A Beginner’s Guide To The Beer Brewing Process

Being the most chill and laid-back drink that beer is, it’s not a surprise for it to have such a huge fan base. With the growing excitement for craft beer, a lot of people are coming up with basic questions about how the drink is brewed. If you are an absolute novice and don’t want to be clueless about the know-how of beer brewing, this beginner’s guide to the beer brewing process should definitely help.

Ingredients

Before we jump into the technicalities of beer brewing, let’s touch up on the essential ingredients that go into brewing. The magic of beer comes to power because of these ingredients:

• Water

One of the biggest and main ingredients that makes up for around 90 to 96% part of the beer is water. You could tap water or any other drinkable water, as long it tastes good and would be perfect for brewing.

• Extract

Now let’s talk about the soul of the beer, malted barley. This means that the grains are conditioned at specific temperatures to ensure that they sprout and are then dried. The whole process helps to develop starches and sugars that are eventually extracted when you make the beer.

Also Read: What Is Craft Beer? Your Ultimate Guide

• Hops

Ever wondered what’s that bitter element in your beer? It’s because of the use of hops or humulus lupulus, an impressive botanical specimen. It adds bitterness or floral flavor to your beer while balancing the sweetness of the malt.

• Yeast

Who hasn’t heard of the miracles that yeast is capable of? In beer, yeasts help convert sugar to CO2 and alcohol. They are basically living organisms who have a dietary love for sugar and are mostly cultivated for most beers to add flavor.

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Types Of Brewing

There are three main types of beer brewing processes that differ basis the base of the beer and other factors involved.

• Extract Brewing

One of the easiest and most convenient ways to brew beer is to use the extract brewing process. In this, you use the grains in dry or liquid form to make the base of the beer. Overall, the process needs less equipment, space, and time, making it easy for anyone to make beer at home.

• All-Grain Brewing

This is one of the purest forms of brewing beer, but requires more space, time, knowledge, and lots of equipment. The process doesn’t use malt extracts, rather it extracts the sugar solely from the grains. This one is more suitable for brewers who have some experience in the process of brewing.

• Partial Mash

This process is a combination of the use of malt extract and grain, which provides an increased possibility to create a beer with a rich quality. Partial mash requires less equipment, space, and time as compared to all-grain brewing, and more inputs in comparison to extract brewing.

Also Read: How To Pair Beer With Food

Steps To The Beer Brewing Process

1. Cleaning & Sanitizing

The first and foremost step in brewing a beer is to ensure that you have cleaned and sanitized all your equipment. We say so because anything that comes in contact with your beer can have a big impact on its flavors and quality. So, it’s recommended to use any mild detergent or solution to sanitize before you get started.

2. Turning The Barley Into Malt

Craft beer brewing begins with creating malt from barley. For this, the barley is soaked, dried, and then finally roasted to create malted barley or just malt.

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3. Crushing The Malt

Once the barley is turned into malt, it is further crushed to bring out the starchy component that’s very peculiar to the malted barley. Hot water is then used to mash the starch and convert it into sugar, before later getting converted into alcohol.

4. Lautering

The mash, as a result of the aforementioned process, is transferred into a straining vessel, also known as a lautering vessel. Purified hot water is then used to extract as much sugar as possible from the mash. The result is something that is technically termed as “wort”.

5. Re-lautering

In re-lautering, the initial batch of wort is put back into circulation through the same process to extract as much sugar as possible. This is done by adding more water through a method called ‘sparging’, which simply means spraying.

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6. Hopping

In case you were wondering when the hops would make their entry, the moment is finally here. The wort is collected in a kettle before being put to boil. The hops are then added to this boil, doubling up as a flavoring agent as well as a natural preservative.

7. Cooling

After boiling the wort and mixing it with hops, the mixture is taken to another vessel where the hop component is separated from the wort. The clean wort is then cooled down to room temperature.

8. Fermentation

The cooled-down wort is transferred to fermenting vessels where yeast, a living fungus, acts as the primary fermenting agent to convert the wort into carbon dioxide and then alcohol. The fermenting can last from anywhere between seven to ten days. The resulting liquid is officially termed ‘beer’.

Also Read: 5 Flavored Beers For Those Who Don’t Like The Taste Of Beer

9. Filtration

The last stage of the process includes storing the resulting beer for a few more weeks and then finally filtering it to make it ready for bottling.

Summing Up

That was pretty much all you needed to know about the beer brewing process. With this beginner’s guide to the beer brewing process, you can always try your hand at whipping up a fresh batch of beer. If you end up making a good beer, then feel free to thank us!

FAQs

What Are The Steps Of The Beer Brewing Process?

The steps involved in brewing beer are:

1. Cleaning & Sanitation
2. Convert Barley Into Malt
3. Mash
4. Lauter
5. Re-lauter
6. Add Hopps
7. Let It Cool
8. Ferment
9. Filter

What Are The Main Ingredients In Beer?

The main and essential ingredients that help you brew a beer are:

• Malt
• Water
• Yeast
• Hops

What Makes Up 90% Of Beer?

Water is what makes up for most of the beer. It forms about 90-96% of the beer you drink.

What Are The 2 Main Types Of Beer?

Beer is mainly classified into two types – lager and ales. The use of different types of yeast for fermentation is the difference between them.

Which Beer Is Best To Drink In India?

Some of the best and most popular beer brands in India are:

• Carlsberg
• Kingfisher
• Budweiser
• Tuborg
• Heineken
• Foster’s

What Type Of Beer Is Budweiser?

Budweiser is an American-style lager beer. It’s a medium-bodied, crisp, and flavorful beer brewed with the best barley and premium hop varieties.

Which Is The Sweetest Beer In India?

If you’re looking for a sweet after taste in your beer, then you can try Kalyani Black Label beer. This strong beer is mostly popular in Delhi and eastern parts of India, and has an alcohol content of 7.8%.