I’ve brewed a lot of beer over the years, but never an alt. I’m set to brew my first this weekend. I’ve seen and read some differing opinions about mashing for this brew. Just reviewed the Classic Beer Styles series Alt book by Horst Dornbusch. The book suggests a step mash. I know that much has changed since the 1998 publication so am seeking suggestions from folks with Alt brewing experience. A step mash poses no problems for me, but I’m just wondering if that is still the “best practice” for this style. What results have you all had with mashing this style and what temps have worked best for you?
Dornbusch also suggests a 90-120 minute boil. Sound right to you?
I brewed NB’s alt kit 2 yrs ago. According to my notes I did rests at 149 and 158. I just did a 60 minute boil. Not sure why, probably just following directions. The beer turned out good. I tasted tested it against a locally produced alt and liked mine better.
Really depends on your recipe and the malts you are using (most are highly modified nowadays). I brew an alt that is 89% Light Munich, 10% Caramunich, 1% Carafa II (kaisers Alt). I’ve used a 20 minute rest at 131F and stepped it up to 150F for 45 minutes. I’ve also just done a 150F rest and could detect no flavor difference. Only difference was slightly lower efficiency on the single infusion (evaporation could have just been different on these days). I’ve only ever boiled 60 minutes because this recipe already has plenty of malt backing. :cheers:
Because I have never brewed an Alt, I planned to start with a kit recipe of 10 lb German pils, 1 lb crystal 40, and 4 oz chocolate. I think I’ll swap out a couple pounds of pils for Light Munich malt. I’ve since (after my original post this AM) run across an article from BYO magazine in 2002 by Matt Cole (then from Rocky River Brewing, now with Fathead’s in the Cleveland area) with two recipes. I had some his Alt at Rocky River on multiple ocassions and was really impressed with it so may go with his ideas. He does suggest a step brewing process with 15 min at 100 F, 20 min at 122 F, 60 min at 152 F, and mash out at 170 F. These follow closely from information he got during a trip to Dusseldorf and discussions with brewers there. It may be unnecessary, but isn’t a problem with my system so I think I’ll try it, but will probably follow it up later with a single infusion just to see if I can detect any difference. Cole suggests boil time of 80 min. In terms of homebrewing ingredients, this 2002 article is already a little dated, so the single infusion step mash may be less important now than it was even 13 years ago.
Thanks for your input, everyone. I think I’m going to follow Cole’s info this time because I really enjoyed his Alts. It is interesting to hear the comparative info between step vs. single infusion mash results. Seems like this is a pretty common result across many threads here in the last couple of years and I’m looking forward to doing my own experimenting.
I’d do a Hochkurz step mash. Mash at in the mid 140’s for 30 minutes, infuse with boiling water to bring it up to the upper 150’s for 40 or so minutes. Some swear that this upper 150’s mash rest gives better head retention, as well as better body to the beer. I do this mash schedule for all my beers. It’s easy and gives me a good healthy fermentation and it always finishes where I want it to. Sometimes I’ll do the Alpha sacc rest for 60 minutes.
Crystal in an Alt? Inconceivable! Ha. Just kidding, but the Germans don’t tend to use many British malts in their beers. Mine had Munich, dark Munich, Pils, and Caramunich. I’m not a huge Munich malt fan, but the kit was a gift… Turned out great. Maybe the hoppiness overcame the Munich taste I don’t care for in less hoppy German lagers.
Thanks for the information and suggestions everyone. Interesting to see that several different methods have pretty much all resulted in quality beers. I think this style along with mash processes and recipes will require a number of brew sessions to settle in on what I like best. I am going to do a step mash and will definitely move to recipes that replace all or most of the crystal malt with more traditional grain bills. I suspect that the tremendous growth in homebrewing and the corresponding rise in ingredient availability even since the 2002 recipe may well account for the crystal being used in that recipe. I lose track of time, but I really don’t remember anywhere near the malt variety that is available today being available in 2002. I suspect it is time for an update of the Classic Styles Alt book too.
Isn’t caramunich the same thing as crystal malt?[/quote]
Good question. I did a little research and the answer seems to be, “it depends on who you ask”. The biggest difference seems to be that caramunich begins as munich and crystal begins as 2-row. Cheers.
The long boil could be due to the use of pilsner malt? Or maybe they’re boiling longer to bring it down to volume and get the color darker?
I tend to use only pils, vienna and munich malts in my lagers. If I want them darker I’ll use a tiny bit of carafa special II or III. Let the malts shine and avoid the heavy sweetness of crystal. Just my 2 cents but then I think you said you already have the kit so ignore me… :cheers:
I think at this point I’m going to hold off a week and revamp the recipe a little. I think you are all correct about the crystal, so I’ll either eliminate or cut it way back. The kit isn’t a problem (I added the kit to an order to get past the point to qualify for free shipping) as I’ve got a good stock of malts and brew regularly enough to easily reuse the crystal later. I have to check, but I think I have enough other malts available to modify this recipe without a reorder.
I’m not positive, but think it was in the Classic series Alt book where the long boil was suggested to add just a little carmelization (although it could have been a different article).
Thanks again. I think a pound of crystal may well add more sweetness than I would want and I like the idea of a more traditional recipe.
I think at this point I’m going to hold off a week and revamp the recipe a little. I think you are all correct about the crystal, so I’ll either eliminate or cut it way back. The kit isn’t a problem (I added the kit to an order to get past the point to qualify for free shipping) as I’ve got a good stock of malts and brew regularly enough to easily reuse the crystal later. I have to check, but I think I have enough other malts available to modify this recipe without a reorder.
I’m not positive, but think it was in the Classic series Alt book where the long boil was suggested to add just a little carmelization (although it could have been a different article).
Thanks again. I think a pound of crystal may well add more sweetness than I would want and I like the idea of a more traditional recipe.[/quote]
According to BJCP a little crystal is ok in an alt. A recipe I have does call for 8 oz. Never brewed it.
"Typically made with a Pils base and colored with roasted malt or dark crystal. May include small amounts of Munich or Vienna malt. Noble hops. Usually made with an attenuative lager yeast. "
I did do a “moctoberfest” with wy1007 german ale yeast. Turned out really nice.
