Introduction

Fermentationistheprocessbywhichyeastconvertstheglucoseinthewort
toethylalcoholandcarbondioxidegas.Thisgivesthebeerbothitsalcohol
contentanditscarbonation.

TheBrewingofBeer
Allbeersarebrewedusingaprocessbasedonasimpleformula.Thekeyto
the beer making process is malted grain, depending on the region
traditionallybarley,wheatorsometimesrye.
Maltismadebyallowingagraintogerminate.Itisthendriedinakilnand
sometimesroasted.Dependingontheamountofroasting,themaltwilltake
on darkcolour and stronglyinfluence thecolour and flavor of the beer.
Breweriesbuymaltandthisisnotaprocessthatisdoneinhouse.
Themaltiscrushedinamaltmilltobreakapartthegrainkernels,increase
their surface area, and separate the smaller pieces from the husks. The
resultinggristismixedwithheatedwaterinavatcalleda"mashtun"fora
processknownas"mashing".Duringthisprocess,naturalenzymeswithin
themaltbreakdownmuchofthestarchintosugars,whichplayavitalpart
inthefermentationprocess.Mashingusuallytakes1to2hours,andduring
this time various temperature rests (waiting periods) activate different
enzymesdependinguponthetypeofmaltbeingused,itsmodificationlevel,
andthedesiresofthebrewer.Theactivityoftheseenzymesconvertthe
starchesofthegrainstodextrinesandthentofermentablesugarssuchas
maltose.
Amash rest at variabletemperatures,activatinga varietyof enzymes to
breakdownglucose,whichmakesthesugarsflowoutmorefreelylaterin
theprocessandproteinsthatmightotherwisecausethebeertobehazy.But
careisoftheessencesincetheheadonbeerisalsocomposedprimarilyof
proteins,sotooaggressiveaproteinrestcanresultinabeerthatcannothold
ahead.Finally,amashresttemperatureof149to160F(65to71C)is
usedtoconvertthestarchesinthemalttosugar,whichisthenusablebythe
yeastlaterintheindustrialbrewingprocess.Doingthelatterrestatthelower
end of the range produces more loworder sugars which are more
fermentable by the yeast. This in turn creates a beer lower in body and
higherinalcohol.Arestclosertothehigherendoftherangecreatesmore
higherorderofsugarswhicharelessfermentablebytheyeast,soafuller
bodiedbeerwithlessalcoholistheresult.
Finallythemashtemperaturemayberaisedto165Fto170F(about75
C)(knownasamashout)todeactivateenzymes.Additionalwatermaybe

sprinkled on the grains to extract additional sugars (a process known as

sparging).
Afterthemashing,themashispumpedtoalautertunwheretheresulting
liquidisstrainedfromthegrainsinaprocessknownaslautering.Thelauter
tungenerallycontainsaslotted"falsebottom"orotherformofmanifold
whichactsasastrainerallowingfortheseparationoftheliquidfromthe
grain.
Atthispointtheliquidisknownaswort.Thewortismovedintoalarge
tankknownasa"cookingtun"orkettlewhereitisboiledwithhopsand
sometimesotheringredientssuchasherbsorsugars.Theboilingprocess
servestoterminateenzymaticprocesses,precipitateproteins,isomerizehop
resins, concentrate and sterilize the wort. Hops add flavor, aroma and
bitternesstothebeer.
Attheendoftheboil,thehoppedwortsettlestoclarifyusinghopfilters.
Thewort isthenmovedintoatemperaturecontrolledcylindricalconical
"fermenter"whereyeastisaddedor"pitched"withit.Theyeastconvertsthe
sugars from the malt intoalcohol, carbon dioxide and other components
throughaprocesscalledfermentationorglycolysis.Afteraweektothree
weeks,thefresh(or"green")beeriscooledclosetofreezingtemperature,
yeast is purged and the beer is allowed to "lager" or rest. After this
conditioning for a week to several months, the beer is often filtered to
removeremainingyeastandparticulates.The"brightbeer"isthenreadyfor
servingorpackaging.

