1. FROM THE GROUND TO THE GLASS

2. In This Session We Will Discuss…  Selecting, growing and malting varieties of grain with unique flavors that are not normally available to brewers, distillers and bakers anywhere.  Growing and harvesting issues.  Special malting requirements.  Laboratory and brewery testing.

3. MALTSTER AT WORK

5. SALISH COAST REGION  West of Cascade Mountains.  North of Eugene, Oregon.  Up through Vancouver Island, B.C.  Long days during seed fill.  Moderate to cool days.  Very cool nights.  No drought stress (lower protein). It rains until July 4 th !

6.  Dry, sunny harvest.  Salt water flavor influence.  Fat, plump kernels (6/64 through 9/64).  Washington State University has over 15,000 varieties of barley growing now, including heritage varieties.  WSU also has over 40,000 varieties of wheat growing now.  At least 100’s malt very well. SALISH COAST REGION

7. SKAGIT VALLEY MALTING  Custom malting for each brewery, distillery, miller or bakery.  Skagit Valley – top 2% of farmland in the World – soil rating.  Low protein base malt – 9% to 10.5%.  Working with two Land Grant Universities.  Direct support from largest Farmers in the Region as well as many smaller Farmers.

8. WHAT HAS BEEN  Malts – made for major market (success).  Variable roasts – similar grain profile.  Grain profile (defined by major market).  Limited domestic custom malt availability.  Even European Malt Houses have established customers.  Limited malt choice for American Micro Brewers.

9. WHAT IS POSSIBLE?  Land Grant Universities breeding grain varieties for Craft Breweries.  100’s of barley varieties with distinct flavor differences, distinctly wider profiles.  Heritage grains with unique profiles.  Craft brewing with CRAFTED MALTS – not just roasted differently.

10. POSSIBLE WITH CUSTOM MALT HOUSES  YOU pick the Profile.  YOU pick the Region.  YOU pick the Farmer.  YOU get what Winemakers have always demanded - Control over your MAIN ingredient.

11. WHY HERE?  There are over 80 crops grown here and grains are NOT the most profitable. Dave Hedlin, Skagit Valley Farmer…”I grow grains for fun and ‘occasionally’ profit.”  Malt grains draw a premium when they are “plump” and have lower protein (9 to 10.5 percent seems ideal for craft brewing).  There are 12 seed companies in Skagit Valley and malt grains are high quality seeds (80% 7/64’s or greater).

12. WHY HERE?  The Northwest is a major center for craft brewing and artisan distilling.  The Northwest grows significant hops.  Skagit Valley is within 100 miles of 6,500,000 people. (Seattle and Vancouver, B.C. are within an hours drive).  We like it here!

13. WHY HERE?  We get to see and work with more varieties than most areas of North America. We get to see how they grow, how they taste, how they MALT, and more. What a great “LOCAL” we have!

14. DEEP ROOTS TO RENEW THE SOIL

15. WHAT IS MALT?  The largest component of beer.  “Malt is to the brewer what the grape is to the winemaker.” - Bill Coors  Malt barley varieties have “taste” differences as well as properties like soluble protein and extract.  Brewers can have a choice just like winemakers demand in their grapes.

18. Water  90% by volume  Differentiation by source of water Malt Barley  9.9% by volume  8 principal varieties in the US (AMBA) Highest proportion ingredient by volume, least amount of variation Hops  <1% by volume (except SUPER IPA’s)  over 119 varieties in US Yeast  <1% by volume  18-20 mainstream varieties Skagit Valley Malting Malt Barley  Hundreds of potential varieties  100% locally grown  Low protein content ( 8.5 to 10.5% )  Continuous university R&D to develop new grain varieties Malt barley becomes a Beer Makers “grape”, with exponentially greater variety PRODUCT: CREATING A CATEGORY OF DIFFERENTIATION

19. Grain Malting  We make barley (and other grains) think it’s going to grow  The endosperm is a protein/carbohydrate matrix reserve for the acrospire  Pre-existing enzymes are released during growth and modify the matrix into easily used sugars  We watch the acrospire as an indicator of “modification”  When it’s fully modified we kill it and then kiln it so we can use those sugars in brewing, baking and distilling. Wayne refers to the endosperm as the seed’s backpack of MREs.

