BEER

INTRODUCTION
Beer is in existence for 7000 years and was well known in ancient Egypt and China. In those
times, it was brewed for private consumption in households and monasteries. In England, beer
drinking establishments were known as PUBLIC HOUSES (later condensed to PUB)and were
known by pictorial signs like the King’s Head and Red Rooster. The oldest existing tavern in
America is the France Tavern in Manhattan, where George Washington said farewell to his
officers after a victory in 1783.

BREWING MATERIALS / INGREDIENTS:

The basic materials used in the brewing process are as follows:
1. Malt:
The best cereal used in the production of beer is barley. The strain of barley is Hordeum
Sativum and the styles are Maris Otter and Pipkin. It must be of high quality and
prepared exactly according to brew master’s specification. This cereal goes through a
process which converts it to what is termed as malt. Other grains like maize, wheat and
rice are also used in conjunction with barley, but not more than 10% of the total.

2. Hops:
Hops are the main flavouring agents used in malted beverages. These are specially
grown for brewing and the best are produced in Kent, Sussex and Worcestershire. The
hops are the flowers of wine like plant of the mulberry family – Humulus Lupulus.
They look like small pinrcones. The flower contains an oil which gives beer its flavour.
The important varieties of hops are Golding, English Fuggles, Northern Brewer, Czech
Saaz, American Cascade, German Hallertau and Herbsbruck.

3. Sugar:
Specially graded and refined sugar are used which aid the fermentation and the
production of alcohol and also add sweetness.

4. Yeast:
Yeast is a living thing and is added to the beer at a set time to cause fermentation. Yeast
+ sugar produces alcohol and gives off a gas carbon-di-oxide. The strain of yeast used
is Saccharomyces Carlsbergensis for bottom-fermented lagers and Sacchromyces
Cerevisiae for top fermented ales. During fermentation, the yeast multiplies and this
new yeast is collected and used for future brews.
 5. Finings:
This is a substance obtained from the sturgeon fish, which is commonly called isinglass
or of cheaper synthetic varieties used for attracting the sediments to the bottom of the
cask. In other words, it is used to clear and brighten a fermented beer.

6. Primings:
This is a solution of sugar and hops added to some beers at racking. The function of this
solution is to develop the condition of the beer by the remaining yeast reacting with the
sugar to give off carbon-di-oxide in the cask.

7. Water (liquor):
Water is extremely important in producing malt beverages as it accounts for about 90%
of the beer content. It is usually drawn of from a special well and may have certain
minerals in its make up which helps a beer develop its own special characteristics.
Water is closely analysed and usually treated.

BREWING PROCESS OF BEER:

The step in beer production is mashing. To accomplish mashing, exact proportions of malt and
other grains are ground and placed in a mashing tank with water. This mash is cooked by
heating.
A sweet liquid known as wort is produced as a result of mashing. This is drawn from the
mashing tank and filtered into copper brewing kettles. The solids, which remain in the tank, are
then rinsed with water and the rinse is added to wort. The next ingredient added to liquid is
hops, which give it flavour and aroma. The mixture is then boiled for a sufficient time (two or
three hours) to extract the flavour from hops. The liquid acquires a slightly darker colour.
After brewing, the wort is filtered from the kettles through a hop strainer and spent hops are
removed. It is then cooled and pumped into ‘STARTING TANKS’ where especially cultured
yeast is added and fermentation begins.
Once fermentation has started, the wort is transferred to fermenter, where yeast continues to
change sugar molecules of the liquid into alcohol. In the process, carbon-di-oxide, which is
given off, is captured and stored for later use in the beverage (and other aerated beverages).
After sufficient ageing, beer is carbonated with gas. It is then passed through a pressure filter
and put in to kegs, cans or bottles formarketing. Bottled and canned beers are usually
pasteurized.

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1. Barley Barley

2. Ripened

3. Soaked

4. Spread on floors to germinate

5. Placed on malting floors, dried and toasted.

Coloured from pale to very dark according to the brew.

6. This process up to this stage changes the starch in the cereal to sugar. The
barley is now termed as MALT Malt

7. The malt is cleaned.

8. Then crushed. Now called GRIST. Grist

9. The grist is now mixed with hot water. (LIQUOR) Liquor

This mixture – grist + hot water – is termed as MASH Mash

10. The mash is now allowed to infuse.

11. The extract is drained off to a clean container called copper.

12. HOPS and SUGAR are now added. Hops & Sugar

13. This liquid is now boiled to concentrate it, and is now termed WORT. Wort

14. The extract is strained off to remove the hops.

15. Cooled to approximately 16º C (60º F)

16. and run into fermenting vessel (VAT). Vat

17. Yeast is added and fermentation takes place.

FERMENTATION = Yeast x Sugar produces alcohol and gives off Co2. Fermentation

18. Yeast produces itself and is collected for re-use.

19. The gas Co2 given of is collected and used in bottled beer.

20. After 36 hours in fermenting vessel the wort is run off into fermenting squares.

21. Surplus yeast is skimmed off. Some is left on as a dust cover.

22. On completion of the fermentation, the yeast is COOLED as the process

of fermentation has heated the wort. Cooling

23. It takes approximately 7 days from mashing to the wort becoming BEER. Beer

24. The beer is now allowed to MATURE. Mature

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 25. RACKED into casks / keg / tank. Casks/keg/tank

26. The FININGS are now added to brighten the beer. Finings

27. The beer is allowed to settle.

28. Tasted for quality and consistency before being sent out to the trade for
SALE Sale

CLASSIFICATION OF BEER
Beer
Top Fermented Beer
Bottom Fermented Beer
Ales (Pale / Mild / Bitter / Old ale / Lager (Pilsner / Dortmunder / Malt /
Brown ale / Barley wine) Liquor)

Porter Vienna, Märzen / Oktoberfest beer

Stout (Dry / Sweet / Milk / Oatmeal Munich, Dunkel, Bock, Doppelbock

Imperial)

Altbier, Kölsch Rauchbier (smoked beer), Schwarzbier

(black beer)

Special (Trappist, Abbey / Red /

Bières de garde / Saison / Flanders
Brown)

Wheat beers (Blanche / Wheat / White)