'll try to explain an aspect of beer production, but in a non-technical kind of way. I'm doing it this easy-to-follow way because: (a) I'm probably learning about it at the same time as I'm writing it, and (b) so you don't need to know too much beer terminology[1].
[4] Unlike Tori Spelling, who has never been desirable.
[5] Unless you had vengeful, teetotaling witches in your village, who were taking the time to ruin your beer. The town of Essex prosecuted seven people for between 1563 and 1604 for this crime, and they weren't the only city. I think we forget how stupid humans can be.
[6] Interesting fact: the style of IPA nearly died out as it was only made for exporting to India. Luckily, one day a ship carrying beer to India had some issues floating off the coast of England (it is quite important for ships to float). The beer was salvaged and sold in England for the first time. It immediately became a hit with the locals, and it's popularity quickly spread.
[7] Hops probably make up about 75% of my vegetable intake.......if you ignore potatoes, and pretend that hops are a vegetable. Are noodles a vegetable? Probably.
[8] My hometown of Adelaide has really bad tap water, so logically I drank beer instead. I did this for health reasons, which is basic science, and I'm a scientist. I'm also a habitual liar, but that's hardly the point.
[9] Interestingly fact: even before yeast was added to the VIP list of allowed beer ingredients, the Germans also started allowing wheat, which makes sense. They also allowed coriander and bay leaves, which make the opposite of sense. Hence, it's commonly agreed (by me) that this was done by German bay leaf lobbyists to confuse future historians in one of the longest pranks in recorded history.
[10] Up until 2006 US law dictated that beer must have a minimum malted barley content of 25% in the mash bill (the grain recipe for the brewing stage). To this day, Germany's Reinheitsgebot states that lagers must be 100% malted barley, but Weißbier, Altbier and Kölsch may all contain other malted grains like wheat and rye. In fact, Schans 100% Tarwe contains 100% malted wheat!
[11] I think that Bud manages to both taste like nothing and taste awful at the same time, which is some multi-dimensional, Hesienburg stuff. Bud is the very definition of a beer that you only drink "to get you where you need to go", i.e. to drunk-town.
This week I'm going to start with what actually goes into a beer and how they largely fall under five headings:
- Malted Grains.
- Hops.
- Water.
- Yeast.
- Adjuncts.
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| Wait, where is ingredient number 5??? |
1. Malted Grains
Grains are the hard, dry seeds of the grass family. We often eat them in breakfast cereals. Common grains used for beer are barley (by far the most common), wheat, oats, rice, corn and sorghum[2] to name a few.
So that covers the grain part in "malted grain", but not so much that "malted" bit. So, what is malting? Well, a hand-wavy description would be that it's a process by which we trick a plant into using its own enzymes to convert complex sugars in the grain, called starches, (which yeast can't eat) into simple sugars. which yeast loves to eat[3]. Grains can also be toasted, to give more colour, and earthier flavours to the beer. Think dark beers and stouts.
There is some belief that the reason early humans decided to cultivate grains like barley and wheat, was just to make beer. It's even been suggested that humans began agriculture, giving up their hunter-gatherer lifestyle, so that they could farm grains, and make glorious, glorious, civilisation-creating beer.
So that covers the grain part in "malted grain", but not so much that "malted" bit. So, what is malting? Well, a hand-wavy description would be that it's a process by which we trick a plant into using its own enzymes to convert complex sugars in the grain, called starches, (which yeast can't eat) into simple sugars. which yeast loves to eat[3]. Grains can also be toasted, to give more colour, and earthier flavours to the beer. Think dark beers and stouts.
There is some belief that the reason early humans decided to cultivate grains like barley and wheat, was just to make beer. It's even been suggested that humans began agriculture, giving up their hunter-gatherer lifestyle, so that they could farm grains, and make glorious, glorious, civilisation-creating beer.
2. Hops
Hops are actually the flowers of the hop vine. The bitter acids in the hops help to balance out the sweet, sickly alcoholic sugar water that beer would otherwise be. Before hops were being used, brewers used to add herbs and spices to make the drink more palatable, even all the way back to ancient Egypt. So, making beer have a bitter quality in some way has always been really desirable[4]!
However, hops soon became almost the only way people were bittering their beer. Hops became so popular because the acids that make the beer taste bitter also act as a natural antibacterial, and this stopped the beer spoiling too fast[5]. Interestingly, for English beer to be able to make the long sea journey to the British colonies in occupied India in the early 1700s, extra hops were added to the exported beers. This resulted in the now popular, and over-hopped, India Pale Ale (IPA)[6].
However, hops soon became almost the only way people were bittering their beer. Hops became so popular because the acids that make the beer taste bitter also act as a natural antibacterial, and this stopped the beer spoiling too fast[5]. Interestingly, for English beer to be able to make the long sea journey to the British colonies in occupied India in the early 1700s, extra hops were added to the exported beers. This resulted in the now popular, and over-hopped, India Pale Ale (IPA)[6].
