Recipes for Continental Light Beer
Prepared by
Nam Sun Wang
Department of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering
University of Maryland
College Park, MD 20742-2111
ENCH485
Shihhh! My secret recipes. Don't tell anyone. See how we have
fun in the lab in making the beer, not
drinking it. Never drink in the lab. Note that the University of
Maryland has strict rules on the consumption of alcoholic
beverages and possession of common containers on campus. Below
are some policies that are strictly enforced:
List of Ingredients
- 1 can Hopped light (color not calorie) malt extract
- Hops (according to taste)
- 500 g Glucose (brewing sugar)
- Water crystals (calcium sulfate & magnesium sulfate)
- 1 pk Lager (bottom fermenting) or ale (top fermenting) beer yeast from Redstar
- 150 g Glucose (for priming)
One of the beer/wine suppliers close to the University of Maryland is listed below.
It also has some good links and recipes.
The Flying Barrell
103 South Carroll Street (one block east of Market, one block north of water tower)
Frederick, MD 21701
301-663-4491
mfrank2923@aol.com
www.flyingbarrel.com
Maryland Homebrew
6770 Oak Hall Lane, Suite 115
Columbia, MD 21045
410-290-3768
donnyb@mdhb.com
www.mdhb.com
The Brew Pot
13031 11th Street
Old Town Bowie, MD 20715
301-805-6799
Locate other suppliers at
Home Wine & Beer Trade Association
Procedures
-
Soften the malt syrup by immersing the can in hot water for 5
minutes. Add approximately equal part of boiling water. Mix and
dissolve all the ingredients (except for the yeast and the
priming glucose). Finally, pour this mixture into 15 liters of
water. Autoclave to sterilize. See Note 1.
Figure: Pour Malt Syrup. (Movie 304K)
Figure: Dissolve Malt. (Movie 221K)
-
When the wort is cool, measure the initial specific gravity
of the wort with a hydrometer. (It should be between 1.035 and
1.045.) Inoculate the wort simply by sprinkling a small package
(7 g) of active dry beer yeast (from Redstar) over the wort.
Figure: Hydrometer. (Movie 819K)
-
Cover the top, and vent the container with an air-lock.
-
Let fermentation proceed at 25ºC for one week, or until
the yeast ceases CO2 production as evidenced by the lack of
bubbles and foam. The specific gravity should now be between
1.003 and 1.009.
-
Siphon the clear beer into another clean container, leaving the
yeast sediment behind.
Figure: Siphon tubing. (Movie 208K)
At the University of Maryland, we utilize this opportunity to
practice operating a continuous centrifuge for cell separation.
Figure: Set up continuous centrifuge. (Movie 265K)
Figure: Set up continuous centrifuge. (Movie 584K)
-
Stir in the priming glucose.
Figure: Shake it up. (Movie 543K)
-
Pour/siphon into storage bottles and apply caps. See Note 2.
Figure: Fill bottles. (Movie 276K)
Figure: Cap bottles. (Movie 441K)
-
Ferment and store in a refrigerator, then wait patiently for
another 4 weeks.
Notes
-
Alternatively, when brewing at home, the quantity of
the nutrient to be sterilized can be reduced by mixing the
ingredients in 3 liters of water and boiling for 10 min. Pour
the sterilized ingredients into 12 liters of cold water.
-
Leave the beer to ferment further if the specific gravity at
the end of the primary fermentation is significantly higher than
the values indicated above. This avoids the possible build up of
excessive pressures once the beer is bottled and sealed.
Although rather scarce nowadays, returnable bottles are
recommended because they can better guard against explosions
during the secondary fermentation and storage.
Return to Prof. Nam Sun Wang's Home Page
Return to Biochemical Engineering Laboratory (ENCH485)
Recipes for Continental Light Beer
Forward comments to:
- Nam Sun Wang
- Department of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering
- University of Maryland
- College Park, MD 20742-2111
- 301-405-1910 (voice)
- 301-314-9126 (FAX)
e-mail: nsw@umd.edu
Figure: Pour Malt Syrup. (Movie 304K)
Figure: Dissolve Malt. (Movie 221K)
Figure: Hydrometer. (Movie 819K)
Figure: Siphon tubing. (Movie 208K)
Figure: Set up continuous centrifuge. (Movie 265K)
Figure: Set up continuous centrifuge. (Movie 584K)
Figure: Shake it up. (Movie 543K)
Figure: Fill bottles. (Movie 276K)
Figure: Cap bottles. (Movie 441K)