BeerFamilies
Therearefourmainfamiliesofbeerstylesdeterminedbythevarietyof
yeastusedintheirbrewing.
Ale(topfermentingyeasts)
Aleyeastsfermentatwarmertemperaturesbetween15Cand20C(60Fto
68F),andoccasionallyashighas24C(75F).Purealeyeastsformafoam
onthesurfaceofthefermentingbeer,becauseofthistheyareoftenreferred
toas"topfermenting"yeastthoughtherearesomealeyeaststrainsthat
settleatthebottom.Alesaregenerallyreadytodrinkwithinthreeweeks
after the beginning of fermentation, however, some styles benefit from
additionalagingforseveralmonthsoryears.Alesrangeincolorfromvery
paletoblackopaque.[topofpage]
Lager(bottomfermentingyeasts)
WhilethenatureofyeastwasnotfullyunderstooduntilEmilHansenofthe
Carlsberg brewery in Denmark isolated a single yeast cell in the 1800s,
brewersinBavariahadforcenturiesbeenselectingthesecoldfermenting
Lageryeastsbystoringor"Lagern"theirbeersincoldalpinecaves.The
processofnaturalselectionmeantthatthewildyeaststhatweremostcold
tolerantwouldbetheonesthatwouldremainactivelyfermentinginthebeer
thatwasstoredinthecaves.SomeoftheseBavarianyeastswerestolenand
broughtbacktotheCarlsbergbreweryaroundthetimethatHansendidhis
famouswork.
Lager yeast tends to collect at the bottom of the fermenter and is often
referredtoas"bottomfermenting"yeast.Lagerisfermentedatmuchlower
temperatures, around 10C (50F), compared to typical ale fermentation
temperaturesof18C(65F).Itisthenstoredfor30daysorlongercloseto
the freezing point. During the storing or "lagering" process, the beer
mellowsandflavorsbecomesmoother.Sulfurcomponentsdevelopedduring
fermentationdissipate.Thepopularityoflagerwasamajorfactorthatledto
therapidintroductionofrefrigerationintheearly1900s.

Today,lagersrepresentthevastmajorityofbeersproduced,themostfamous
beingalightlagercalledPilsnerwhichoriginatedinPilsen,CzechRepublic
Itisacommonmisconceptionthatalllagersarelightincolor:lagerscan
rangefromverylighttodeepblack,justlikeales.
BeersofSpontaneousFermentation(wildyeasts)
ThesebeersarenowadaysprimarilyonlybrewedaroundBrussels,Belgium.
Theyarefermentedbymeansofwildyeaststrainsthatliveinapartofthe
Zenne river which flows through Brussels. These beers are also called
Lambicbeers.
Beersofmixedorigin
Thesebeersareblendsofspontaneousfermentationbeersandalesorlagers
ortheyarealesorlagerswhicharealsofermentedbywildyeasts.

