About Malt - By JP Homebrew
PALE MALT - Provides the bulk of the fermentable sugar in all British Ales.Possesses sufficient diastatic enzymes to convert all fermentable maltose and non fermentable dextrins.Maris Otter,Halcyon and Pipkin are all excellent barleys from which pale malt is produced.Each has its own individual flavour and experimentation is strongly advised.
LAGER MALT - Can be made from almost any brewing barley but most commonly Halcyon. It is kilned at a slightly lower temperature than pale malt to give a lighter colour and a more delicate flavour.Lager malt can be mashed perfectly well with the normal one temperature infusion mash.The difficult and time consuming decoction mash is unnecessary.
PILSNER MALT - The palest of all malts.Essential for making the finest pilsner style beers.Single temperature infusion mash is sufficient but care must be taken to ensure that complete starch conversion has been achieved.
MILD ALE MALT - Produced from triumph barley,mild ale malt is kilned slightly hotter than pale malt and has a richer malt flavour perfectly suited to mild ales.Can be used to provide 100% of fermentable sugars or can be combined with dark malts.
VIENNA MALT - Dried at low temperatures to avoid caramelisation then kilned off at a fairly high temperature.Vienna malt imparts a wouderful rich aroma characteristic of German Oktoberfest beers.It can be used on its own or in conjuntion with pilsner malt to make malt accented lagers.
MUNICH MALT - Unlike vienna malt,Munich malt is kilned while the moisture content is still quite high which provides for some caramelisation of the sugars as its fairly high finishing off temperature.There are insufficient enzymes for Munich malt to be used on its own,but it can comprise up to 60% of the mash if combined with high enzymee Pilsner malt to make the classic malty Munich Dunkel(dark )lagers.
CARAPILS MALT - A very pale crystal malt which has no enzymes,so must be mashed with other malts.Can be used to add body to any style of beer which makes it a very versitile.Especially useful where sugar is being used in the recipe.
AMBER MALT - A characteristic "biscuit flavour and a dark amber colour are the properties of this very rare malt.Adds complexity to all dark ales and can be included in Bitters in small amounts.Home brewers would do well to familiarise themselves with this malt.
BROWN MALT - A very rare malt,imparts a slightly smoky flavour to Brown Ales and Porters.Has no enzyme activity so should be used with pale malt.A must for the more adventurous brewer.
CRYSTAL MALT - Cystal malt is kilned at mashing temperature of 65-70c at a high moisture content which converts most of the starch to sugar.This makes Crystal malt invaluable for adding body to malt extract brews as well as full mashed beers.Its nutty flavour is evident in many styles of British ale.
CHOCOLATE MALT - Thisis very versitile malt.Its smooth flavour makes it ideal for darkening ales and lagers.Every home brewer should have this malt in his store.
BLACK MALT - Roasted even darker than chocolate malt,its slightly burnt flavour is inapropriate in lagers but is most suitable for many dark beers.A little of this malt goes a long way,so it should be used sparingly.
WHEAT MALT - Wheat is a difficult grain to malt,as it has no husk,can cause problems with the run off if used in large amounts.Its benefits,howerver,far outweigh the disadvantages.It promotes a beautiful,creamy head and gives beer a lovely soft texture.German style wheat beers include up to 60% wheat malt in the grist but multi-temperature mashes should be employed to degrade the higher protein content.Flaked wheat malt helps to avoid the run-off problem.
ROASTED BARLEY - Although not strickly a malt,it is very highly kilned raw barley.It is included here as its an essential ingredient of dry stouts.It has the sharp burnt character of black malt but not the malty but acrid sweetness.Roasted barley can be used sparingly to darken most ales.
