WORT PRODUCTIONBREWING + DISTILLING CENTER, INC.

Wort Production

WORT• Solution of fermentable sugars

• Glucose

• Maltose

• Maltotriose

• Produced by MASHING

• Solution that YEAST is added for FERMENTATION

Wort Production

Begin with PROPER MILLING of malted barley

Wort Production

Begin with PROPER MILLING:

• Separate the outer husk material from the grain

with minimal damage, while crushing the

endosperm to small, but uniform, particle size.

• Maximize surface area of the endsoperm for

greatest amount of starch conversion, while leaving larger undamaged pieces of husk.

Wort Production

Begin with PROPER MILLING:

• Larger pieces of grain husk contribute to:

• Proper grain bed structure

• Better lautering porosity

• Smaller, damaged pieces of husk can release

elevated levels of polyphenols, such as tannins, that can add astringency to the finished product.

*Review any milling topics as needed

Wort Production

Malting enzymatic reactions continue during

MASHING

MASHING:

• The ‘cooking’ of grist to enzymatically convert

unfermentable starch/sugars to fermentable

simple sugars

• Increased temperature and water hastens

enzymatic activity

Mashing

Mashing is the process of turning the complex

carbohydrate—starch—of the malted barley, into

simple sugars—glucose, maltose, and maltotriose—

that yeast can eat (to produce ethanol and carbon dioxide

through fermentation).

Malted barley + hot water + enzymes simple sugars(glucose, maltose, maltotriose)(Starches)

Mashing

simple sugars/carbohydrate

*enzymes

*ENZYMES: Alpha Amylase + Beta Amylase

STARCH: complex sugar/carbohydrate

Alpha amylase

Beta amylase

Mashing

Mashing ENZYMES (naturally occurring in barley seed):

Alpha amylase: chops starch molecules in the

middle of the starch molecule (initially forming DEXTRINS)

Works best at:

150oF – 167oF

pH of 5.6 – 5.8

Dextrins- sugars larger

than 3 glucose

molecules

Mashing ENZYMES

Mashing ENZYMES

Beta amylase: chops single glucose molecules from

the ends of starch and shorter sugar molecules

Works best at:

145oF – 150oF

pH of 5.4-5.6

Mashing

Alpha and beta-amylase activity in MASHING :

Undigestible starch is converted into “chewable”

simple sugars yeast can eat so they can ferment and

produce ethanol and CO2

There are 3 steps of Mashing:

1. Gelatinization

2. Liquification

3. Saccharization

Mashing STEPS

Step 1: GELATINIZATION

▪ Separation of the large, long, flat starch

molecules from each other

▪ To start increasing the surface area for the

amylase enzymes to start working

▪ The hot water (about 150 F) breaks down the

bonds between the starch molecules to separate

them.

Mashing STEPS

Step 1: GELATINIZATION

stacked starch

molecules

separated starch

molecules

hot water

Mashing STEPSStep 2: LIQUIFICATION

▪The amylase enzymes begin chopping the

starch molecule into smaller dextrin molecules.

▪T up to 167 F.

Mashing STEPS

Step 3: SACCHARIZATION

▪The beta-amylase finishes chopping the sugar

molecules into single glucose molecules.

▪Temperature down to 150 F. pH = 5.2-5.4.

Mashing STEPS

Step 3: SACCHARIZATION

maltotriose maltose dextrin

Mashing

Maintaining correct temperatures and pH is vital

Incorrect temps and pH:

1. Incomplete mashing

▪ not enough simple

sugars produced for yeast

to eat

▪ less ethanol produced

▪ wasted money

2. Off-flavors

Mashing

Maintaining correct temperatures and pH is vital

Tending to Your Mash

⚫ Take all precautions to help maintain rest temperature

⚫ Regular mixing of mash

⚫Helps enzymatic activity

⚫Avoid temperature gradients

⚫ Confirm mash temperatures

⚫ Check mash depth

⚫ Use Iodine test to confirm completion of starch conversion

Mashing

Mashing

The result of mashing: WORT (The simple sugar

solution)

• The wort is now separated from the grain and hull and

other solid particles (spent grain)

• The wort is boiled to sterilize it to get rid of any bacterial

or wild yeasts that can contaminate beer

• Hops is added during the wort boil (as discussed)

Different Mashing Schedules

⚫ Single Step Infusion⚫Primarily British and American brewing

⚫ Multi-Step Infusion⚫Primarily Continental European Brewing

⚫ Decoction Mash

⚫ Step by Steam

Mashing

pH and Your Mash

⚫ Enzymatic activity is dependent on proper pH⚫Mash pH ranges...

