How to brew commercial beer
Infusing Beer Commercially
In as much a significant number of people globally find pleasure in taking beer, only a few of these consumers actually understand how it is actually made. Commercial beer brewing is a highly profitable business that has gained popularity in the US, particularly after it was first introduced to the Americans by the Europeans. There are various steps involved when brewing commercial beer inclusive of licit measures.
Legal Actions
All breweries/individuals who are interested in starting breweries are required to have a state-issued brewer’s license that substantiates them with The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.
Industrial process of brewing commercial beer
To produce high quality beer, there are some requisite ingredients and equipment that have to be met.
- Ingredients
Grain kernels
The most common grain used in beer brewing is malted barley (also referred to as barley malt) through the other malts such as rye, rice oats and corn could also be used. The minerals present in these gains favors the growth of yeast that plays a key role in the brewing process. The grain used should be one that can easily be broken down to simple sugars then fermented.
Yeast
Yeast is the microorganism responsible for the fermentation of beer. It disintegrates pyruvic acid to form ethanol in beer and carbon (Iv) oxidizes as a by-product.
Water
Considering that beer is 90-95 percent water, it is patent that it is vital in the system. With this knowledge in mind, a brewer should understand the type of water they use will have an impact on the quality of their brand. For production of lavish quality, well water is preferred to city water, especially if the city water is from different inconsistent sources.
The degree of hardness or softness of water varies from one beer to another. Take for instance, high water hardness. It is fenced in the production of ales while soft water is employed in the production of pilsners.
Water carries out various activities in the procedure for instance, it yields calcium the major mineral that promotes the clarity and flavor in the water. It also affects the pH by lowering it to a lower 5.2 from the high alkalinity that supports optimum enzyme activity.
Hops
At the initial stages of boiling the unrefined beer, hops is added to this beer to give it a bitter flavor. The same practice is performed at the end of the boiling process to give the alcohol its aroma while still enhancing its flavor. Moreover, it acts as a preservative which constrains spoilage/decomposing bacteria during the beer’s shelf life while contributing to keeping the foam steady.
- Equipment
When it comes to the equipment, they have to be maintained regularly bearing in mind that they bear drunk for human consumption.
Mash/Lauter Tun vessels
These vessels are built entirely of 304 stainless steels incorporated with full CIP (Carriage and Insurance Paid To), false bottoms, Vorlauf and hot liquor piping and heavy duty agitation that serve to mash the mash efficiency.
Stainless steel boilers/ Brew kettles
These kettles disseminate heat evenly to supply apt sterilization and concentration for the wort (ground meat).
Whirlpool
The whirlpool vessel operates at a high velocity of approximately 15 feet per second so as to create a whirlpool that separates the wort from additives such as the hops.
Fermentation vessel
Provides a site for the addition of yeast that ferments the ethanol before it is matured.
Filtration chamber
The fermented and already matured beer is passed down into the filtration chamber why all the unnecessary matter are extracted.
Bright Tanks
Here the beer goes through the clearing process also known as the storing/aging process of beer before it is packaged and sold.
Brewing
- Milling the grain/The malting Process
Diverse types of malt are crushed together to smash the grain kernels in order to extract fermentable sugars to generate a milled product called a grist. It takes place in three steps:
Steeping and Germination
The grains are steeped for thirty eight to forty six hours until they have absorbed nearly half of the weight in water. From here the mash is drained and then moved to a germination room where they are kept at a constant humidity and temperatures for about four days. This germination process activates enzymes that begin the process of crushing the proteins at the center of the kernel.
Drying
Drying is cautiously conducted in the kiln retaining only about 4% moisture. It takes twenty four to thirty six hours at temperatures ranging between 122-158 degrees.
Kilning
Some dried grains are roasted in kilns at higher temperatures over long periods of time. The extended heating gives the malts their flavors and colors. The more the heating, the deeper the color and the bitter the malt.
- Boiling
The wort is shifted to the boiling kettles where it is boiled before the hops are added to enhance the beer’s taste and smell.
- Wort Separation and Cooling
The separation occurs in the whirlpool vessel. At this point, the hops or any grain is removed to leave behind a liquid that is ready to be cooled and fermented.
- Fermentation
To kick off fermentation, yeast is poured into the vessel containing the wort as it converts the sugary wort into beer by yielding alcohol and carbon (iv) oxide that is used later still in the processing to give the beer its sparkle.
- Maturation
The “young” alcohol has to be mature. For this reason, it is left for a couple of days for it to mature so that it attains a full development of flavors.
- Filtration and Carbonation
The beer has to be filtered to remove any foreign particle or additive that might have seeped in previous stages because they could be hazardous for human consumption. The carbon (iv) oxide given off during the fermentation process serves its purpose here, giving the beer a smooth finish.
- Cellaring and Packaging
The coloring process occurs in the bright beer tank where it takes a three to four week period of clearing and on completion the beer is packaged, ready to be sold.
