NBA LABEL
MASHING

Mashing is the stage of mixing the crushed malt with hot liquor. The purpose is to allow enzymes to "convert" the starch which dissolves in the hot mash. During conversion the long starch chains are chopped up into small sugars, most of which are fermentable. The hot liquid containing these dissolved sugars, when strained from the mash, is called wort.

Mash temperatures are critical if the enzymes are to be able to act efficiently (malt starch is best converted in the range of 65 - 68 degrees Celsius). Therefore a great deal of care is taken at this stage to control, and if necessary adjust, temperature and mashing time. For example, as little as 0.5 degrees Celsius increase in temperature can make the wort noticeably less fermentable and affect beer quality. Accurate control helps produce a brew that is of the same quality each and every time.

Other Sugar Sources

Starch from malt is the main sugar for the brew.
However, other raw materials may be added to the grist. These cereals and sugars are sometimes known as brewing adjuncts and include maize, wheat flour, wheat and cane sugar.
Now malt possesses more than enough of the enzymes needed to break down the starch it contains. So if we add starch from cereals to the mash, the extra enzymes will break this down for us too. FORWARD




The Brewing Process
[Console] [Yeast] [Malting] [Milling] [Mashing] [Cereal Cooker] [Mash Mixer] [Lauter Tun] [Copper] [Whirlpool] [Wort Cooler] [Fermentation] [Maturation]



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