how would you maximize malt flavour (any and all) in a beer under 7SRM?

General Homebrew Discussion
1

without getting into something silly like 50% crystal 10 grists, how would you get the strongest malt flavour in beer while keeping it under 7SRM?

i considered making a gravity limit, but comparitively a 1.09 OG 2row beer is still going to be bland compared to another 1.09 OG beer with adjuncts/crystal/artisanal base malt etc

malt flavour, so hops aren’t a factor unless you want to explain that they influence the malt

ive been using amber malt (22srm) a lot over the past 6 months and i think it provides some depth and flavour, but not as much as one might imagine tbh. in fact i used castle biscuit malt (also 22srm i presume similar process) and i distinctly remember a big “wow” factor i perceived in flavour.

mash temp/mash type? does a quadruple decoction work malt wonders?

2

This is a very good question, Fredthecat.  I will be interested in reading the responses.  I recently brewed a Helles and wondered the same thing.

3

A few ideas:

You hit on one: use of what I’ll call melatonin-style malts: Amber, Biscuit, Melanoidin, etc.  Other malts like Aromatic or Munich give a maltiness to the beer but 7 SRM might be a tall order for them. Oats tend to give a fuller mouthfeel which can be associated with maltiness.

Another would be using craft malt like Mecca Grade, Root Shoot, Pilot Malt House, etc. or a heritage malt like Maris Otter, Golden Promise, Chevalier, etc… Commodity grade malts don’t seem to have the same je ne sais quoi as some of the craft or heritage malts.

Try a yeast that gives a fuller finish.

You could adjust processes like using a higher mash temp though I doubt I could tell the difference in a 152°F and 156°F ….or try a decoction mash which is reported to produce more maltiness.

You could go low O2 which is reported to produce a fuller malt flavor.

Brewhaus liquor treatment can influence taste perception. Use more chloride and less/zero sulfate, no bicarbonates, etc.

4

A little bit of Victory malt (2-3%?), a good portion of Vienna malt (not sure, maybe 33-50%?), and Lallemand London yeast for low attenuation around 68-69% but with great flavor that is reasonably neutral (unlike Windsor).

5

Careful choice of matter makes a lot of difference. Something like Crisp Plumage Archer is only 1.9L yet has an amazing malt flavor. Base malt is not just base malt.

6

Has anyone played around with Non-Enzymatic Mashing?  I haven’t, so apologies if what follows is pretty dumb…

I know NEM has been suggested as a way to make low ABV beers, but what if:
1 . Cold steep some quantity of base malt overnight.
2.  Remove grains
3.  Use the NEM “wort” as the brewing mash water for the next beer.

Could this be a way to add flavor and body?

I honestly have no idea.  Even if it would work, its probably more complicated than its worth.

7

There are many flavors that come from malt including toasted, honey, grainy, biscuity, etc.  Take a look at the flavor wheel for the Weyermann heirloom malt varieties and try out different malts, both base and specialty, if you don’t like what you get from your current grainbill.

https://www.weyermann.de/en-us/products-2/brewery-2/

For preserving the malt character for a given grain bill, I find that proper water chemisty (i.e. reducing alkalinity), a healthy fermentation, not overboiling, and minimizing O2 pickup (especially post fermentation) helps a lot.

8

I did something similar years back.  I don’t recall noticing any enhanced malt character from it.

9

i chose 7 SRM because it allows for melanoidin/biscuit/amber/abbey malts or low crystal but obviously you’d have to keep it minimal. flaked barley/oats/wheat have even lower SRMs than most base malts, so if you up their ratios you could allow for more kilned malts

haha the minerals beat the question, yeah you could go crazy on mineral ratios i guess.

apparently,
-a 100% Weyermann munich I beer at 1.048 is 9.1SRM.
-a 90% 2row, 10% (1lb) 23Lov biscuit malt at 1.045 is 6.4SRM
-a 100% weyermann vienna at 1.048 is 6.3 SRM

Vienna gives a lot of flavour for its’ SRM, I can always tell when its there (at least in my homebrew…).

im a fan of weyermann, i always find they deliver on flavour. admittedly i’ve never had best malz though.

I love this idea and thought of it a while ago I think. Cold steeping dark roasted grains can definitely add colour and roast without astringency, etc. I’ve done it before.

I think there is some really interesting merit in something like coldsteeping 2lbs of vienna (what… 3 dollars?)

i know that traditional/artisanal maltsters matter, a goal for the next brewing season is to seek out some of them, theyre harder to get up here ie. MG, sugarcreek etc

10

Choose a high quality base malt with some character and a bit of munich in the grist.  Boil down a small portion of the runnings to add back to the kettle.  I do this sometimes with extra runnings and I think it does what you need.

11

I can attest that keeping oxygen out of your entire mashing process (LODO) does make a difference in enhancing malt flavor.  It’s difficult to do with many brewing systems, but its worth it if you can get there.

12

Is NEM new holy grail in home brew community after waive of LODO is over?

Just asking for a friend.

13

;D

Doubtful…I hope! It’s an interesting technique, but I didn’t find my use for it other than satisfying my curiosity. George Fix write about Maryann Gruber of Briess doing it back around 2000. Aaron Hyde did some work with it when he was at Briess maybe 5 years ago.  We were gonna do an experiment on it for the podcast, but after consulting with IGORs we couldn’t come up with a methodology for the experiment.

And to be truthful, it’s not really non enzymatic. You don’t activate enzymes during the steep, but you do when you bring the steeped liquid to a boil.

14

Yes because otherwise you would have starch haze.

Thank you

15

Have you tried it?

16

Did you find any benefits from it? Kinda sounds like you were like me and wanted to try it experimentally.  Beyond verifying that it could work, I really couldn’t find a reason to do it.

17

To answer your question (and OP question) how to get more malt flavor from low gravity beer is to blend a base malt.

Let say 50/50 2 row and Pale Ale Malt
Maris Otter and Pale Ale malt
Pilsner malt and Vienna malt.

You can blend it in desired proportion. More L kilned malts are going to have more flavor.

Specialty malts will help you but they also give you more color.

Let say 2 row from Briess, Raht, Proximate are going to have a different flavor.

And just my personal opinion. Focus on brewing and understand the ingredients learn how single yeast strain behave under different conditions. Understand a different hops. Understand what Cryo hops can do and when you waist your money. Become Master in what you are doing and skip the someone else holy grail nonsense.

18

You’re very welcome. Thanks back to you. And to get back to the OP, my experience is to choose your base malts carefully. Dont settle, dont buy the cheapest thing you can find. I went through 7 versions of my American mild that were thin and watery. I switched to Mecca Grade malt and got exactly what I wanted. All malt is not equal.

19

I love that Mecca Grade malt. I felt like it took my dark german and english style brews to a different level.

20

THIS!