Brewing

Faster throughput and more extract

Application sheet
Malt enzymes are not sufficient for optimum and efficient brewing production. To ensure
minimum run-off time and longer beer filtration cycles, viscosity build up and water binding
cell wall components have to be minimized. Even the enzymes in well-modified malt do not
fulfill these criteria. Malt enzymes are not heat stable and do not ensure reduced viscosity of
the wort and beer, and elimination of stickiness of spent grains. Novozymes offers a range of
heat-stable enzymes that ensure optimum brewing, every time. Brewhouse efficiency is
improved through increased extract, faster filtration, and minimized process fluctuations and
cellar capacity is improved through optimum beer filtration.

Benefits
Brew house value

0.5%-1.5% increased extract yields

10-40% reduced mash separation time
Easier cake discharge and reduced extract lost in spent grain
Enables 62-65 ºC mash-in temperatures for reduced mashing times and inactivation of
lipoxygenases for better flavor stability
Sufficient reduction in high gravity brews

Cellar value

Up to 50% longer filtration cycles (less down time)

Up to 40% reduced kieselguhr consumption
0.5% less beer loss

Products
The enzyme solutions for faster throughput and more extract are cell wall degrading
enzymes, primarily beta-glucanases and various xylanses, pentosanases and cellulases.

These enzymes are stable at temperatures up to 65 ºC and at pH values normally used in

brewing. These enzymes are made for use with well-modified to moderately modified malt,
and with up to about 30% adjunct. The enzymes do not contain proteases, and consequently
cannot be used for FAN generation. Enzyme solutions for under-modified malt and high
adjunct brewing where FAN generation is needed are described in the application sheet for
cost-effective adjunct and malt solutions.
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Ultraflo® Max, Ultraflo® L, Ultraflo® XL and Viscoflow® MG are used in mashing. The
enzymes are completely inactivated and degraded during wort boiling and cannot be
detected in the final beer. Therefore, no labeling is required.

Ultraflo is specially designed to break down cell wall materials in cereals like beta-glucan
and xylans. Ultraflo Max is a combination of beta-glucanases and xylanases including a
unique arabino-xylanase, which makes it possible to produce low viscosity wort, resulting in
the best beer filtration using any type of malt.

Ultraflo L has a high content of xylanases and is used primarily with well-modified malt,
while Ultraflo XL has more beta-glucanases and is designed for use primarily with
moderately-modified malt for faster throughput.

Viscoflow is an effective and robust enzyme solution and an optimized blend of beta-
glucanases, xylanases, cellulases and alpha-amylases. Viscoflow ensures fast throughput and
more extract when working with malt of variable quality.

If the cell wall components have not been properly broken down during mashing Finizym®,
which is used in the cellar can be used during fermentation to ensure trouble-free beer
filtration. The enzyme is completely inactivated by normal pasteurization.

There is more information about the above-mentioned products available at the Customer
Centre.

Ultraflo Max—Get the best beer filtration

Ultraflo L & XL—Your key to consistent, fast wort and beer filtration

Viscoflow—Your key to increased extract and filterability

Finizym—Your key to consistent and fast beer filtration

Performance
Production consistency is guaranteed with higher predictability

Variations in malt batches may result in process fluctuations such as varying wort viscosity
and varying wort and beer filterability.

Ultraflo and Viscoflow ensures consistent low level of beta-glucan and wort viscosity

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Figure 1. Beta-glucan contents (A) and viscosities (B) on wort (16 ºP) with control (no enzyme) and Ultraflo®®
Max on 3 malt samples representing different levels of malt modification. The viscosity is consistently reduced
with Ultraflo Max to a low level and malt behavior is more predictable.

Ultraflo Max gives the lowest wort viscosity due to the best break down of arabino-xylans,
compared with other filtration enzymes

Figure 2. (A) Viscosity of wort (16 ºP) treated with different standard filtration enzymes showing the superior
performance of Ultraflo Max due to the effective break down of arabino-xylans (B) compared with standard
filtration enzymes

Shorter and more consistent lautering with Ultraflo and Viscoflow

Viscoflow has been tested at the Technical University Munich, Weihenstephan, Germany. A
consistent, fast lautering process with a high degree of predictability was proven.

Enzymatic treatment reduced lautering time 30%

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Figure 3 and 4. Results from pilot plant tests with four well-modified malts and two under-modified malts. The
lautering time with Viscoflow® MG enzyme was 30% shorter and more consistent.

