Characteristics of malt and its purpose in various fermentation industries. Recipes for making homemade beer from malt

Malt has been used since ancient times, at the dawn of brewing and distilling. Today the product is just as relevant, it is used in cooking, for the production of alcoholic beverages, kvass. Made from barley malt elite alcohol whiskey, bourbon. In Rus', they have long been made, which is still popular today, using rye and malt from wheat for it. For the manufacture of kvass, rye is mainly used.

Malt is made from wheat, oats, barley, rye and other grains. Pre-grain raw materials are germinated, enzymes are formed in it that convert starch into easily fermentable sugars. Malt production technology is not a simple and laborious process that takes a long time. Therefore, at home, making malt for whiskey or beer is hard work. It is much easier to purchase ready-made malt than to make it yourself.

Nevertheless, despite the difficulties, many brewers and distillers prefer to make do with their product. Below is a complete cycle of malt production from wheat, how to make rye and barley malt and for beer with their own hands.

Malt preparation technology

The whole process can be divided into several stages:

• Selection of cereals, checking for germination;
• Cleaning;
• soaking;
• Germination;
• Drying;
• Removal of sprouts;
• Storage.

Selection of cereals. The choice of grain is an important stage, the quality of the final product depends on it. First of all, you need to decide which culture to use and for what. At home, it is easiest to get malt from wheat or rye. These cereals germinate faster and are easier to grind. A little longer to make barley. By time for rye malt leaves 5-6 days, from wheat 7-8 days, green malt from barley, it turns out in 9-10 days. You can not use young grain after harvest, it has a poor ability to germinate. The minimum period of grain after harvest is 2 months, and the maximum is 12 months.

At home, you can conduct an independent test to check germination. Choose 100 pieces of the largest grains, fill them with water in a glass. Catch the floating grain, instead add the same number of grains that sink. Then lay it out on a saucer, put a damp cloth on top and leave it in a warm room for 2-4 days. Then count the number of unsprouted grains, each -1 percent. As a result, if the germination rate is more than 90%, then this is a good raw material.

Preparation for soaking. For malt, pure grain is used, sifted, without debris. Pour it into a suitable container and fill it with water, remove the floating grains, rinse twice. Pour clean water 4-5 cm higher and leave for 5-7 hours.

Then change the water and again thoroughly rinse the cereals. Carry out the disinfection procedure, for this, pour the grain with a weak solution of potassium permanganate, pour 2-3 grams into 10 liters of water and soak the grain in the solution for 1-2 hours.

Germination. After disinfection, spread the grain mass on pallets with a layer of 4-5 cm, let it breathe for a day, mix periodically after 2-3 hours. Cover with a damp cotton cloth and leave indoors at a temperature of 15-15 degrees. It is important that there is good air circulation in the room. Every day, cereals must be mixed and moistened with a sprinkler, make sure that the mass does not get too wet. Usually, for 10 kilograms of dry grain, use 100-150 ml of water. After 2-3 days of germination, the temperature inside rises to 20-23 degrees, at this time it is necessary to turn the grain mass more often in order to prevent wheat or barley from “sweating”.

When the sprout increases in size by one and a half times the length of the grain, then we can assume that the malt is ready. Green malt tastes sweetish, smells fresh cucumber. Such a product can already be used for saccharification, but its shelf life is very short, only three days. To increase the period, the malt must be dried. Dried malt suitable for cooking home beer, whiskey and bourbon can be made into malted milk.

Drying. To begin with, green malt is disinfected with a solution of potassium permanganate, add 0.3 grams of potassium permanganate to 1 liter of water, soak the malt in this solution for 15-20 minutes. Drying is done at a temperature of 30-40 ° C; at a higher temperature, enzymes may die. At home, drying is done in a room with warm floors, a stream of air from a domestic fan is directed to the malt. In the warm season, you can dry in the attic, the main thing is to ensure good ventilation.