TheBrewingProcesses(Defined)
Thebrewingprocessistypicallydividedinto6steps:Mashing,Lautering,
Boiling,Fermenting,Conditioning,andFiltering.
Mashing
Mashingistheprocessofmixingmilledgrain(typicallymaltedgrain)with
water,andheatingthismixtureupwithrestsatcertaintemperaturestoallow
enzymes in the malt to break down the starch in the grain into sugars,
typicallymaltose.
Lautering
Lauteringistheseparationof theextractswonduringmashingfromthe
spentgrain.Itisachievedineitheralautertun,awidevesselwithafalse
bottom,oramashfilter,aplateandframefilterdesignedforthiskindof
separation.Lauteringhastwostages:firstwortrunoff,duringwhichthe
extractisseparatedinanundilutedstatefromthespentgrains,andsparging,
inwhichextractwhichremainswiththegrainsisrinsedoffwithhotwater.
Lautertun
Alautertunisthetraditionalvesselusedforseparationoftheextracted
wort.Whilethebasicprincipleofitsoperationhasremainedthesamesince
itsfirstuse,technologicaladvanceshaveledtobetterdesignedlautertuns
capable of quicker and more complete extraction of the sugars from the
grain.Thefalsebottominalautertunhasthinslitstoholdbackthesolids
andallowliquidstopassthrough.Thesolids,notthefalsebottom,forma
filtrationmediumandholdbacksmallsolids,allowingtheotherwisecloudy
mashtorunoutofthelautertunasaclearliquid.
MashFilter
Amashfilterisaplateandframefilter.Theemptyframescontainthemash,
includingthespentgrains,andhaveacapacityofaroundonehectoliter.The
platescontainasupportstructureforthefilterclothTheplates,frames,and
filterclothsarearrangedinacarrierframelikeso:frame,cloth,plate,cloth,
withplatesateachendofthestructure.Newermashfiltershavebladders
thatcanpresstheliquidoutofthegrainsbetweenspargings.Thegraindoes
notactlikeafiltrationmediuminamashfilter.

Boiling
Boilingthewonextracts,calledwort,ensuresitssterility,andthusprevents
a lot of infections. During the boil hops are added, which contribute
bitterness,flavor,andaromacompoundstothebeer,and,alongwiththeheat
oftheboil,causesproteinsintheworttocoagulateandthepHofthewortto
fall. Finally, the vapors produced during the boil volatilize off flavors,
includingdimethylsulfideprecursors.Theboilmustbeconductedsothatis
itevenandintense.Theboillastsbetween50and120minutes,depending
onitsintensity,thehopadditionschedule,andvolumeofwortthebrewer
expectstoevaporate. Attheendoftheboil,thehoppedwortsettlesto
clarifyusinghopfilters.Afterthehopfiltration,thewortmustbebrought
downtofermentationtemperaturesbeforeyeastisadded.
Fermenting
Fermentation,asastepinthebrewingprocess,startsassoonasyeastis
addedtothecooledwort.Thisisalsothepointatwhichtheproductisfirst
called beer. It is during this stage that sugars won from the malt are
metabolizedintoalcoholandcarbondioxide.Fermentationtankscomeinall
sortsofforms,fromenormoustankswhichcanlooklikestoragesilos,to
fivegallonglasscarboysinahomebrewer'scloset.
Conditioning
When the sugars in the fermenting beer have been almost completely
digested,thefermentationslowsdownandtheyeaststartstosettletothe
bottom of thetank.At thisstage, thebeer iscooled toaroundfreezing,
whichencouragessettlingoftheyeast,andcausesproteinstocoagulateand
settleoutwiththeyeast.Unpleasantflavorssuchasphenoliccompounds
becomeinsolubleinthecoldbeer,andthebeer'sflavorbecomessmoother.
Duringthistimepressureismaintainedonthetankstopreventthebeerfrom
goingflat.
Filtering
Filteringthebeerstabilizestheflavor,andgivesbeeritspolishedshineand
brilliance.Notallbeerisfiltered.

Filtersrangefromroughfiltersthatremovemuchoftheyeastandanysolids
(e.g.hops,grainparticles)leftinthebeer,tofilterstightenoughtostrain
colorandbodyfromthebeer.Normallyusedfiltrationratingsaredivided
intorough,fineandsterile.Roughfiltrationleavessomecloudinessinthe
beer,butitisnoticeablyclearerthanunfilteredbeer.Finefiltrationgivesa
glassofbeerthatyoucouldreadanewspaperthrough,withnonoticeable
cloudiness.Finally,asitsnameimplies,sterilefiltrationisfineenoughthat
almost all microorganisms in the beer are removed during the filtration
process.

Bibliography
http://www.sterkensbrew.be
https://en.wikipedia.org
http://science.howstuffworks.com