Laboratory Studies for Brewing Students - A Systematic Course of Practical Work in the Scientific Principles Underlying the Processes of Malting and Brewing

LABORATORY STUDIES

FOR

BREWING STUDENTS

A SYSTEMATIC COURSE OF PRACTICAL WORK IN

THE SCIENTIFIC PRINCIPLES UNDERLYING

THE PROCESSES OF MALTING AND

BREWING

BY

ADRIAN J. BROWN, M.Sc.

DIRECTOR OF THE SCHOOL OF BREWING, AND PROFESSOR OF THE BIOLOGY AND CHEMISTRY

OF FERMENTATION IN THE UNIVERSITY OF BIRMINGHAM

EXAMINER IN BIOLOGICAL CHEMISTRY TO THE INSTITUTE OF CHEMISTRY, ETC.

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Beer Brewing

Brewing is the production of beer through steeping a starch source (commonly cereal grains) in water and then fermenting with yeast. Brewing has taken place since around the sixth millennium BC, and archaeological evidence suggests that this technique was used in most emerging civilizations including ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia. Descriptions of various beer recipes can be found in cuneiform (the oldest known writing) from Mesopotamia, where the brewer's craft was the only profession which derived social sanction and divine protection from female deities, specifically: Ninkasi, who covered the production of beer, Siris, who was used in a metonymic way to refer to beer, and Siduri, who covered the enjoyment of beer.

The basic ingredients of beer are; water, a starch source, such as malted barley, which is able to be fermented (converted into alcohol), a brewer's yeast to induce fermentation and a flavouring, such as hops. Homebrewing, brewing on a domestic level has been done for thousands of years, but has been subject to regulation and prohibition during some time periods in certain places. One of the earliest, modern attempts to regulate private production was the Inland Revenue Act of 1880 in the UK which required a 5-shilling homebrewing license. Restrictions on homebrewing were lifted in the UK in 1963, Australia followed suit in 1972, and the USA in 1978, though individual states were allowed to pass their own laws limiting production. In some countries such as New Zealand, homebrewing beer or wine has always been legal.

There are several steps in the brewing process, which include malting, milling, mashing, lautering, boiling, fermenting, conditioning, filtering, and packaging. In general, brewing beer at home is very similar to brewing commercially. Homebrewers can select from ingredients identical to those used in commercial brewing, in addition to a wide range of post-market customization. But, in general, a hopped wort is produced and yeast pitched into the wort to stimulate fermentation. The complexity of the process is mostly determined by the approach used to manufacture the wort; by far the simplest and most commonly used method is 'kit brewing', obtainable from many high-street stores.

Whether the homebrewer chooses to mash his or her own grains or chooses to purchase malt extracts, the liquid will then need to be boiled, and the hops added. The length of time the wort boils with the hops varies, depending on the style of beer being brewed but overall boil times are usually an hour. Hops are added at different times during the boil, depending on the desired result. Hops added at the beginning of the boil contribute bitterness, hops added in the last thirty minutes contribute flavour. Hops added in the last few minutes or even after the end of the boil contribute both flavour and hop aroma. Finings such as Irish Moss, a form of seaweed, and others can be added in the final 15–30 minutes of the boil to help prevent haze in the resulting beer.

After primary fermentation, the beer may be moved to a secondary fermentation vessel to allow the beer more time to clarify and to reduce the possibility of off flavours due to dead yeast bodies and other sediment. Secondary fermentation is often when brewers choose to add flavouring agents like orange peel, oak chips or even more hops (so-called ‘dry hopping’). Flavourings can include sugar, vegetables, herbs, spices, chocolate, coffee, or even a chicken!

People homebrew for a variety of reasons; it can be cheaper than buying commercially equivalent beverages, and allows people to adjust recipes according to their own tastes. Many enjoy entering homebrew competitions, sometimes referred to as ‘craft brewing’, and homebrewing has developed various clubs and competitions. In Britain, the ‘National Association of Wine and Beer Makers’ (amateur) and the ‘National Guild of Wine and Beer’ judge and sanction homebrewed beers, meads and ciders, offering categories for adjudicating. The national association have held an annual show every year since 1959. We hope that this book will inspire the reader to brew some beers of their own. Enjoy!

PREFACE.