Within 3-4 days, the malt will dry out and roots and sprouts must be removed from it. This is easy to do with your hands, rubbing it in your palms. The resulting light malt has a very high activity of enzymes, 1 kg is able to saccharify 4-5 kg ​​of starch-containing raw materials. It can be used to make homemade beer. Malt is stored in a dry place in linen bags or closed containers. Before preparing beer or other alcohol, it is ground in special mills.

Malted milk. It is not advisable to use for saccharification with malt, the raw material from which it is obtained. For example, for wheat, you need to use barley, rye and oat malt. Rye is malted with wheat, barley, oat, etc. For better saccharification, malted milk is made (a mixture of malt and water).

How to make homemade malted milk. First, sterilization is performed, the malt is washed three times with water at a temperature of 65 degrees for 6-10 minutes. Then it is dried and ground in a blender or grain grinder to flour. For 170 grams of malt flour, take 1 liter of water. pour flour warm water 0.5 liters at a temperature of 50 - 55 ° C, mix thoroughly with a mixer until homogeneous mass and insist for an hour. Then add the rest of the water and heat up to 50 - 52oC. This volume of malted milk is designed for saccharification of 2 kg of raw materials.

Homemade caramel malt for making beer

The composition of the beer includes base malt and special caramel varieties to give the drink taste, density, aroma. Caramel is made from fresh white malt through heat treatment. At home, you can make caramel malt in conventional oven or in a multicooker.

When starting to brew your own beer, you need to answer the question “Which malt to choose and how not to get confused in the variety of types offered for sale?”. It is from the selected malt that the color, aroma and taste of beer will depend. Let's try to answer this question.

Malt is a product obtained as a result of the artificial germination of grains of cereals, mainly barley. In the process of obtaining malt in the grain, a special enzyme diastase is produced, which is able to break down starchy products into simple sugars(saccharification). These sugars can then be converted with the help of yeast into alcohol, which is used in the production of beer.

There is no universal system for classifying malt into categories and subcategories. Among its main characteristics, color is distinguished (according to the scale of standardsEMU or Lovibond) , grist share and resulting beers.

In addition, malt is classified asmain and special . The main types of malt provide most of the enzymes (enzymatic power) for converting malt starch into sugars. Base malts typically make up a larger percentage of the malt grist, while specialty malts make up a much smaller percentage of 5 to 20%. The only exception is wheat malt, which in the grist can be 100% in the manufacture of wheat beer.

Main types of malt.

Lager malt ( Lager Malt ) (2 L - color) used to make lager and ale beers. The grain is heated in an oven to 31 about C on the first day, then at a temperature of 50-60 about C is dried for another 12-20 hours, and then kept at a temperature of 80-85 about With another 4-48 hours. The manufacturing technology of this variety makes it possible to obtain malt with a light and mild aroma of high fermentation potential. Lager malt is usually combined with aromatics or specialty malts.

Ale malt ( Pale Ale Malt ) (3 L ) – it is a malt produced at higher temperatures, so it has a somewhat toasted aroma. It is ideal for making pale ales as well as bitter beers (Stout, Porter, IPA). Malt has good solubility.

Light wheat malt (Wheat malt) (3 L ) - has a lower proportion of tannin than barley, so when mashing this malt, a "protein pause" is used to prevent protein from entering the wort. Use from 5 to 100% in grist. It is used for the preparation of white beers, as well as light wheat beer.

Rye malt (Rye Malt) used in the composition of the malt bouquet 5-10% of the total amount to give the beer spicy notes. The malt is viscous, therefore it requires an appropriate application technology.

Specialty malts

Special malts are used to give the beer a specific color, flavor, aroma, aftertaste, and head retention. Unlike the main type of malt, specialty malts do not contain many enzymes (sometimes not at all!), but contain the necessary "material" to create the desired characteristics of the beer.

Depending on the type of beer, up to 7-8 different malt components can be included in its recipe.

Caramel grade malt Caramel (Crystal) Malts

These varieties of malt are called caramel, because during the process of heating and roasting, sugars crystallize in the malt, caramelized sugars combine into longer molecular chains that malt enzymes do not ferment. It is they who give the taste of beer a sweetish, full, caramel flavor. Caramel malts used for almost all ales and for beers with high wort gravity. As a rule, they make up 5-25% of the total grist.

