LET’S BREW THIS!
A BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO
HOMEBREWING
INTRODUCTION This book is about beer. It is for the beer lover, the beginning homebrewer, and the curious. But before I go on have to come clean about one thing. Until just about a year ago I did not even really like beer. It was never my drink of choice at pubs, the grocery store, or something I longed for after a hard day at work. However, all my friends liked beer and I wondered if there was something wrong just with me or with all of them. They couldn’t all be wrong about this drink, after all hundreds of thousands of people seem to love the stuff. There must have been something I was missing. Up until a year ago I was more of a cider drinker. Cider I could understand, after all it was just fermented apples and other fruits that came together to make a sweet bubbly alcoholic drink. But beer did not seem this straight forward and easy to understand. What the heck was even in beer? We can either avoid things that we do not understand or try to learn more about them. So I chose to do the latter. This book is my exploration into the world of beer as I try to understand what goes into creating is diverse beverage. This book will talk about the ingredients that create beer, different styles of beer, the process of making beer, and my experience as homebrewer.
THE STUFF BEER IS MADE OF
BEER IS MOSTLY MADE UP OF FOUR MAIN INGREDIENTS: MALTED BARLEY,
HOPS,
WATER,
AND YEAST.
MALTED BARLEY Why malted and what does that mean? Other grains? The grains need to be milled in order to use. Where is barley grown? Malted barley creates the fermentable sugars that carbonate, ferment, and flavor beer. The sugars in barley are not readily fermentable so the barley must be malted before the brewing process. Malting creates the ideal circumstances for fermentation as it causes as release of enzymes. These enzymes are needed in order to change from one chemical state to another, and in the case of beer this is from starch to sugar. Enzymes are specialized proteins that assist chemical reactions. They reduce the amount of energy needed need to change from one chemical state to another. The malting process 1. Barley is steeped in water for about two days. This allows for germination to occur which opens the barley seeds starch reserves in the endosperm. 2. The germination process then continues for another four to five days in a controlled humid environment. This allows for more starch reserves to open. 3. The germinated barely is then dried in a kiln for only a few hours. During this time most of the malt flavors develop. This process also develops the sugars, soluble starch, and starch-to-sugar converting enzymes. There are a number of variables that if slightly altered can affect flavor, head retention, body, sweetness, fermentability, and aroma. These variables include the variety of barley, kilning time and temperature, and moisture content. Malt extract. Malt extract is concentrated wort. It is commercially produced wort that has been condensed and has had the water extracted from it. Malt extract can come as a thick syrup or dried powder. It is made just like an all grain mash, by milling grains, adding water, and steeping them.
Specialty malts and adjunct grains. Specialty malts are ??? Some specialty malts include include black malt, chocolate malt, crystal/caramel malt, roasted barley, and Cara-pils (or dextrine). Adjunct grains are any fermentable grain added to malted barley during the brewing process. These can include things like corn, rice, oats, and wheat.
HOPS Hops are the cone like flowers of the hop vine. They are important for beer because they add distinct bitterness, flavor, and aroma; inhibit the growth of bad bacteria that could cause spoiling; and aid in flavor stability, head retention, and clarification. Hops can be infused into beer at various stages of the brewing process in the form of hop additions and dry hopping. When you add hops to your brew will determine how intensely you will taste them; the longer they are boiled the more intense flavor they will provide. The two most common forms of hops for brewing are compressed whole hops and pelletized hops. Hops are best cultivated between latitudes of 35-55째 in both the Northern and Southern hemispheres. The bitterness of hops is influenced by terrior, the region and year it was cultivated in. Most commercially grown hops are from Germany, the South of England, Southern Australia, Tasmania, and Washington State. Different varieties are chosen for bitterness, aroma, and flavor. The oils and resins of hops are what make the flavoring power. Lupulin is the main one of these resins that is pungent, waxy, and bitter.
INFO ABOUT DIFFERNT VARIETIES OF HOPS
WATER
YEAST Yeast is a fungus, a living single celled microorganism. It feeds on the sugars from malted barley and turns them into alcohol.
There are two major families of brewers yeast: ale and lager. Within each of these two families there are many genetic strains that create different variations on these two styles of beer. Ale (Saccharomyces cerevisiawe) is a top fermenting yeast and it thrives best at temperatures between 55-75째 whereas lager yeast (Saccharomyces pastorianus) is bottom fermenting and thrives best at temperatures between 32-55째. Because of the colder temperatures for lagers, the fermentation process is slowed down and they take longer to ferment than ales. During the brewing process yeast will go through its entire life cycle. First, the yeast increases in population by three to five times, gaining and storing energy in the first four to eight hours. Then fermentation occurs as the yeast expends energy, converting sugars into alcohol and CO2, a process that takes about three to seven days. During this time the yeast is mostly suspended in the wort for maximum dispersal.