SOME years ago, when it fell to the author’s lot to arrange a course of instruction in the principles of brewing for his students at the University of Birmingham, an examination of the literature of the subject showed that there was no book in existence which could be used as a systematic guide to practical work in the laboratory, and as the author recognised that a sound knowledge of the principles of brewing must be based on work of this nature, it became necessary to draw up a course of laboratory studies for the special use of his students. This course, subject to alterations and additions suggested by experience and by the progress of knowledge, has now been in use for several years, and as it has been found to fulfil its requirements in a satisfactory manner, the author now ventures to publish it in the hope that it may contribute in some measure towards filling a gap in the literature of brewing.

The work is essentially a student’s laboratory guide, and must not be regarded in any way as a text-book of the scientific principles of brewing as it confines itself mainly to descriptions of experimental work. It is intended for use under the supervision of a competent instructor, and it is assumed that the student is able to attend lectures on the subjects upon which he is working.

The chief difficulty of a study of the scientific principles underlying brewing practice lies in the fact that as it so often touches the limits of our present knowledge there are many questions which have to be studied about which there exists considerable uncertainty and difference of opinion. This naturally raises difficulties for the teacher, for, on the one hand, it is well recognised that some amount of dogmatism in teaching is necessary when introducing a new subject to the student, and, on the other, the state of our knowledge of certain of the questions dealt with in these studies does not justify dogmatic treatment. The position may be illustrated by a consideration of the very important and difficult problems of the constitution of the starch molecule and its transformation by diastase. A large amount of knowledge on these points has been accumulated, and many varied views have been advanced by different investigators concerning them, but none of these views have met with general acceptance, even of a provisional nature. This is due no doubt partly to the exceptional difficulties which surround the study of starch and its transformation by diastase, and partly to a militant spirit which appears to emanate from the starch molecule and influence the minds of most of its investigators.

How is this state of affairs to be met by the teacher? An attempt to lay before the student at the commencement of his studies all the different views concerning starch and its transformation products must result in reducing his mind to a state of chaos. It appears to the author that the only satisfactory course open is to teach those views which lend themselves best to explanation and demonstration, and, when the student is sufficiently advanced, to encourage him to criticise such views and compare them with others.

This is the method of teaching attempted by the author, and it is followed in this book with regard both to experimental studies, and to a consideration of the analytical processes employed in the brewery laboratory, many of which cannot be regarded as above criticism.

The course of studies might perhaps have been advantageously lengthened, but it had to be borne in mind that the majority of students are unable to devote more than one year to such studies. A good worker who has previously had a sound chemical training is able to work through the whole course in this time; but, for the benefit of those who have had a less complete preliminary training or who are less expert workers, some of the experiments are printed in small type to indicate that they may be omitted.

The references given in this book to original papers are not intended to be exhaustive, but have been selected in order to encourage the student to refer to original sources for information. In making the selection regard has been paid to those sources which are likely to be readily available.

The author desires to express his indebtedness to Mr. J. H. Millar for very valuable assistance in planning the studies of the carbo-hydrates, and also to Mr. Thomas H. Pope for kindly reading over the proof-sheets of this work, and for giving many useful suggestions.

SCHOOL OF BREWING,

UNIVERSITY OF BIRMINGHAM,

June, 1904.

CONTENTS.

PREFACE

SECTION I.—BARLEY AND MALTING.

