Beer Flashcards
Beer predates wine as one of the oldest alcoholic beverages known to man, only ____ surpasses it in age
mead
Why are grains trickier than grapes for fermentation?
Grain’s starch must first be converted into sugar before fermentation can commence
How is the brewing process twofold?
- The brewer must derive the wort
2. ferment the wort
What is wort?
A sugar-rich liquid, from malted grain
What 4 ingredients are typically utilized in brewing?
water, yeast, a starch source, and hops
What are hops?
A flower that adds flavor and bitterness, and has both preservative and antiseptic qualities that prohibit bacterial growth
What was the Bavarian Purity Law (Reinheitsgebot) of 1516?
It codified the 3 ingredients authorized for beer production as barley, hops, and water (The action of yeast in fermentation was not known)
Why was wheat not included in the Bavarian Purity Law?
Now a component of Hefe Weizen and White Beer styles, it was then reserved for the production of bread
What is the first step in the modern brewing process?
To create the malted barley, or malt.
Why is the barley in beer-making, steeped in water for approximately two days?
to promote germination of the grain
When the grain sprouts, an enzyme called ___ is produced, which does what?
amylase, will convert the starchy carbohydrates of the grain into the fermentable sugars maltose and dextrin
Before roasting the barley, what is the product called?
his “green malt”
What determine the length and degree of roasting?
The style of beer desired
What style of beer is a result of heavy roasted black malts?
porter-style beers
What style of beer is a result of pale malt that is dried at low temperatures and very light in color?
pale ales
What are the steps of Beer making?
- Malt the barley
- Extract Wort
- Add Hops for bitterness, flavor
- Wort Boiled
- Fresh hops added for freshness, aroma
- Wort cooled for fermentation
- Lager vs. Ale decision
- Yeasts added, fermentation
Once the grain is malted, what is produced?
The malt is ground, or cracked, in a mill to produce GRIST
What is the mashing process?
When the grist (ground malted barley) is combined with hot water in a mash tun, mashing process lasts 1-2 hours, converting and extracting sugar from the malt
What is the result of the mashing process?
The flavor-, sugar- and color-rich wort.
What is sparging?
Rinsing the spent grains (after wort is filtered off) with fresh water to extract additional sugar and flavor, although this may lead to unwanted bitterness in the finished brew
What is a synonym for the brew kettle where the wort liquid is boiled?
“copper”
What is placed in the brew kettle?
wort, hops are added (and sparge if being used)
The wort is then brought to a sustained, roiling boil for at least one hour, what does this achieve?
Boiling the wort stabilizes and sterilizes the brew, darkens the color, and causes excess water to evaporate
What to hops contribute but also lose in the brew kettle?
More bitterness the longer they boil, but lose aroma
In order to retain fleeting, volatile hop aromas, the wort may pass through what?
A hopback chamber prior to chilling
____ encounter the hot wort, and contribute ____
Fresh hops, fresh aromas
Wort destined to become a lager is….
cooled to a lower temperature than wort for ale production,
For ales, what type of yeast is required?
A top-fermenting yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae)
Describe top-fermenting yeasts
Top-fermenting yeasts prefer warmer temperatures and result in fruity and richly-flavored beers.
How long is Ale fermentation?
Very quick, usually lasting less than a week.
What yeast is used for Lagers?
Bottom-fermenting yeast (Saccharomyces pastorianus, formerly called Saccharomyces carlsbergensis)
What does the use of bottom-fermenting yeasts result in?
A more delicate, cleaner beer
What are examples of Ales?
Brown Ale, Pale Ale, Scotch Ale, Mild Ale, Burton Ale, Old Ale, Belgian Ale, Trappist Ale, Abbey Beer, Stout, Porter
What in a nutshell is the difference of Ale and Lager fermentation?
Ale- WARM & FAST
Lager- SLOW & COOL
What are examples of Lagers?
Pilsner, Bock (including Doppelbock, Eisbock, Maibock), Märzen/Fest Beer, Vienna Style, Dortmunder, Black/Schwartz, Munich Helles, Pale Lager
What are Lambics?
Spontaneously fermented beers over a long period of time
What yeasts are used in Lambics?
Brettanomyces bruxellensis, Brettanomyces lambicus, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Lactobacillus, and others…
What do aged hops add to Lambics?
Aged hops provide antibacterial qualities, not bitterness
What is a Gueuze style lambic?
produced by mixing 1-year-old lambics with beers that have aged for 2-3 years. The blend is then refermented with aged hops in the bottle, giving the beer its sparkle.
What is a Mars style lambic?
A mild lambic produced by reusing the malt from a previous lambic fermentation
What is a Faro style lambic?
A mixture of lambic and a lighter brewed beer, Belgian candy sugar is added for sweetness
What is a Kriek style lambic?
Framboise and other fruit lambics
What are the 4 styles of Lambic beer?
Gueuze, Mars, Faro and Kriek
What are Wheat Beers?
Produced with up to 60% wheat instead of barley (German law requires at least 50%), wheat beers are typically cloudy and unfiltered
What are types of Wheat Beers?
Hefe Weizen (literally, “yeast-wheat”), Dunkel / Dark Weizen, Kristall Weizen (Filtered, crystal clear wheat beer), White Beer (often includes additions of orange peel and/or coriander)
Trappist Beers are produced in what various styles of strength?
patersbier, enkel, dubbel, tripel, quadrupel
Originally, how many Trappist facilities were there
A Dozen
What recent Abbey was certified in 2013 for Trappist Ales?
Spencer (St. Joseph’s Abbey, Massachusetts)
What is the oldest Trappist beer?
Rochefort (Belgian, est. 1595)
What German Trappist ale ceased production in 1956?
Mariawald
What trappist ale was est. 1826, ceased in 1905 and began again in 2011 but at Scourmont Abbey/Chimay?
Mont des Cats, France
The Belgian Trappist beers are the most well-known, what are they?
Orval, Chimay, Westvleteren, Rochefort, Westmalle, Achel
What is Biere de Garde?
Flemish and Northern French bottle-conditioned beer
What is California Common beer?
Lager fermented at warmer than normal temperatures (i.e. Anchor Steam)
What is Kölsch beer?
Ale from Cologne (Germany) fermented at cooler than normal temperatures
What is Kvass beer?
Rye-based Russian beer usually fermented with fruit juices
What is Rauchbier beer?
Smoked beer, famously produced in Bamberg (Franken, Germany)
What is Saison beer?
From Hainaut Province in Belgium
What do the bottom-fermenting yeasts tend to do in fermentation?
Tend to clump together at the bottom of the vessel, ferment slower and at lower temperatures
What do Cask ales sold as draught beers not undergoe?
Pasteurization
What do bottle-conditioned beers undergo?
unfiltered, undergo partial fermentation in the bottle
What are classic lambics like in character?
Almost vinous, distinctively sour, and aged prior to release—often up to three years in cask.
What are fruit lambics refermented with?
added fruits, such as sour Morello cherries for Kriek styles or raspberries for Framboise
What are two noteworthy producers of Lambic beers?
Lindemans and Cantillon (vary greatly in style and quality)
What usually is the alcohol content of beer?
4% to 6%
Which beers may show additional complexity with cellaring?
some higher alcohol beers, such as the strong ales of England and the Trappist Ales of Belgium and Holland
What beers should be served at a cool room temperature?
Trappist ales, lambics, stouts, brown ales and other powerful, strong beers
