 The four main ingredients used to brew beer are barley, hops, water and yeast  Each ingredient plays a key role in the development of the alcohol in beer (ethanol or ethyl alcohol) or in the overall taste of the beer  Each ingredient must go through separate processes to be used to make beer

 Main grain used during and for the brewing process (other grains include wheat oats and millet)  Seed of a grain similar to wheat in appearance  Goes through a malting process before being able to be used in beer

 The flower of the hop vine  Contains acids that give beer its bitter taste  Also contains oils that add to its flavor and smell  Each different kind of hops can change the overall flavor and smell of the beer being brewed

 Single-celled micro-organism  Used to produce the alcohol and carbonation found in beer itself  Like hops, different types of yeasts produce different flavors in the beer itself  Two main beer yeasts are ale and lager

 The first step in the brewing process  Converts barley starches into fermentable sugars  Rollers crush the barley and its kernals are broken apart  A syrup-like liquid called the wort is the product, resulting from adding water and boiling the mixture

 After the wort is created, it is added to a vessel that already has yeast inside  The yeasts convert the glucose to alcohol and carbon dioxide by this chemical formula: C 6 H 12 O 6  2CO 2 + 2C 2 H 5 OH

 The vessel that the wort is transferred into (fermenter) plays a large role in assuring the mixture isn’t “invaded” by any other yeasts  Only carbon dioxide is allowed to leave the fermenter, since if the mixture were exposed to air, other yeasts could enter the mixture and contaminate it

 A few weeks is all it takes for the fermentation process to run its course (2 weeks for an ale, 6 for a lager) and create the alcohol that is enjoyed by so many people!  By the end of fermentation, all of the yeast can be found at the bottom of the fermenter as the beer is cooled to close to 0 o C

 Diffusion causes the glucose from the wort to enter the yeast  Glycolysis produces three-carbon sugars (pyruvates) and energy, and the yeast multiplies  The sugars are what become the ethanol and carbon dioxide in the beer  Enjoy