When boiled, hops produce more acidic flavours. However, if the hops are just added to the beer after it is cooled down (to sort of soak), then the hops add more floral and aromatic notes. In fact, some beers (I'm dreaming of you NEIPAs) can taste like a tropical punch from just the hops alone, even though no fruit was involved in the brewing process at all[7].
3. Water
The big blue wobbly stuff that mermaids live in.
Water makes up approximately 95% of the final product. I know it sounds stupid, but that means that good water is crucial[8]. The natural mineral content of the water can actually play a major role in the types of beers regions produce too. For example, the hard water of Munich does not produce great light beers, and hence darker malt driven beers developed in that region. However, the mineral free water of Pilsen (in the Czech Republic) produces brilliant light-flavoured beers, hence the world famous pilsner originating from there!
Water makes up approximately 95% of the final product. I know it sounds stupid, but that means that good water is crucial[8]. The natural mineral content of the water can actually play a major role in the types of beers regions produce too. For example, the hard water of Munich does not produce great light beers, and hence darker malt driven beers developed in that region. However, the mineral free water of Pilsen (in the Czech Republic) produces brilliant light-flavoured beers, hence the world famous pilsner originating from there!
4. Yeast
The Reinheitsgebot (the German Beer Purity Law) was first introduced in Munich in 1487, and later adopted by Bavaria (and pushed onto the rest of Germany) in 1516. It states that only the three essential ingredients that are required to make beer, may be used in beer production. Under no circumstances could this law be bent. These three ingredients were malted barley, water and hops. That's it. No other ingredients. None. It will be a cold day in hell when this law will be broken, laddie. You'd best get comfortable if you want to change that law...........yeast was then hastily added that into the margins of the law once it and its critical importance was discovered[9].
What does yeast do? Yeast turns the sugars (in the malted grain) into alcohol, with a by-product of carbon dioxide (bubbles!) via a process called fermentation. Yeast can also produce its own flavours too. "Clean" beers are all fermented by yeast from the Saccharomyces family. However, some quite delicious sour flavours can be produced using the somewhat funky and famous Brettanomyces family[a].
Yeast can be wild, or inbred. Like, really inbred. Some breweries have been using the same strain of yeast for hundreds of years. Some breweries leave their beer vats open for wild yeast to come and visit. This gives the beer a very regional character as wild yeasts vary with area!
What does yeast do? Yeast turns the sugars (in the malted grain) into alcohol, with a by-product of carbon dioxide (bubbles!) via a process called fermentation. Yeast can also produce its own flavours too. "Clean" beers are all fermented by yeast from the Saccharomyces family. However, some quite delicious sour flavours can be produced using the somewhat funky and famous Brettanomyces family[a].
Yeast can be wild, or inbred. Like, really inbred. Some breweries have been using the same strain of yeast for hundreds of years. Some breweries leave their beer vats open for wild yeast to come and visit. This gives the beer a very regional character as wild yeasts vary with area!
5. Adjuncts
Adjuncts can be pretty confusing. So I'm going to do a separate post on these in the future sometime. However, an over-simplified definition could be "something that adds fermentable sugars to the brew, but that isn't malted barely. However, beer need not have any malted barley in it at all[10].
Adjuncts can be liquids, like honey, maple syrup and sugar syrups, or they can be solids, like fruits, pumpkin, or unmalted grains. I personally love adjunct beers, with an excellent example being Golden Stout Time from Big Shed Brewing which is a milk stout that is brewed with toffee and honeycomb to taste like a popular ice cream. Belgian lambic kriek beers are (usually) made with 30-40% unmalted wheat, and have sour cherries added after brewing, which remain in the beer for months as it ages. So adjuncts can be great.
Adjuncts can also be terrible. Take for example (American) Budweiser Lager. This beer is brewed using rice, for a number of reasons. Primarily, rice can still contribute fermentable sugars, and hence alcohol, even though it contributes little, if any, taste. Second, due to its low protein content (compared to barley), it yields a much less hazy, cloudy beer when used, and so the beer looks "cleaner" as it will be clearer. Lastly, it's very cheap to use rice instead of malted barley[11]. Using adjuncts in this way can detract from a beer, instead of adding another facet to a flavour profile.
[1] A simple disclaimer: I don't know everything about beer. If I get something wrong, omit an important point or miss an interesting subtlety, please let me know! I'll definitely go back, edit my work, and give the appropriate credit! Also, let me state that I definitely did not produce all of this from scratch. The relevant sources can be found at the end of the post, and credit is given in the images.
Adjuncts can be liquids, like honey, maple syrup and sugar syrups, or they can be solids, like fruits, pumpkin, or unmalted grains. I personally love adjunct beers, with an excellent example being Golden Stout Time from Big Shed Brewing which is a milk stout that is brewed with toffee and honeycomb to taste like a popular ice cream. Belgian lambic kriek beers are (usually) made with 30-40% unmalted wheat, and have sour cherries added after brewing, which remain in the beer for months as it ages. So adjuncts can be great.