The last stage of the process is sedimentation. This occurs as the yeast begins to drift to the bottom and shuts down as there is a lack of energy and food. At this point the beer starts to condition.
IMAGES
CHART OF BEER STYLES ALE VS LAGER AND THEIR STRAINS
HOW TO MAKE BEER
HOMEBREWING JARGON Wort: Unfermented beer, yeastless beer. Pitch: The word used for adding yeast to wort. Wort chiller: A device that uses heat exchange to cool down wort in order to pitch yeast. Mash/Mashing: Mashing is the process of steeping the grains in hot water. Hop addition: The specific time hops is added during the one hour boiling process. Rack: The process of moving beer, as in into a second fermenter. Krausen: a foamy head of yeast and wort proteins that forms on the top of fermenting beer Dry hop: A hop addition that is added during the second fermentation, after racking.
WHY HOMEBREW? My first homebrew experience was with homebrewers who had been making beer for years. It was second nature to them. They made the process that looked semi complicated on paper look effortless in practice. It was brewing with them that I began to understand what beer was made up of and many of my walls surrounding the beverage began to come down. It was also with them that I began to appreciate beer as I was learning the care and art of making it. Being able to make something on your own gives it a whole new light and that is exactly what happened to me with beer. I figured if I can make this myself, understand the process, and tailor it to my likes and wants, how could I not like it? That is where my idea for this independent study began. For this study I did a great deal of research, studied the literature, and made three brews. I tired three different styles of beer in order to begin to understand the differences in using different types of yeasts, hops, and barley. I know that this study is only the beginning on my homebrewing experience and I cannot wait to continue making more beer, discovering new possibilities and creating my own recipes.
METHODS There are three methods to brewing beer: extract, partial mash, and all grain. I have been focusing on the extract method, as it is a good beginning method because extracts are a bit easier to work with. The equipment and time needed to brew beer will vary depending on the method you use. The equipment and process I have outlined here are specifically for extract brewing.
THE BASICS Most homebrew kits and recipes make five gallons of beer. This is the standard homebrew batch size but it can easily be altered if you want smaller or larger brews. In my experience a five gallon brew yields on average 40 bottles of beer. I decided for my first few batches of beer to only do extract brews. This style of brewing is a little more expensive than partial mash and all grain brews because malt extracts are more expensive than pure grains because they require processing and packaging. Along with doing extract brews I decided to follow set recipes in the form of beer kits. Beer kits are a collection of ingredients that have been put together to form a specific recipe that has been created by the place you purchase the kit from. I purchased all three of my kits from Central Street Farmhouse in Bangor, Maine. They have a wide variety of beer kits to choose from and they have been very helpful and great to work with. Beside my beer kits I also bought all of my homebrewing equipment from Central Street Farmhouse. I generally feel like a pretty lucky homebrewer. Nothing I have made has turned out horrible or turned into a crazy mess; everything has been manageable and worked out i.e. is drinkable. I owe this success to good note taking and perceptive observation. Fermentation processes require patience, positive thoughts, and above all proper sanitation for the smoothest processes and best management.
THE EQUIPMENT If you decide to brew your own beer there is some special equipment that you will need. You should be able to find all of following at your local homebrew store.
5 gallon brew pot and spoon
sanitizer (I use Star San) & spray bottle
SOMETHING
siphon & hose 5 gallon or bigger bucket & airlock
a few dozen empty bottles
hydrometer
thermometer
bottle capper & bottle caps
HYDROMETER Hydrometers are an essential instrument needed to brew beer. A hydrometer measures the density of liquids relative to the density of water. Density is a measurement of the amount of dissolved solids within a substance, in the case of beer those solids are mostly sugar. The density of beer will decrease as yeast ferments the dissolved sugars into alcohol and CO2 because alcohol is less dense than water. SpeciďŹ c gravity is the density of beer after the main fermentation process has occurred. Many recipes will provide the original (starting) gravity and the specific (ending) gravity. When the ending gravity is reached you are then able to bottle or keg your beer as it has properly fermented. For more accurate readings of your hydrometer you should calibrate it according to temperature because as the wort changes with temperature fluctuations density readings will also change and may be slightly inaccurate.