⚫ 5.0-5.2 for best hop character, and optimize hot break

⚫ 5.2-5.6 for greatest extract yield

⚫ 5.3-5.4 for obtaining most fermentable wort

⚫ 5.3-5.6 for fastest conversion

⚫ Stop collecting wort when run-off pH is 5.8-6.0

Mashing

If Your Mash pH is Too High:

⚫ Increase in dextrin production

⚫ Higher extraction of polyphenols (e.g. Tannins)

⚫ Colloidal instability

⚫ Slow run-off

⚫ Turbid run-off

Mashing

Vorlauf

⚫ Also known as recirculation⚫Helps separate sugars from grain

⚫Clarifies wort from gain particles

⚫Stabilized grain bed for proper wort run-off

⚫ Watch your speed

Mashing

Vorlauf - precautions

Mashing

⚫ Make sure vorlauf discharge is not oxygenating

the wort

⚫ Running too fast can compact the grain bed, leading to a stuck mash.

⚫ A stuck mash can also develop in the initial milling

and mashing steps.

Lautering

Collecting your wort run-off- Do not run too fast, especially in the beginning

- Avoid oxidation of wort

- Avoid loss of extract efficiency

Things to check while lautering- Gravity of Sweet wort

- pH of sweet wort

- pH towards end of lauter

- Gravity of wort's last runnings

Sparging

Adding additional hot liquor water to mash to extract as

much brewing sugar as possible

Copper Full and Time to Boil

⚫ Copper full is the final amount of wort you wish to

collect before boil. Determined by recipe

⚫ Ideally, heating the wort should be occurring while lautering.

⚫ Once a boil is achieved, it is a good time to check the “pre-boil” gravity of the wort.

Proper Boiling

A proper boil should be as vigorous as possible without

boiling over.-Controlling your heat source

-Manipulating venting areas

*During the boil, there should, at least, be a small surface

area of exposed boiling wort

Boil Activites/Functions

⚫ Drives off unwanted flavor volatiles (e.g. DMS)

⚫ Lowers pH through precipitation of Calcium

Phosphate

⚫ Denatures malt enzymes

⚫ Sterilizes the wort

Boil Activites/Functions

⚫ Denatures and coagulates proteins

⚫ Concentrates wort gravity

⚫ Increases wort color, and flavor characteristics

through caramelization, formation of melanoids, and

oxidation of tannins

⚫ Changes hops alpha acids to iso-alpha acids

End of Boil

End of boil volume/also known as Copper Cast-Check wort volume

-Check wort gravity

-Determine if dilution is needed:

If so...

Current Volume x Current Specific Gravity/Specific Gravity

Desired = Diluted Volume

*Once calculations are complete, proceed with whirlpool.

Wort Cooling Wort cooling is achieved by passing hot wort through a

heat exchanger, while counter flowing a cold liquid through the heat exchanger's alternating plates.

-Ground Water

-Cold Liquor Water

-Glycol

Oxygenation

O2 is added to the cooled wort

-In line during cast out,

-Or to the wort in the fermenter

O2 is necessary to stimulate YEAST TO REPRODUCE (will be covered in detail in

FERMENTATION CHEMISTRY)

*Pure oxygen should not come into direct contact with yeast

Pitch that yeast baby!

Introduce the yeast into the fermenter with the cooled, oxygenated wort

-Directly through an opening in the fermenter

-Inline from a propagator

-Inline from another fermenter

-Injecter from a “yeast brink”