Adjuncts can also be terrible. Take for example (American) Budweiser Lager. This beer is brewed using rice, for a number of reasons. Primarily, rice can still contribute fermentable sugars, and hence alcohol, even though it contributes little, if any, taste. Second, due to its low protein content (compared to barley), it yields a much less hazy, cloudy beer when used, and so the beer looks "cleaner" as it will be clearer. Lastly, it's very cheap to use rice instead of malted barley[11]. Using adjuncts in this way can detract from a beer, instead of adding another facet to a flavour profile.
Conclusions
So there you have it. Just four ingredients! Beer is simple, right? Well.....yes and no. The things you can do with just those four ingredients is amazing! Toast the malts and have a dark beer. Use some Brettanomyces yeast, now it's a sour. Add a load of hops after the boil, now you have a tropical IPA.
Add some adjuncts, and beer becomes one of the most diverse drinks on the planet. There are ice cream flavoured beers, cake flavoured beers, bacon flavoured beers, even a pizza flavoured beer! If a more normal beer isn't what you feel like, you can get a beer that tastes like just about anything.
And then there's Budweiser.
Add some adjuncts, and beer becomes one of the most diverse drinks on the planet. There are ice cream flavoured beers, cake flavoured beers, bacon flavoured beers, even a pizza flavoured beer! If a more normal beer isn't what you feel like, you can get a beer that tastes like just about anything.
And then there's Budweiser.
If there are any other topics you'd like to see me cover, please let me know in the comments!!
[1] A simple disclaimer: I don't know everything about beer. If I get something wrong, omit an important point or miss an interesting subtlety, please let me know! I'll definitely go back, edit my work, and give the appropriate credit! Also, let me state that I definitely did not produce all of this from scratch. The relevant sources can be found at the end of the post, and credit is given in the images.
[2] I'd never heard of sorghum, so I had to look it up. I discovered that it's a cereal grain of which 17 of the 25 species come from Australia. I think sorghum needs to consider marketing itself a little better. It might start with a name that doesn't sound like a skin condition.
[3] Basically, we fool the plant into thinking that its baby grain are about to leave home to become their own plants, before cruelly crushing them into a sweet powder. Makes you think twice about becoming a vegetarian.[4] Unlike Tori Spelling, who has never been desirable.
[5] Unless you had vengeful, teetotaling witches in your village, who were taking the time to ruin your beer. The town of Essex prosecuted seven people for between 1563 and 1604 for this crime, and they weren't the only city. I think we forget how stupid humans can be.
[6] Interesting fact: the style of IPA nearly died out as it was only made for exporting to India. Luckily, one day a ship carrying beer to India had some issues floating off the coast of England (it is quite important for ships to float). The beer was salvaged and sold in England for the first time. It immediately became a hit with the locals, and it's popularity quickly spread.
[7] Hops probably make up about 75% of my vegetable intake.......if you ignore potatoes, and pretend that hops are a vegetable. Are noodles a vegetable? Probably.
[8] My hometown of Adelaide has really bad tap water, so logically I drank beer instead. I did this for health reasons, which is basic science, and I'm a scientist. I'm also a habitual liar, but that's hardly the point.
[9] Interestingly fact: even before yeast was added to the VIP list of allowed beer ingredients, the Germans also started allowing wheat, which makes sense. They also allowed coriander and bay leaves, which make the opposite of sense. Hence, it's commonly agreed (by me) that this was done by German bay leaf lobbyists to confuse future historians in one of the longest pranks in recorded history.
[10] Up until 2006 US law dictated that beer must have a minimum malted barley content of 25% in the mash bill (the grain recipe for the brewing stage). To this day, Germany's Reinheitsgebot states that lagers must be 100% malted barley, but Weißbier, Altbier and Kölsch may all contain other malted grains like wheat and rye. In fact, Schans 100% Tarwe contains 100% malted wheat!
[11] I think that Bud manages to both taste like nothing and taste awful at the same time, which is some multi-dimensional, Hesienburg stuff. Bud is the very definition of a beer that you only drink "to get you where you need to go", i.e. to drunk-town.
Corrections
[a] Lactobacillus and Pediococcus are not yeasts, so they were removed. They're bacteria! Thanks Unknown.Sources
- http://craftbeertemple.com/videoblog/ingredients/
- http://blog.beeriety.com/2009/07/06/how-beer-is-made/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sorghum
- https://www.homebrewersassociation.org/how-to-brew/sour-microbes-yeast-and-bacteria-explained/
Thanks Ben, now I know something about beer (other than that it should be applied orally). Just a point of clarification: Lactobacillus and Pediococcus are not yeasts. Yeasts are more closely related to animals and plants, than they are to bacteria.
ReplyDeleteGreat point, made all the more embarrassing because I work in evolutionary biology. Thanks Unknown!
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