Tuesday, January 24, 2017

Did You Know The Ingredients Involved In Craft Brew Supplies

By Paul Adams


Homemade beers are again bouncing back to the market. In the recent past, people have shown more interest in commercial beer than in craft brew. However, because craft beers are made from natural ingredients, it is rapidly regaining its forgotten glory. Here are the key craft brew supplies involved in the brewing process.

The first component which plays a very crucial role is the yeast. They help in breaking down simple sugars to produce alcohol, carbon dioxide, and other compounds which enhance the taste and smell of this beer. The process in which the carbohydrates are broken down is called fermentation.

Yeats is available in two types namely larger and ale yeast. Ale yeast is very active in the fermentation process, and hence it is called top fermenting. On the other hand, larger yeast in which is less active in fermentation is called bottom fermenting. These two type of yeast work differently under different temperature conditions. Ale yeast ferments best at higher temperatures whereas larger yeast at much colder temperatures.

It has been mentioned that yeast ferment carbohydrates to produce alcohol. Therefore our next ingredients are the sugar sources which are in form of carbohydrates found in grains. Barley is the commonly used grain. But others such as wheat and rice can also be used. In brewing, these grains are called malts. The malts contain sugar which is broken into small pieces which can be easily acted upon by the fermented. The process of breaking the malts into small particles is referred to as malting.

Malting takes place in two stages. The first phase involves germination of the grains. In this process, the grains are steeped in water. After two days, the germination begins, and the enzymes required for malting are produced. The next step involves drying of germinated malt. The malt is dried in the kiln. The temperature of the kiln and the way in which this drying is done influence the type and color of the beer produced.

Beer is usually bitter. This bitterness is provided by hops. Hops are the flowerlike cones of the climbing vine. Inside them, are glands of oils and resins which not only add bitterness to the beer, also they improve the smell and flavor. The resins and the oils which are contained at the center of the hops are not soluble in water. Therefore to enable them to add their bitterness, they are boiled as a part of the brewing process.

The resins, as well as the oils which are contained in the hops, are insoluble in water. Therefore, to extract them, the hops must be boiled. The extent in which they are boiled determines the degree of bitterness of the beer. Moreover, hops are available in different kinds. Each kind has a particular characteristic and thus provides something unique to the beer. The variety of hops used in brewing influence the demand and hence the price of the beer.

The last ingredient is water. Water plays a very significance role because it is the medium through which all the ingredients mix. The chemistry of water in this process must be known by the brewer for a quality brew to be produced. Besides, water used in this process should be of superior quality, free from bad odors as well as contaminants.




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