Examples of caramel malts:Caramel 10 (10 L ) – gives the beer a honey-sweet taste,Caramel 40 (40 L ) - fills the beer with a slight aftertaste of caramel. Ideal for pale ales and amber lagers.

Caramel 60 (60 L )- a popular malt for making ales, bitters, porters and stouts.

Special "Smoked" (smoked malt)

Used to make "smoked" beer. Thanks to a specific production technology, the malt has a smoked aroma and gives the beer a smoky flavor. used up to 100% in bulk.

Sour malt It is used for the preparation of light varieties, in order to acidify the taste. It improves the extractivity by lowering the pH of the must, as well as the degree of fermentation. It has a positive effect on the stability of the foam cap. Quantity 3 - 8% in grist.

"Vienna" (Viennese type) — It is applied to preparation of light and dark grades of beer. Thanks to the specifics of cooking, it gives a unique caramel (vanilla) flavor. Used up to 100% in grist.

Munich type "Munich 15" (light) and "Munich 25" (dark) — It is used for preparation of dark, strong grades of beer. It has a characteristic malty flavor. Significantly affects the enhancement of the fullness of taste, gives the characteristic aroma of the finished beer, increases the stability of the foam.

Special biscuit malt “Biscuit” — Used to make pale and semi-dark ales and lager varieties. Enhances the fullness of taste and aroma, is used to give stability to the drink. Up to 15% in bulk.

Melanoidin "Melanoidin 40" and "Melanoidin 80" — For the preparation of amber and red beers. It has a pronounced malty taste (without sour and bitter aftertaste). Affects the fullness of taste. Gives a characteristic red tint. Backfill from 5 to 20%

Amber malt "Amber" - For making pale ales. It gives the “foamy” a unique amber-copper color.

Special burnt "Chocolate" For the production of dark, strong beers (Porter, Stout and Brown Ale). Gives a rich dark color, enhances the aroma. Increases the chemical stability of beer. Not more than 7%.

Special burnt "Black" (color 1200 - 1400 on the scale EBC ) — For the production of the darkest - black and strong beers (Porter, Stout and Brown Ale). It has a high color, is used in small quantities in grist. Significantly enhances the aroma, affects the taste and color of the foam. Fall asleep from 1 to 6%.

Roasted malt.

Roasted, or aromatic, or fermented malt is characterized by a specific aroma of malt and honey. It has a chromaticity of 35 units. EBU. Produced only abroad. This type of malt is used to replace coloring malts in the production of dark and specialty beers, for example, "Ma"rzen" (Merzen) - 20% in grist; dark - up to 30% in the grist, "Alt" (Old) - 50% in the grist. It is indicated that the use of this malt helps to reduce the sour taste in beer and increases its biological stability.

There are many other specialty malts that are used much less frequently. But no matter how many varieties of malt, types, subspecies, the main thing remains unchanged - malt is the soul of beer, its basis. The quality of the malt is the key to obtaining tasty and aromatic beer!

For a beginner homebrewer, questions swarm in his head like bees in a hive. How to choose the right raw materials, calculate the proportions, equip the process with the necessary equipment and many other pressing topics can reduce the enthusiasm of even the most optimistic initiator. However, do not panic. Brewing is a simple process, but it requires a certain level of theoretical knowledge. Indeed, in order to make delicious beer, it is not enough just to mix all the ingredients and wait for a miracle. It is required to carefully observe the process, control the parameters, know the moment of termination of the main fermentation, withstand certain pauses to remove unwanted components and, of course, be able to properly calibrate and store the resulting product. Of course, there is always room for experimentation and innovation, but to avoid mistakes and losses, you should know the basic principles of brewing.

