Sugar Creek Edelweiss pilsner malt

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I have just completed three brews using this malt and thought I would report my results. This is advertised as a “highly undermodified” malt that requires a step mash at minimum and a decoction mash is highly recommended. The barley variety is a 100 year old Hana variant and has been grown by the maltster from a small sample obtained in Europe a few years ago. My first use of the malt was for a Czech Pale Lager using Michigan hops to keep it an all-American affair. My mash was longer than the usual and included steps at 40C/104F, 52C/126F, 63C/145F, a 15 minute decoction boil, and a final conversion step at 71C/160F. The mash worked well as far as I could tell, with the final volume and gravity being consistent with a malt with 1.035 SG and 76.0% yield (as predicted in BeerSmith software), which is a touch lower than standard malts but not unreasonable.

For my second attempt I brewed a Franconian-style pale lager and intentionally let the pH run at 5.85 based on a Craft Beer&Brewing podcast about Franconian lager. I lengthened the 52C protein rest a bit but otherwise ran a similar mash schedule. In this case the malt produced 1.035SG and 76.5% yield.

For my third try, I brewed a Helles. For this beer I used two decoctions (protein to beta, beta to alpha) and ran a normal mash pH. Once again I obtained a volume and gravity that are consistent with a malt with 1.035SG and 76.0% yield.

Of course the main question is “Was this worth the extra effort?” The Czech style lager is currently on tap and tastes pretty good, but is not a direct analog to Czech beers due to the Michigan hops. The malt character so far is good but fairly neutral, nothing unusual. I’m treating this as a “proof of concept” beer, good but not extraordinary. The high pH mash Franconian pale lager, on the other hand, is unlike anything I have brewed before and is outstanding. The Perle hops I used in whirlpool give the beer a long lasting hop bitterness that stays on your tongue, an effect I’ve not been able to reproduce previously and a key element of some Franconian beers such as Knoblach Kellerbier. I don’t know how much the beer would change using a malt with normal modification, maybe the high pH is the driving factor here, but I will brew this again using the Edelweiss malt. The third attempt, the Helles, will be the best way to evaluate the malt, and I’ll be sure to report back once it’s on tap after about 8 weeks of lager time.

Overall, it’s a lot of work and extra time, but I’m glad I did it. I can see using this malt once or twice a year if it remains available. I purchased the malt from Great Fermentations, bought the Michigan hops from Michigan Hop Alliance, and the high pH mash podcast can be found at Podcast Episode 439: Ben Howe of Otherlands Manipulates pH and Process in Pursuit of the Perfect Franconian-Style Lager | Craft Beer & Brewing

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That’s good to hear that the malt worked well. I’m surprised with the results of the franconian lager with a high pH. That invites a number of hurdles.

Going to the maltster’s (Caleb M) party at his farm is quite an event and one that I try to make it to. He invites many of the commercial brewers he supplies and they supply beers that are shared amongst the attendees. Quite a few very good beers there.

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The time I was at Knoblauch I was immediately getting the lingering dry bitterness that you don’t often get in Franconia. My impression was fairly high sulfate, either in the water source or added by the brewer. Impressions of most other breweries there is that the chloride level is high, sulfate lower.

I’m going to have to listen to the Craft Beer and Brewing Podcast on Franconia Breweries.

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I was very nervous running the mash at that pH, it’s not easy breaking the rules you normally put so much effort into following! It’s nice to hear that commercial breweries are using Sugar Creek malt and getting great results.

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Jeff, is it possible that the dry bitterness was in part due to some tannin?

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I didn’t get that, the finish was like a German Pilsner or a Sierra Nevada PA.

Most of the beers in Franconia are malt forward. Not many emphasize hops. One other Brewery that had hop forward in beers was Rittmeyer Hallerndorf. Definitely dry finishes with hop flavor and aroma.