Ensured faster throughput, even on well modified malt, when Viscoflow® MG or Ultraflo® L
are used at normal or high mashing-in temperature

Table 1. Mash filtration results on very well-modified malt and 2 different mashing-in
Temperatures (52 ºC and 65 ºC). Viscoflow MG and Ultraflo L have been dosed at 150 g/ton
malt each. The lower the filtration index F, the better the filtration: Reading of F-index: Below
0.20 = excellent; 0.20-0.30 = Good; 0.30-0.40 = medium; over 0.40 = poor.

Trial Mashing-in Filtration time Filtration Filtration

temperature volume index (F)

No enzyme 52º C 11’ 50’’ 1470 ml 0.22

Viscoflow® 52º C 8’ 44’’ 1510 ml 0.15

MG

Ultraflo® 52º C 9’ 04’’ 1495 ml 0.18

No enzyme 65º C 17’ 34’’ 1455 ml 0.34

Viscoflow MG 65º C 9’ 42’’ 1485 ml 0.19

Ultraflo 65º C 9’ 03’’ 1450 ml 0.18

Improved beer filtration on all malt qualities with Ultraflo Max and Viscoflow® MG
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Figure 5. Results from pilot trials with six different malts. The beer filtration volume is increased and
consistently higher when the enzyme has been used.

Ultraflo Max secures longer beer filtration cycles compared with any standard filtration
enzymes

Table 2. Industrial trials over period of several months Showed the

superior performance on beer filtration of Ultraflo Max com pared
with standard filtration enzymes r.

Moderately Total Beer KG Haze,

modified malt filtration cycle consumption, EBC
hl (%)

Std. filter enz. 3,900 100 1.0

200 ppm

Ultraflo Max 4,800 80 0.9

150 ppm

Viscoflow helps increase extract yield with all malt qualities

Viscoflow has a wide range of relevant cytolytic activities and shows a robust and superior
performance on a wide range of varying malt qualities and has additional enzyme activity
to increase fermentable extract.

An average of 0.8% increased extract yield with Viscoflow® MG

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Figure 6. Improved extract yield with Viscoflow® MG on a wide range of malt samples and qualities. Extract
yields are improved by 0.1ºP or 0.8% on average.

Savings with well-modified malt and enzymes

The cost of the enzyme treatment is more than covered by the process gains that are
achieved, regardless of the quality of the malt. An economic model for calculating the
savings is available at the Novozymes Customer Centre at www.mynovozymes.com.

Usage
The enzyme solutions for faster throughput and more extract are designed for well to
moderately modified malt and adjunct percentages up to 30%. The optimal dosage depends
on the raw materials, and will typically be defined through experience harvested over time
in daily production. Table 2 gives an overview of the recommended products and process
conditions. Use of the enzymes does not require any change in mashing regimes or raw
material recipes.

Table 3. Recommendations for usage of Novozymes’ enzymes for faster throughput and
more extract.

Malt Recommended Dosage substrate Place/time of

products addition

Well-modified 100-150 ppm on

Max 250 ppm malt
Beta-glucan
Ultraflo Max
Under-modified 150-200 ppm on
350-500 ppm malt
Beta-glucan

Well-modified 100-150 ppm on

Max 250 ppm malt
Beta-glucan
Viscoflow MG
Under-modified 150-200 ppm on
350-500 ppm malt
Beta-glucan

Well-modified Ultraflo L 150-200 ppm on

Max 250 ppm malt
Beta-glucan

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Under-modified Ultraflo XL 175-250 ppm on
250-500 ppm malt Mash-in

Beta-glucan

Eliminate haze Finizym 250 L 5-10 ppm on cold Start of

and beta glucans wort/beer fermentation
downstream

Regular use of Viscoflow MG or Ultraflo for every brew is common daily practice in many
breweries around the world. One example of the benefits of Viscoflow MG with well
modified malt of premium international quality is as following:

7% more brew house capacity (=3 brews more per week)

40% longer filtration runs giving 40% less kieselguhr consumption
0.5% less beer lost
More clear wort resulting in faster fermentation = 7% increased capacity
Better clarity and taste of the final beer resulting in a higher Quality Index

Ultraflo Max changes this benchmark for beer filtration by another 25% more beer volume
per beer filtration cycle.

Detailed application information

For more information on the use of Novozymes’ brewing enzymes please refer to the
Brewing Handbook in the Customer Centre.

Safety, handling and storage

Safety, handling and storage guidelines are provided with all products.

Novozymes A/S · Luna No. 2003-32969-09

Novozymes (China) Co. Ltd. Novozymes is the world leader in bioinnovation. Together with
14 Xinxi Lu customers across a broad array of industries we create tomorrow’s
industrial biosolutions, improving our customers' business, and the use
Shangdi Zone, Haidian District
of our planet's resources. Read more at www.novozymes.com.
Beijing 100085, China
brewing@novozymes.com

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