|
Breweries are buildings dedicated to the brewing and making of beer. Breweries can be large or small, depending on the amount of beer produced and the degree of automation present within the brewery. Breweries are generally divided into distinct sections, with each section reserved for a distinct part of the brewing process. Brewing equipment is generally made of stainless steel, which is an optimum material for brewing equipment for several reasons. It does not impart any flavor into the beer and does not react with many chemicals, meaning it can be cleaned using almost any cleaning solution (concentrated chlorine bleach is an exception, however). Additionally, stainless steel is very sturdy. This is important because most of the equipment within a brewery will undergo pressuring during the brewing process. The brewing process itself consists of nine steps: malting, mashing, lautering, boiling, fermenting, conditioning, filtering, and packaging. Malting is the process of getting the barley grain ready for brewing. The grain is soaked in water for 40 hours, spread out and allowed to dry for 5 days. Then it is dried in a high-temperature kiln. Next, the barley undergoes mashing, where the starches released during malting are converted into sugars that can be fermented. To mash the barley, the milled grain is mixed with hot water, which will extract the sugars. After the grain has been mashed, it will be lautered. Lautering is the process of separating the liquid containing the sugars that were extracted during mashing (commonly known as the wort) from the grain. After lautering, the wort is boiled with hops in a large tank referred to as a brew kettle. Some breweries will add other flavoring to the beer as well during the boiling process. This results in flavored beers, such as seasonal pumpkin beer. The total time that the wort is boiled generally ranges from 45 to 90 minutes. After it is boiled, the wort is put into a whirlpool, which allows the sugars to settle. Once the wort has been boiled and put in the whirlpool, it will be allowed to ferment. Fermentation is the conversion of carbohydrates to alcohol and carbon dioxide. It is generally achieved by adding yeast to the hops. Like boiling, fermentation takes place in large tanks. After the beer has fermented, it will be conditioned. During conditioning, the beer is allowed to age. The conditioning process can take anywhere from two weeks to several years, depending on the quality of the beer and the brewer's intentions. Before it is conditioned, the beer is usually transferred to a clean container so that it will no longer be exposed to the dead yeast and other debris that has accumulated during fermentation. Once the beer has been conditioned, it will be filtered to remove particles and other debris. It will then be packaged and sold. Looking for Portland, Oregon breweries? Check out McMenamins at http://www.mcmenamins.com/Breweries.
Related Articles -
portland, oregon, breweries,
|