PART I. A STUDY OF THE BARLEY CORN

The General Characteristics of a Grain of Barley

Ear of Ripe Barley and Spike of Barley when in Flower compared

The Flower of Barley

Ovary

Anthers

Lodicules

The Flower after Fertilisation

Barley and Wheat compared

Ears of Two-rowed and Six-rowed Barley compared

Characteristics of Sub-species of Barley

Ears of Chevalier and Goldthorpe Barley compared

Basal Bristles of Chevalier and Goldthorpe Barley

Corns of Chevalier and Goldthorpe Barley compared

Transverse Furrow of Goldthorpe Barley

Hordeum vulgare and H. hexastichum compared

PART II. ANATOMY OF THE BARLEY CORN

Endosperm and Embryo of the Barley Corn

Cutting and Preparing Sections for the Microscope

Anatomy of the Embryo

Anatomy of the Endosperm

The True Skins of the Barley Corn

Examination of Green Six-rowed Barley

Position of Starch Granules in the Cells of the Endosperm

Demonstration that the Starch-containing Cells contain Protoplasmic Matter

PART III. EXPERIMENTS CONNECTED WITH THE TECHNICAL STUDY OF BARLEY AND OTHER CEREALS

Microscopic Appearance of the Commoner Kinds of Starch

Preparation of Starch from Barley

Determination of Moisture in Barley

Determination of the Vitality or Germinative Power of Barley

The Weight of Barley

Specific Gravity of Barley

Technical Examination and Valuation of Barley for Malting Purposes

PART IV. THE CHANGES IN BARLEY DURING GERMINATION

Determination of Moisture in Steeped Barley

Study of the Changes in Barley during Germination

Growth of the Embryo when Separated from its Endosperm

The Embryo of the Barley Corn secretes Diastase during its Development

Generation of Carbon Dioxide during the Growth of the Barley Corn

Oxygen is Absorbed during Growth

Preparation of Malt Diastase

Action of the Enzyme Cytase

Loss in Weight during the Conversion of Barley into Malt

Technical Examination of Malt

1. General Appearance

2. Modification

3. Condition

4. Flavour

5. Regularity of Growth

6. Damaged Corns

7. Mouldy Corns

The Sinker Test

Specific Gravity of Malt

PART V. THE CHEMICAL ANALYSIS OF MALT

Moisture in Malt

Ash

Determination of the Extract of Malt

Determination of the Specific Gravity of Liquids

Preparation of the Malt Mash (Heron’s Method)

Extract of the Boiled Wort

Calculation of Dry Extract

Calculation of Weight of Dry Grains

Influence of Grinding on Extract

Criticism of the Method Employed

Determination of Extract by Weighing the Mash

The Full Theoretical Extract

Extract of Flaked and Prepared Grain

Extract of Black and Brown Malt

Extract of Raw Grain

Acidity of Malt

Determination of the Diastatic Power of Malt (Lintner’s Method)

Diastatic Power of Barley

Non-coagulable Albuminoids of Malt

Ready-formed Carbo-hydrates of Malt

Soluble Ash and Colour of Malt

Saccharification Test

SECTION II.—PRINCIPLES OF THE MASHING PROCESS.

PART I. A COURSE OF EXPERIMENTS CONSTITUTING A STUDY OF SOME OF THE CARBO-HYDRATES CONCERNED IN WORT PRODUCTION, AND INTRODUCING THE STUDENT TO THE SPECIAL METHODS EMPLOYED IN THEIR EXAMINATION

Action of Water on Starch

Preparation of Soluble Starch

Hydrolysis of Starch by Acid

Preparation of Dextrose

Quantitative Study of the Hydrolysis of Starch by Acid

Determination and Use of the Solution Weights of Carbo-hydrates

Solution Density of Dextrose

Introduction to the Use of the Polarimeter in Carbo-hydrate Work

The Specific Rotation of Dextrose determined by means of the Sodium-light Polarimeter

The Specific Rotation of Dextrose determined by means of the Half-shadow Polarimeter

Use of a Factor other than the True Solution Factor in Determinations of the Specific Rotations of Carbo-hydrates

Determination with the Polarimeter of the Amount of Sugar present in a Solution when the [α]D of the Dissolved Sugar is known

Mutarotation of Dextrose and other Carbo-hydrates

The Cupric Oxide Reducing Method of Estimating Sugars

Preparation of Fehling’s Solution

Determination of the Reducing Power of Dextrose

Preparation and Properties of Phenyl-glucosazone

Cane-Sugar or Saccharose

Cane-Sugar does not possess Cupric Oxide Reducing Power

Cane-Sugar does not Combine with Phenyl-hydrazine to form an Osazone

Inversion of Cane-Sugar

Inversion with Acid

Inversion with Yeast

Determination of the Cane-Sugar present in Malt

Levulose

Specific Rotation

Reducing Power

Preparation of Osazone

PART II. STUDY OF THE HYDROLYSIS OF STARCH BY DIASTASE, AND OF THE PRODUCTS OF HYDROLYSIS

Preparation of Cold-water Malt Extract

Action of Diastase on Starch

Action of Diastase is Destroyed at 100°

Preparation of Maltose

Specific Rotation of Maltose

Reducing Power of Maltose

Preparation and Properties of Phenyl-maltosazone

Hydrolysis of Maltose by Acid

Maltose is not Hydrolysed by the Action of Invertase

Dextrin

Preparation

Specific Rotation

Reducing Power

Preparation and Quantitative Examination of a Low Starch Conversion

Influence of Heat on the Hydrolysis of Starch by Diastase

Influence of Heat in Restricting Starch Transformation is Due to Modification of