For the master brewer, whether homemade or industrial scale, at the forefront was, and will be the question of the quality of raw materials. This is indisputable, because the properties of the final product directly depend on the performance of the original ingredients. Therefore, special attention is paid to the so-called control of incoming raw materials and materials. There are special standards and GOSTs that clearly indicate the number of samples from a batch, methods for conducting surveys and analyzes, and norms for indicators. So how does a beginner homebrewer know which malts or hops are good, and what signs might indicate they are not liquid? This article discusses the basic principles for choosing high-quality brewing malt, which will help a novice master to prepare a decent drink at home.

Use all five senses

Of course, these are the most faithful assistants. In the absence of laboratory equipment to evaluate malt performance, the brewer must rely on his own senses: visually evaluate, smell, touch and taste. Every case has its own subtleties. Wind on the mustache.

How does he smell?

Good malt has a clean, fresh straw flavor. It is unacceptable if it gives off mold, rot or mustiness. The presence of such stale notes directly indicates storage at high humidity. From this, barley usually loses its properties. Storing such malt in silos along with other raw materials threatens with a total infection with a fungus, so be vigilant.

Sprinkle it

Take a handful of malt in your hands and pour it from one palm to another. Good malt should be dry and crumble freely without sticking to hands or other grains. If you observe a different picture, then the moisture content of the malt is increased and there may be problems with its storage. As you know, an increased level of moisture is an environment for the development of microorganisms that worsen the performance of raw materials. Besides, why would you pay for extra water in your malt?

There should not be any foreign objects in the malt: stones and sand, pieces of rope, weeds, straw, halves of grains, awns, metal objects, sprouts. All this refers to weed impurities and is unacceptable for top quality malt. The weediness index should be below 0.8%.

Assess visually

The malt should ideally have a light straw yellow color and a shiny surface, and the grains should be of uniform size. If the color of the malt is green, this indicates that it has been removed. ahead of schedule. If the malt has a gray and matte surface, then most likely it has been exposed to rain. If you have noted the presence of brown tips on the grains, then this may be a sign of its variety. Such features are characteristic of the species Isaria. But if the barley variety is clearly different, then brown spots appeared from harvesting at elevated level moisture. This leads to the fact that the grains acquire increased water sensitivity.

If you notice the presence of grains with a red cut in the malt sample, then it makes sense to refuse to buy it. This phenomenon is typical for malt infected with a fungus of the genus Fusarium. If such malt gets into beer, then the effect of gashing is inevitable, that is, beer gushing, which is extremely unpleasant. Therefore, red grains are usually not allowed to be malted.

The highest quality malt is produced from large, full and round grains of barley. Of course, the shape of the bean is determined by its variety, but the described characteristics guarantee a higher content of extractives and a lower amount of protein, which is very important for the brewer. The higher the percentage of such grains in the batch, the higher its grade.

What does the grain shell look like?

The presence of fine wrinkles on the shell is an indicator that the grain is good and rich in extract. Thick and smooth shells usually have immature grains. They add a lot of bitterness to beer. high content tannins.
Sometimes, when the grain ripens, cracking of the shells is manifested. This is especially pronounced with frequent changes in weather conditions: the rain is replaced by the scorching sun. Cracking can be exacerbated due to the characteristics of the barley variety or due to the activity of microorganisms (molds also delay the ripening of the grains). Cracks can be described by several types:

Only the shell cracked. At the same time, the place of transition from the abdominal to the dorsal membrane remains intact and the deeper layers are intact;
. The grain cracked. This is an alarming sign in which the integrity of even the endosperm is violated. Brewers find it very difficult to obtain quality malt from such grains.
The presence of damaged or half grains significantly reduces the quality of the malt, as these particles are an excellent environment for the development of microorganisms.

Try on the teeth

Count 100 grains of malt and try to chew each one. If at the same time the contents crumble in the mouth, therefore, it is called mealy. If the grain is difficult to gnaw and it is like glass, then it is called vitreous. Now, by simple mathematical calculations, determine the percentage of each type. In good malt, the proportion of glassy grains should not exceed 2% (i.e. 2 grains out of 100), and farinaceous grains should be at least 95%. It is generally believed that glassy grains can cause difficulties in filtering mash and beer afterwards.

buoyancy test

This interesting experiment is quite simple, but also informative. It allows you to judge how well the processes of converting starches into sugars took place in the grain, which is characteristic of the germination process. Take 100 grains of malt and submerge it in water. The barley usually sinks and the malt stays on the surface due to the leaf and germ developing inside. For a well-dissolved light type malt, the number of sunken grains will be 30-35%. For dark malt of the highest quality, the same figure will be 20-25%.

