Ingredients Used in Beer Making

Beer has been around for ages and was consumed even when there was no source of clean water available. This drink has an important place in the history of the world. There are four basic components of beer but to change the flavor, some more products too may be added. It’s amazing to see so many beer types in the market while they all come from the four basic ingredients.

Water – This is the most important ingredient of beer as it comprises 90% of the drink. Impurities in water can drastically change the flavor and taste of the product. Some breweries also have wells so that the taste and mineral content of the water can be adjusted accordingly. Filtration systems are also installed to make sure that the taste of beer remains consistent.

Malted Barley – Fermentation of a beverage cannot take place till it has an ingredient containing starch. Beer gets its starch from malted barley. Malting is a process wherein Barley is soaked in water and is allowed to germinate. After being germinated, the grains are put in a kiln to dry. The degree to which the barley is roasted decides the color that the beer will get. If the barley has been roasted too much, the taste will travel to the beer as well.

Hops – Flowers from the hop vine are used to make beer. Hops are being cultivated since the last 2000 years. Hops have acids that help in giving a bitter taste to the beer. It also has certain types of oils through which beer gets its aroma. There are chances of the beer getting spoiled if hops are not added to it. Adding this to the beer makes sure that the harmful bacteria that spoil the beer do not grow. Different varieties of hops give different flavors to beer. Hops provide the bitter taste to the beer while the fermentation process introduces sugar in it.

Yeast – Beer contains alcohol and carbon dioxide which is created with the help of yeast. These are microorganisms that have a single cell and are available in different varieties. The varieties available help the beer in getting its distinct flavored. The two main categories in which yeast is available are lager yeast and ale yeast. The difference between the two types of yeast is that the former one is bottom fermenting while the latter one is top fermenting.

Breweries select the type of yeast according to the flavor they wish to give to the beer. Fermentation with beer is done for around 7-8 days.

Clarifying Agents – In Germany, no other product is used apart from the above mentioned four basic ingredients. Most of the other countries add spices and clarifying agents to the beer to improve its taste. The clarifying agents are used to gather the residues from the beer. Before the beer is bottled, the residue is collected and separated from the liquid. Thee agents are not present in large quantities in the beer and are thus not mentioned on the beer bottles.