Beer has been brewed for thousands of years— from the ancient Egyptians through the Middle Ages and of course, modern times. Long ago, the alcohol in beer actually made the water safer to drink, but today, we drink beer because we like it! If you’re interested in giving home beer making a try, start by understanding the basic ingredients— barley, water, hops, sugar, and yeast. Water and sugar are pretty common, but you might be less familiar with the other three ingredients
- Malted Barley: Barley is the seed of a grain that looks a lot like wheat. Before barley can be used to make beer, it must be malted, which involves a natural conversion process. First, the barley must be allowed to germinate, or start to sprout. At this point it is called green malt. Like all seeds, the barley contains nutrients that can sustain the growing seed until it can produce its own nutrients using photosynthesis. During the germination process, enzymes released by the plant convert these nutrients (which are starches) into sugars that can feed the plant while it grows. The key to the malting process is to stop the germination of the barley at a point when the sugar-producing enzymes are present but most of the starch is still unconverted. Eventually, these enzymes will produce the sugars that will feed the yeast to make the alcohol in the beer. After this natural process has released the enzymes, the green malt is dried by gradually raising the temperature.
- Hops: The hops used to make beer are the flower of the hop vine, which is a member of the hemp family. Hops are closely related to another member of the hemp family that you may have heard of — cannabis, or marijuana, although hops do not have the psychoactive effects associated with marijuana. Hops contain acids, which give beer its bitterness, as well as oils that give beer some of its flavor and aroma. Adding hops when you’re homebrewing also inhibits the formation of certain bacteria that can spoil the beer.
- Yeast: Yeast is the single-celled micro-organism that is responsible for creating the alcohol and carbon dioxide found in beer. There are many different kinds of yeasts used to make beer; and just as the yeast in a sourdough starter gives sourdough bread its distinctive flavor, different types of beer yeast help to give beer its various tastes.
Although home brewing is a scientific process, the bottom line is you want to enjoy the experience from beginning to end, and a beer making kit can help you do just that! Many home brewers prefer the convenience and cost savings a kit provides, especially when you’re just getting started. Cheers!
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