What do the numbers on the certificate say?

Each batch of malt must be accompanied by a certificate of quality or conformity, which specifies the technical and chemical parameters of this raw material. In production conditions, these data are carefully checked in the laboratory for compliance with reality. For home brewer you can check the main points, but it's not easy to do.

First you need to know what the terms and numbers are talking about:

Extractivity is one of the most important criteria for a brewer. This concept means the amount of malt substances that can go into a dissolved state. These substances are processed by yeast into alcohol and carbon dioxide, but some of them remain in the finished beer, providing an unsurpassed taste of the drink. For premium malts, extract is always above 80%;
. The protein content is an important indicator. Protein, or rather amino acids, are needed to feed the yeast, but must not penetrate into the finished beer to avoid cloudiness. For malt good quality the protein content should not exceed 10.8%;
. Kolbach number or degree of dissolution of malt proteins. For good malt, this figure is 38-42%;
. Moisture or water content in malt. For good quality malt, this figure is no more than 5%;
. The difference between the extractivity of fine and coarse grinding is a value showing how much the levels of extract content in the wort brewed from a given malt, ground to a flour fraction and to a coarse fraction, differ. For good malt, this criterion does not exceed 1.8%;
. Wort viscosity is a measure that gives the brewer an idea of ​​how the wort will be filtered and clarified. Well, when this criterion is not higher than 1.55 mPa * s;
. The color of the wort is usually needed to determine whether the malt belongs to a particular variety. It can be measured by the EBC or Helige method. For light malt, the color is up to 4 EBC, for medium-colored - 5-8 EBC, for dark - 9.5-16 EBC;
. The color of the wort after boiling is a more informative indicator. It allows you to predict the color of the future beer. This criterion is measured on the wort after it has been boiled for 2 hours, as a result of which the color of the pale malt wort changes to a value equal to 5.1-7 EBC.

These are the main indicators by which the brewer can assess how good the malt is in his hands. Of course, it is quite difficult to check all the supplier's data at home, but brewing the first beer from a trial batch will put everything in its place.

Therefore, advice to beginner brewers - always make a trial mini-purchase of a brand new to you. Consider, evaluate, remember and fix your feelings, and only then can we talk about the supply of larger volumes of malt.

We wish you successful and interesting experiments in your home brewery!

Even before our era, ancient people knew such a product as malt. They grew grains, achieved their germination and made the basis for the manufacture of alcoholic beverages. With the help of malt, you can make kvass, beer, and even deliciously brew single-malt or three-malt whiskey at home. Learn how to make useful product with help step by step instructions with photo.

What is malt made from?

According to culinary technology Malt is a product of the fermentation of grains of rye, wheat or barley. You can also use oats. Malt is obtained by germinating, drying, grinding and boiling grain. Malt decoction is called wort and is used to make beer, kvass, bread and some strong alcoholic drinks. Due to the processes of fermentation of grains, the substance diastase is formed in them, which splits complex carbohydrates to simple sugars. They interact with yeast and turn into alcohol.

Types of malt

According to the type of raw material used for the manufacture of the product, rye, wheat and barley malt are distinguished. The latter is used for brewing and making alcoholic beverages. Wheat and rye malt are used in confectionery and bakery. According to the number of active components that got into the wort during boiling, extractive and low-extractive types are distinguished. The first is valued more because it improves fermentation processes and allows you to get better products. For example, malt for beer must have a high extract, otherwise fermentation will not start.

According to the method of manufacture, fermented and non-fermented types are distinguished. The second one is simpler in technology, it is obtained by simple germination without heat treatment. Fermentation is complex process consisting of languishing raw materials at high temperature. Due to this, the grain turns red, gets a unique aroma. Dark beer is made on the basis of the fermented product. Bread with sourdough from such malt smells good, has a bright color.