How to use a hydrometer. Most hydrometers come in a plastic flask. In order to take a density reading of your wort, ladle some wort from your fermenter into the flask then drop the hydrometer into the flask. The level at which the hydrometer floats will give you your density reading. To determine when you have reached your specific gravity keep checking the density of your wort and if it stays the same after a few consecutive days then it is ready to bottle or keg.
THE PROCESS Brewing beer can be as simple as brewing tea, only it takes a bit more time on the stove and there are a few more step you must take before you can drink it. These steps are outlined below and if followed will make a great extact brewed beer.
1. PREPARE THE INGREDIENTS & EQUIPMENT
If using a liquid yeast like Wyeast make sure to activate the packet about three hours before you plan to pitch the yeast.
Clean and sanitize everything! It is really important to use the cleanest of equipment so that bad bacteria (bacteria you do not want) doesn’t get WYEAST into your beer and alter things in a bad way.
2. MASH 3. ADD EXTRACTS +
=
Add two gallons of water to your brew pot and add your bag of specialty grains. Bring the water and grains to a boil. Once a boil is reached remove grains.
Continue the mashing process by keeping the water at a boil and adding all of your malt extracts. It is very important to keep stirring your wort at this time so that extracts don’t stick to the bottom of your pot and in case of a hot break in which your wort boils over into a sticky mess.
Why does boil over occur? As the wort heats up it beings to foam. This foam is caused by proteins in the extract that coagulate as they roll together in the boiling process. Hot breaks can take anywhere between 5 and 20 minutes to occur and the best way to avoid them is to generously stir your wort and wait to add your first hop addition until you feel the potential of boiling over has passed. Boiling over may be more likely to occur when your pot is covered therefore take care and keep a close eye on your pot if you cover it.
4. ADD HOPS After the hot break is over and all your extracts have been added you can start a timer and begin to add your hops. Most brews need one full hour of boiling and hop addition times will be found on your recipe. If using Irish moss, add during the last 15 minutes of boil.
5. COOL THE WORT You can do this in an ice bath, with cold water, or with a wort chiller. Your wort needs to be between 70-80 degrees F before you can pitch the yeast. Add the cooled wort into your sanitized fermentation vessel with three gallons of water. Take an starting gravity reading.
6. PITCH THE YEAST
7. PRIMARY FERMENTATION. The primary fermentation time will vary depending on the recipe but generally takes one to two weeks. Store beer away from sunlight. In order to insure that you have enough room in your bucket for krausen build up, attach a blow off tube and smaller bucket to catch the overflow. Remove the tube and add an airlock as soon as the yeast becomes less active.
Pitch the yeast when your wort is between 70 and 80째F.
8. SECONDARY FERMENTATION. The secondary fermentation process occurs when you rack your beer into a secondary fermenter. This is when you may add dry hops or other additional ingredients if you recipe calls for them. Wait another one to few weeks until you have a consistent final gravity reading after a few consecutive days.
9. BOTTLE Bottle your beer with the addition of priming sugar in order for it to carbonate. Store it in a dark place for a few weeks.
10. DRINK YOUR BEER Enjoy the fruits of your labor. Chill your bottles in the fridge and enjoy! . Remember to ...keep notes and logs for your brews. It is important in order to stay organized and make sure things are running smoothly.
MY HOMEBREW LOGS
HARDWATER PALE ALE
PHOTO WHOLE PAGE
April 6th, 2015 Hardwater Pale Ale 5 Gallons Ingredients: One can of Briess Pilsen Light Malt Extract One can of Briess Munich Specialty grains: ½ lb flaked maize, ½ lb Caramel 60, and 1 oz roasted barley 1 oz Northern Brewer Hops Irish Moss Wyeast 1275 Thames Valley 60 minute boil First, grain sock was added to 2 gallons of warming water, taken out when water came to a boil. Second, both cans of malt extracts were added while water was still boiling. Stirred, and stirred, and stirred. Third, ¾ oz of hops were added about 10 minutes after extracts dissolved, to be sure the hot break was over. Fourth, after 45 minutes of boil the remaining ¼ oz of hops and Irish Moss were added. Fifth, after 15 more minutes of boil the wort was taken off the stove. Sixth, wort was added to 3 gallons of cold/cool water. Pitched yeast at 78 degrees. Starting gravity = 1.055 Notes: I had to wait for hours for my wort to cool! I should have prepared more cold water. I am worried about bacteria getting into my wort. I didn’t cover it because I wanted it to cool faster, but I feel like it was exposed for so long. 4/7 I wasn’t sure if I needed to attach a blow off tube or if I could just attach the air lock right away. I did a lot of reading on brew forums and I decided that I would attach the airlock right away because I believed I would have enough room for the krausen. (My bucket is 6.5 gallons and my beer is only 5 gallons). Airlock was working fine overnight and before I left it in the morning but in the afternoon the krausen was overflowing into my airlock. OH NO! So I took off the airlock, sanitized and attached a hose and smaller container to catch my overflow. Not much is overflowing but I will continue to check the
bucket tomorrow or Thursday reattach the airlock. 4/16 Gravity reading at 1.018. 4/17 Gravity reading at 1.016. 4/18 Gravity reading at 1.014. 4/19 Gravity reading at 1.014. 4/20 Bottled pale ale with priming sugar. 35 bottles. Final gravity of 1.014. Final gravity goal according to recipe is between 1.011 and 1.014. 4/29 First taste of Pale Ale, pretty good! Fairly carbonated, more so than I thought it would be. Discuss how I think it turned out. My experience with this process.
