Transcript Brew Day Presentation

Beer Basics
Scottish Ales
February 2008
Today’s Topics
• Introduction
• Types of Scottish Ales
– Scottish Ale
– Strong Scotch Ale
• Brewing Scottish Ales
– Ingredients
• Water
• Malt
• Hops
• Yeast
– Brewing Techniques
Introduction
• Scholars believe the Scots began brewing beer
before the Roman Empire invaded Britain in
43 A.D.
• The beer styles from Scotland evolved from
geographical and economic concerns. As an
example, hops were expensive and hard to
obtain, so Scottish ales developed a malty
profile.
Types of Scottish Ales
Scottish Ales
• Scottish Ales are distinguished by gravity and alcoholic
strength.
• Deep Amber to dark copper colored ale
(SRM: 9 -17).
• The flavor profile leans slightly towards the malt. Hops
play a supporting role through bittering. Hop aroma
and flavor additions, if present, should be in small
amounts (.25 to .50 ounces for a 5 gallon batch).
• Small amounts of roasted barley provide color and
flavor. The finish is dry and slightly roasty.
Types of Scottish Ales
Scottish Ales
• The three sub styles are:
– Scottish Light 60/• OG: 1.030-1.035; FG: 1.010-1.013; IBUs: 10-20
– Scottish Heavy 70/• OG: 1.035-1.040; FG: 1.010-1.015; IBUs: 10-25
– Scottish Export 80/• OG: 1.040-1.054; FG: 1.010-1.016; IBUs: 15-30
where the /- stands for shilling, an obsolete unit of
currency. The shilling numbers above represent the 19th
century price charged for a barrel of each sub style.
Types of Scottish Ales
Strong Scotch Ale
• Alcohol content can range from 6.5% up to 10.0%
by volume.
• Rich and malty with complex secondary malt
flavors. The body is medium-full to full bodied.
• Typically sweet with malt dominating; however,
the finish can be sweet or medium-dry,
depending on the roasted barley addition.
Roasted barley up to 3% of the grist is allowed.
Types of Scottish Ales
Strong Scotch Ale
• Light copper to dark brown colored ale
(SRM: 14 -25).
• Hop presence is minimal. Typically, English
varieties are used is small amounts.
• Vital Statistics:
– OG: 1.070-1.130; FG: 1.018-1.030+; IBUs: 17-35
• Also known as a “wee heavy”. The strong Scotch
ales are designated with higher shilling values,
with values between 90/- and 160/-.
Brewing Scottish Ales
Ingredients-Water
• Brewing water should contain sufficient amounts of calcium, sodium, carbonate, and
chloride; however, sulfate levels should be low.
•
Geology of Edinburgh yields various water profiles. The profiles range from low to high levels
of sulfate. The low levels are best for brewing Scottish or Strong Scotch ales.
•
According to Greg Noonan, the water profile in Edinburgh contained the following ion
concentrations (in ppm):
Calcium
Magnesium
Sodium
Sulfate
Chloride
Carbonates
80-120
10-25
10-30
70-140
30-60
120-200
Brewing Scottish Ales
Ingredients-Malt
• The agricultural revolution during the 1700s lead to better cultivation of
barley. By 1805, Scottish barley was preferred by most brewers and distillers
over their English counterparts.
•
Excellent Scottish ales can be made with a basic grain bill consisting of pale
base malt, dextrin malt, and a small amount of roasted barley.
•
For Scottish ales, a low to moderate peaty character is optional; however, the
faint smoky character is from yeast and local Scottish malt and water, not from
smoked malts.
•
Scotch ales may contain a small portion of smoked malt to add a peaty
character.
Brewing Scottish Ales
Ingredients-Hops
• Historically, hops have not grown well in Scotland.
As a consequence, hops were expensive and had to
be imported from England. This lead to a beer style
that tilted toward malt instead of hop bitterness.
• Use bittering hops to achieve low to moderate
bitterness. Use aroma and flavor hops in small
quantities. English varieties are very common, like
East Kent Goldings and Fuggles.
Brewing Scottish Ales
Ingredients-Yeast
• Use an ale yeast that:
–
–
–
–
•
Wyeast Strains appropriate for Scottish Ales include;
–
–
–
–
•
ferments at lower temperatures (55 °F to 60 °F )
Has low attenuation, typically between 65-70%
Clean neutral character
For Strong Scotch ales, higher alcohol tolerance
1084 Irish Ale Yeast
1098 British Ale Yeast
1318 London Ale III Yeast
1728 Scottish Ale Yeast
For Strong Scotch ales, Wyeast recommends one of the following yeast strains;
–
–
–
–
1056 American Ale Yeast
1084 Irish Ale Yeast
1762 Belgian Abby Ale II Yeast
1728 Scottish Ale Yeast
Brewing Scottish Ales
Brewing Techniques
• Use a single infusion mash at 154°F to 158 °F for 90 minutes. At
this temperature, the wort will be more dextrinous.
• Caramel character is from kettle caramelization, not from caramel
malts.
• Ferment with an ale yeast at a temperature between 55°F to 60 °F
for up to three weeks in the primary fermenter.
• Cold condition, that is , lager the beer for at least 3 weeks at 35°F
to 45 °F.