Benefit

Malt has a number of useful properties. He has a high nutritional value, rich in vitamins, enzymes, calcium, phosphorus, selenium, manganese, vitamin E and magnesium. The product is high-protein, contains a set of essential amino acids. Barley malt treats diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, is rich in insoluble fiber, which removes toxins from the body. Vitamins B and A help heal wounds and prevent the formation of gallstones.

Rye and oat types of malt are natural immunomodulators. They successfully cope with signs of anemia, nervous and physical exhaustion, have general strengthening and restorative properties. These products should be taken in the postoperative period, with diabetes. Contraindications for the use of malt food are acute pancreatitis, cholecystitis, gastritis, gastric and duodenal ulcers.

How to make malt

The stages of product manufacturing take long time and require careful observance of the instructions. How to prepare malt at home or in a beer production, learn from the example with a photo:

1. After sizing, the grains are sifted through a sieve. In this way uniform germination is achieved. Disinfect the grain by soaking it for a couple of hours in water with a solution of potassium permanganate or using alcohol.
2. Raw materials are washed several times hot water temperature 50-55 degrees, poured into a container with warm water. It must be changed every 7-8 hours, throwing out garbage and grains that have floated to the surface. This is how saccharification takes place.
3. As soon as the shell becomes easy to separate, and sprouts begin to hatch, you need to lay the raw materials for storage.
4. The grains are lined in a dark room with a three-centimeter layer, covered with a damp cloth. The room must be maintained at a temperature of 17-18 degrees and a humidity of 40%. Every 6-7 hours, the raw material is mixed, ventilated, and the fabric is moistened. Overheating of the grain must not be allowed, otherwise the malt will be rotten and sour.
5. When the sprouts become equal in length to the grain, and the smell of cucumber is felt when biting, the germination process is stopped. Raw materials are lined with a thin layer in a warm, dry place and are waiting for a light caramel withering.
6. For drying, an oven or oven with a temperature of no more than 40 degrees is used. The moisture content of raw materials should not exceed 3.5%. The grain will become dry, sweetish, will easily crumble when rubbed in the palms. You need to remove the sprouts.
7. Then the malt is crushed, sieved, stored in a dry, dark room.
8. Separately, sour malt is isolated, which does not go through the fermentation process. To obtain it, light dry wort is subjected to soaking in warm water until the formation of lactic acid bacteria, then it is dried and boiled.

Malt Recipes

To bake delicious bread or make a quality alcoholic drink, you need to follow the instructions with the photo. Helpful Tips for the production of malt:

• use a coffee grinder or meat grinder to grind grains;
• disinfection can be carried out with vinegar or vodka;
• germinating cereals is also allowed in the refrigerator;
• if part of the raw material is sour, discard it, and continue processing the rest;
• buy high-quality grains;
• to make the beer golden, mix different types malt.

• Time: a week.
• Servings: 5 persons.
• Calorie content of the dish: 85 kcal per 100 g.
• Purpose: for the basis of bread.
• Cuisine: Russian.
• Difficulty: medium.

To make delicious malt for baking bread, you need to take only high-quality rye or wheat and responsibly approach the germination and fermentation of the grain. The cost of the resulting product will be lower than the market one, but it will take a lot of time to manufacture. The following instructions with a photo will show you how to make malt for bread.

Ingredients:

• wheat - 1 kg;
• water - 1 l.

Cooking method:

1. Rinse the grains, leave for 12 hours in water, pour onto a baking sheet covered with a wet cloth. Top with a towel, leave for a day.
2. Germinate grains under conditions room temperature before the appearance of sprouts, rinse from the resulting mucus.
3. Dry in the oven at 60 degrees for three hours. Leave in the sun for a day, then put in the oven for another two hours.
4. Grind raw materials with a coffee grinder, store in a jar under a lid.