BRUSSELS TO BANGOR BELGIAN STOUT
PHOTO WHOLE PAGE
April 20th, 2015 Brussels to Bangor Belgian Stout 5 Gallons Ingredients: Two cans of Traditional Dark Malt Extract 1 lb of dark candi sugar Specialty grains: ½ lb roasted barley, ¼ lb biscuit malt, ¼ lb kiln black malt 2 oz Fuggle Hops (1oz for entire 60 minutes, 1oz for last 15 minutes) Irish Moss Wyeast 1214 Belgian Ale 60 minute boil First, grain sock was added to 2 gallons of warming water, taken out when water came to a boil. Second, both cans of malt extract and dark candi sugar were added while water was still boiling. Stirred, and stirred, and stirred. One oz of hops were added about 10 minutes after extracts dissolved, to be sure the hot break was over. After 45 minutes of boil the remaining 1 oz of hops and Irish Moss were added. After the final 15 minutes of boil the wort was taken off the stove. The wort chilled in an ice bath in the tub and then added to 3 gallons of cold/cool water. Pitched yeast at 65 degrees. Starting gravity = 1.054 Note: I had the opposite problem as last time with my wort! I decided to cool the wort down in an ice bath in the tub while also adding prechilled water to the fermentation bucket. When added together they were well below 60 degress so I chilled it way too much! I wasn’t sure if I should pitch the yeast until at least above 70. Took some time and waiting but I finally compromised pitched the yeast at 65. 4/22 I haven’t seen any action with my beer and nothing is coming out of the blow off tube. I hope it’s okay! 4/25 I opened the fermenter to see if I could see anything happening. Lots of action going on! I didn’t seem to need the blow off tube with
this one, everything was contained nicely inside. Put on airlock. 4/27 Racked to secondary. Density reading at 1.018 4/30 Density 1.016 5/2 Density 1.016 5/5 Bottled with priming sugar. 35 bottles. Density of 1.016. I probabaly could have bottled a couple of days sooner. Hope it’s okay. 5/16 Tried stout! Still needs more time to carbonate but it’s on it’s way! More thoughts on taste.
BONTON FERRY BLACK IPA PHOTO WHOLE PAGE
May 5th, 2015 Bonton Ferry Black IPA 5 Gallons Ingredients: Two cans of Briess Sparkling Amber Malt Extract 1 lb of Briess Golden Light Malt extract Specialty grains: ½ lb Special B malt, ½ lb Carafa III black malt 1oz Columbus hops (60 min) 1oz Ahtanum hops (30 min) 1 oz Cascade hops (15 min) 1 oz Simcoe hops (dry hop in secondary) Irish Moss Wyeast 1056 American Ale 60 minute boil First, grain sock was added to 2 gallons of warming water, taken out when water came to a boil. Second, both cans of malt extract and golden light malt extract were added while water was still boiling. Stirred, and stirred, and stirred. The Columbus hops were added about 10 minutes after extracts dissolved, to be sure the hot break was over. With 30 minutes of boil the remaining the Ahtanum hops were added, and after 15 more minutes the Cascade hops were added with Irish Moss. After the final 15 minutes of boil the wort was taken off the stove. The wort chilled in an ice bath in the tub and then added to 3 gallons of cold/cool water. Pitched yeast at 70 degrees. Forgot to get density! Ahh 5/16 Racked and dry hopped with 1 oz of Simcoe hops. 5/20 Density 1.016 5/25 Density 1.014 5/26 Bottled. Final density 1.014.