A Practical Treatise on Brewing/Summer Brewing
SUMMER BREWING.
Brewing in summer has always been considered a very uncertain process: and both brewers and distillers find it impossible to carry on their operations during that season so successfully as in winter. The generally received opinion is, that the state of the atmosphere in summer, prevents fermentation from going on so successfully as in winter.
This, however, we do not admit. If the fermenting tuns be properly placed, and the worts are as sound when fermentation begins as they are in winter, along with sound yeast, the fermentation, with a properly regulated temperature, will go on equally well. The worts, however, owing to the state of the atmosphere, are more liable to get tainted during the process of brewing in summer, than they are in winter; and as already stated, the least additional acidity in the worts will always produce irregular fermentations. It is, therefore, the difficulty of preserving worts in summer, so as to go sound into the gyle-tun, on which the uncertainty in fermentation during that season depends; and not the interference of the atmosphere with the process of fermentation.
Art, by means of fans, refrigerators and regulators, has now enabled us to overcome, in a great measure, the difficulties formerly experienced. Even now, however, with the assistance of all these new inventions, summer brewing is found to be very uncertain and precarious; and no one thinks of brewing more than may be absolutely necessary for immediate draught. The more speedily the whole process can be carried through at this season, the greater probability of success. The taps or worts should never be allowed to remain in the under-back, but should immediately be run into the copper for the purpose of gaining heat.
It has been already stated that the whole extract, of any value, must be made in the first mash, and that all we can afterwards do, is to wash out the saccharine remaining in the malt after the saccharisation has been thoroughly formed in the first mashing. There can be no use, therefore, in allowing the liquor to remain long on the goods in the after mashes. We should, consequently, proceed as rapidly as possible. To accomplish this, instead of adopting the mode of sprinkling or sparging, now so generally practised, it will be found, that by turning the same number of barrels over (not under) the goods as we should do for a second mash, the extract may be quite as effectually washed out as by sparging.
Some mode, however, must be adopted to prevent the liquor, by running too rapidly, making a hole in the goods or malt in the tun, so as to raise them without the liquor finding its way directly through them. This can be easily accomplished by placing a board or hit of canvass on that part of the tun on which the liquor directly runs. If the malt (or goods) rise through the liquor on top, which will invariably happen with good malt in the course of ten or fifteen minutes, the worts may immediately be set a running as rapidly as the false bottom will permit. If, however, the malt does not rise, which sometimes happens with inferior malt, a short mash must be resorted to, after which ten minutes’ standing will be quite sufficient. Where two boilings are necessary, the quantity turned over, in this second mash, should make up precisely the quantity wanted for the first boiling. Where there are two coppers, there can be no difficulty in the after proceedings, but where only one, we must be guided by existing circumstances. The great desideratum in all our operations is facility. When we have a raw or return wort to follow, the necessary quantity of liquor for the second boiling may be turned on at once; but where no raw wort is taken, two or perhaps three washings are necessary to get the whole extract from the malt.
The third liquor, if the process be properly conducted, may generally be had from the copper, even although an open one: for the fourth and fifth we may with the greatest safety apply cold liquor; sprinkling, however, over the malt in the mash-tun a little common salt, or half the quantity of subcarbonate of soda or potash. As we have already stated, long boiling produces no preservative quality in the beer. Boiling for more than an hour is, therefore, unnecessary for the first worts.
The worts of the third mash should be allowed to run, when the copper of the first worts begins to boil, thus allowing one hour for preparing the second boiling. The time of boiling the second worts must be regulated, of course, by the strength of the beer we intend to produce. Where the worts are boiled off at one boiling, the same course must be pursued; the only difference being that the third tap may be allowed to run a good deal sooner. All this, however, will be more thoroughly explained, and better understood, by referring to the practical brewings at the end of this book.—See "Mashing" for calculating the gravities.
A very desirable appendage for summer brewing, is a refrigerator, for cooling the beer to a certain temperature, after having thrown off its yeast. Beer must be cooled down to a temperature of at least 60° F. before it will become bright. We have not yet alluded to the necessity of cleanliness in every department, and in summer brewing particularly. In summer, every vessel employed should be well washed after every process, and once a week a solution of chloride of lime ought to be employed in doing so. We will now conclude our remarks on summer brewing, by again stating, that unsoundness in the worts, however produced, is the source of failure, and that the only remedy is to trace out and remove the cause.