For beer

• Time: a week.
• Servings: 5 persons.
• Calorie content of the dish: 86 kcal.
• Purpose: for the manufacture of drinks.
• Cuisine: Russian.
• Difficulty: medium.

Making malt for beer is more difficult because hard-to-find barley is used as a raw material. It is not suitable for bread, but on the basis of it you get delicious beer or kvass. The duration of germination takes about three days, it all depends on the initial quality of grain raw materials. Unpeeled barley is suitable only for kvass, for beer it is better to take peeled (without husks).

Ingredients:

• barley - 1 kg;
• water - 1 l.

Cooking method:

1. Rinse the grains, cover with water for 12 hours, pour onto a baking sheet, leave to germinate.
2. After three days of germination, rinse, freeze.
3. Grind in a coffee grinder or pass through a meat grinder.

• Time: 2 weeks.
• Servings: 5 persons.
• Calorie content of the dish: 86 kcal.
• Purpose: basis for whiskey.
• Cuisine: European.
• Difficulty: medium.

In the preparation of raw materials for whiskey, a mandatory procedure is the germination of malt, more precisely, grains. For alcoholic drink also suitable for barley. It is better to take the most selected raw materials, peel them and remove all bad grains and motes. To obtain high-quality malt, you will have to disinfect the raw materials - treat them with vodka.

Ingredients:

• barley - 1 kg;
• water - 1 l.

Cooking method:

1. Pour the grains with water at a temperature of 35-40 degrees, mix, remove debris, drain the water.
2. Again, fill with water at a temperature of 10-16 degrees, leave for 70 minutes.
3. Disinfect raw materials in a solution (30 drops of iodine or 2-3 g of potassium permanganate per 10 liters of water). Leave for three hours.
4. Change the water every 6 hours for 1.5 days.
5. Pour the barley in an even layer on a baking sheet, leave at a temperature of 12-15 degrees, stir once / day, sprinkle with water. Germination lasts 6-7 days until the root of the sprout becomes 1.5-2 times longer than the grain.
6. The grains are dried - on a battery or in the sun for 3-4 days. You can use an oven with a temperature of 40 degrees, the time will be 25-30 hours with stirring every 2-3 hours. For light whiskey, the raw materials are additionally dried in an oven at 80 degrees, raising the temperature for the first 30-40 minutes. For dark varieties, it is necessary to dry for 4 hours at 105 degrees.

Video

Malt is a very useful product: vitamins B and not only, fatty acid, phytohormones, trace elements, minerals, folic acid, amino acids, enzymes. …Still, sprouted grain cannot be different. True, its preparation is not an easy process: it is easier to buy ready-made barley malt. But those who prefer homemade alcohol and homemade cakes are not afraid of difficulties. About how to cook malt, it is worth talking separately.

What is barley malt and how to drink and eat it

Malt is the result of seed germination. It is used to make beer, wine and whiskey, as well as bread. By the way, malt is not only barley or rye, but also from oats, wheat and even corn. However, these types of malt are not beer malts and are only suitable for making wine and whiskey.

This product is needed due to the fact that when maize, barley or rye germinates, chemical changes occur in it, leading to diastasis. The latter is needed in order to dissolve and saccharify starch, as well as to obtain maltose, a fermentable sugar. So, malt is a fermented product. In order to obtain malt for beer, the grain is first soaked and only then germinated. Changes begin to occur already during soaking, when the grain swells: diastasis and carbonic acid are formed here. During germination, these processes become even more intense. In this case, starch dissolves and glucose, sugar and maltose are formed. It is moisture that starts all life processes in rye and barley.

Previously, it was believed that barley malt for beer is only suitable for that on which a leaf did not appear during germination. In fact, a leaf is needed, but it is germinated only at a low temperature. This must be taken into account before making malt at home. Only barley malt is used in the production of beer. Rye is most often used for baking or added to sweets, soups, second, garnish, salad. It is also used in traditional medicine, for example, with skin diseases and with "female" diseases (for example, erosion). Malt is also used for hair treatment: as a mask. But the main use of malt is still getting beer and other drinks. It is because of him, by the way, that beer is called liquid bread.

