How is Beer Made? Flashcards
General process for brewing beer
What is the basic chemical formula for making beer?
Sugar + Yeast => Alcohol + Carbon dioxide + Aromas
List the levels of alcohol by volume for beer
- Low: 4% abv and below
- Medium: 4.1-5.9% abv
- High: 6.0-9.0% abv
- Very High: Above 9% abv
List the primary ingredients needed to make beer
- Grain (malt)
- Water
- Hops
- Yeast
What is a malted grain?
A grain that has gone through the malting process
Why is malt important to the brewing process?
It is the source of sugars used by the yeast to make alcohol; it provides most of a beer’s color and can add aromas to the beer
Why is water important to the brewing process?
It provides the liquid environment needed for yeast to metabolize sugars
How does malt provide sugars for fermentation?
Grains contain starches that are broken down into sugars during the malting process
What is a starch?
A long chain sugar molecule that cannot be metabolized by yeast
How are starches converted to sugars?
Conversion is catalyzed by enzymes that break bonds in starch molecules
What are the steps in making beer?
- Milling
- Mashing
- Wort boiling
- Fermentation
- Carbonation
- Packaging
What is grist?
The milled grains produced during milling
What is mash?
A mixture of grist and hot water
What is wort?
The sugary liquid separated from the mash
What is bottle conditioning?
Adding carbonation through further fermentation in bottle.
What happens during the mashing process?
Hot water is added to the milled grain. The enzymes released convert starches to sugars, creating a sugary liquid (wort) that is then separated from the mash