22. PURPLE NAKED EGYPTIAN

23. WHAT IS A “VARIETY”?  Many people think malt variety is the roast.  We think of variety as the “barley variety” from which we can make all the possible roasts with both two and six row barley.  We are currently testing about twenty varieties of barley and several wheat's.  Most of these varieties are NOT listed by AMBA.

24. WHAT IS VARIETY?  There are over 15,000 varieties of barley!  Hundreds can be successfully malted.  Both six row and two row varieties, black, purple, red, and many shades of gold.  Distinct as well as subtle flavor differences.  Each variety can have different character and different malting requirements.

25. Grains Malting Processes 0 155 10 AMBA Grains 20 New Grains Already Being Developed Thousands of Additional Grains Waiting to Be Developed 20,000 Barleys, 40,000 Wheats, …

26. Grains Malting Processes 20,000 Barleys, 40,000 Wheats, …

28. BARLEY TRIALS

30. LOOK WHAT IS POSSIBLE  Domestic - North American Grown  Lower Protein - 9% to 10.5%  Variety - Over 15,000 Barley varieties, at least 100’s malt well  Custom Malts with a profile YOU choose. COA (Certificate of Analysis) ---- PROFILE

31. MALT ANALYSIS (COA)  What is it used for?  What should it be?  What does it mean to the user?  “---to document the production in the malt house----to predict the performance in the brew house---” (John Mallett– Bells Brewery)

32. WHAT’S IN THE ANALYSIS?  Enzyme levels (Alpha, Beta, Fan)  Color  Beta Glucan ppm  Extract  Protein levels  Fermentable sugars  …..lots more….

33. WHY ARE THE VALUES IMPORTANT?  Beta Glucan (viscosity or mouth feel) (also filter issues)  Color (how will the wort look?)  Enzymes (Quickly make sugar?)  Extract ($$$$ will I get LOTS of sugar per pound?)  FLAVOR??????????

34. ITS ALL ABOUT THE BEER!!!  Or Whiskey  Or Bread  Or Pasta  Or Beer!!!

35. VARIETIES MEANS VARIETY  The COA will differ more as you get farther from the AMBA approved grains.  The FLAVOR, mouth feel, color, and more will differ also.  The user needs to know what it is and then what to do to get what they desire-FLAVOR!

36. FROM GROUND TO GLASS Mike Doehnel

37. Agronomy  The importance of agronomy and varietal selection for flavor and performance in the brewhouse.  Choosing the “right” variety for your climatic conditions may mean scouring the planet for germplasm which performs best in your conditions.  These Excel files demonstrate some of the considerations we have taken in selecting varieties for agronomic performance, maltibility and finally brewing for different beer flavors and processes suitable to a specific brewing system.

38. FROM GROUND TO GLASS Bob Rock

39. Our Laboratory / Brewery  Fully licensed and regulated  Les Nessman style structure (WKRP?)  Stainless conicals as well as various plastic carboys  Upright freezers with Ranco controllers for fermentation chambers  Chest freezer & controller for kegs  10 gallon or smaller batches… and a ruined hobby

40. Are you ready for it? RIMS – Recirculating Infusion Mash System Clarifies wort using grain bed as a filter Temperature Control +/- 0.5° F SABCO Brewmagic $ $ $ $ $ The other downside…

41. I Brew, Therefore I Clean! (A lot.) The First Commandment… Apologies to René Descartes for perverting “Cogito ergo sum”

42. Brewing’s Glamourous Side

43. Testing and Analysis  House Yeast Selection Experiment  Scientific but VERY entertaining !

44. Testing and Analysis  Test Brew - Very Simple SMaSH Blonde Ale  Taste the Malt / Taste the Beer  Sensory Analysis  Experimental Beers  Scots Bere  Purple Egyptian

46. Testing and Analysis  Malt Batch Mini Mashes  Three replicate mini mashes done with a standardized mash regime  Measure PPG, ΔPPG, Extract “As Is”, Extract “Dry Basis” and pH  Statistical analysis  Sensory analysis – color, smell & taste  Compares very well with ASBC / EBC Congress Mash results

51. FROM THE GROUND TO THE GLASS