Barley malt is either dry or green.

How to make malt yourself: theory

First of all, you need to be ready for the fact that this is a laborious task.

The most important thing is to stop the growth of seeds in time so that they do not use up all their nutrients. To do this, barley malt (and any other) is dried.

When preparing malt for beer, it is important to choose the right grain. It must have a high ability to germinate. For freshly harvested barley, it is small - it is better to choose grains harvested a couple of months (or more) ago. In addition, it is good if all the barley is the same size: this is easier to work with.

Malt for beer should be prepared with quality water. It should not contain heavy metals and chlorine. The best way- spring, filtered, from a well or settled.

Before making malt at home, you need to check how intensively the grains germinate. Just soak a hundred or two grains, and after a couple of days, see how many of them have sprouted. If sprouts appeared in 90 out of a hundred, this is normal germination. In other cases, it is better to use barley for other purposes.

Sprouting barley malt: practice

Malt cleaning

To begin with, beer malt must be disinfected and cleaned of debris that can interfere with germination.

To do this, take a bucket or large saucepan, and cereals are poured with warm water. Water (from 35 degrees to forty) should cover the grains by 5-6 centimeters. Stir after five minutes, remove debris and floating grains. Now pour cold water. We are waiting for another hour. We remove the garbage again and drain the water again. Fill with new water, add iodine or potassium permanganate dissolved in water. A dozen liters of water need a couple of grams of potassium permanganate or three dozen drops of iodine. We drain the water after three hours. Sometimes it happens that after disinfection, barley may not germinate, but on the other hand, if it is not disinfected, mold may appear on the grain, that is, pathogenic microorganisms that destroy malt. So to disinfect or not, it is better to decide on your own.

Saturation with liquid and oxygen

The next thing to do with barley is to soak it, saturating it with liquid and oxygen. It takes one and a half days, that is, 36 hours. All this time, you need to fill the barley with water for 6 hours, then leave it dry. Water should cover the barley by three centimeters, its temperature should be about 12 degrees. After six hours, drain it along with the garbage, mix the barley and let it breathe for six hours and pour water again. So all one and a half days. This procedure should take place in the basement or any place where there is coolness and no light.

Germination of malt

We germinate. One of the highlights of turning barley into barley malt. Here we start the process of breaking down starch and turning it into sugar. Here we will need a baking sheet or tray. Sprinkle barley evenly on it (layer thickness - from a couple of centimeters to five). From above we cover the barley with a cloth (cotton). It will absorb the moisture unnecessary to the grains and give it away if the grains need liquid. The ideal temperature would be 12-15 degrees. Also, the room should be well ventilated. Stir the barley once every 24 hours, sprinkle it with water. It will germinate for about a week, but if the roots have appeared and become tangled so that you can unwind them, you can finish germination earlier. Rye germinates in five days and on the last day it cannot be watered. The roots of barley grains should be twice as long as the grain itself, for rye grains - no longer than the grain itself. If the cereal has sprouted, it smells like cucumber and has a sweetish taste. Now we have green malt. This type of malt is used to make whiskey or moonshine, but green malt is stored for a maximum of three days. That is why we immediately proceed to dry it.

Getting the malt out of the water

To begin with, we get rid of the remaining water from the tray with germinated barley. Then it is transferred to a room or any other room where the air temperature is high. In winter, the area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe room near the battery or stove is ideal for this. In the summer, an attic is also suitable, and even a roof (if the weather is hot and rain is not expected). The drying process takes four days. If roots have appeared, but there are still no sprouts, it can still be dried.

There is another option for drying malt: germinated barley or rye is placed in an oven (temperature is about 40 degrees) and dried for 30 hours. It is important to stir the grain every three hours.

Almost finish

The beer malt is almost ready. If you want light beer or whiskey, it is dried in an oven (temperature 80 degrees) and the temperature is raised for the first half hour. The initial temperature is 30 degrees, then every five minutes it is raised. If the beer is dark, it is almost roasted: the temperature is 105 degrees, the drying time is 4 hours.