What is brewing?
What is the purpose of brewing?
Brewing is a key step in the making of a whisky as it prepares the grains for FERMENTATION and thus transforms the sugars into alcohol.
What is brewing?
After malting, the milled malt or grist is brewed. It is mixed with hot water in a closed tank; the mash tun. This mixture of 20% malt and 60% water is then brewed to extract the soluble starch from the cereal.
3, three is the number of waters needed to extract all the sugars. Similar to distillation, three heatings are required before fermentation.
A first heating is carried out with a water oscillating between 60°C and 65°C which makes it possible to recover a sweet taste: the WORT. At this stage, it is important not to exceed 65°C as this could kill the enzyme, which is useful for transforming the starch into sugars. We will see later that this substance is an essential element in the making of whisky to obtain a well worked aromatic palette.
The second heating is carried out with water which reaches, this time, between 70°C and 75°C to extract the last sugars. The brewing process theoretically ends at this point, as the wort obtained from the third water heated to between 80°C and 85°C is destined for the next brew.
The cycle of the three waters continues in this way until the exhaustion of theGRIST.
The importance of water in the flavours of whisky
It is often mentioned, however, that it plays an interesting role during the brewing process. If the malt, after drying, brings alcohol and scents, the water brings much more. Indeed, the flavours of the water are generally found in the character of the whisky, hence the importance of choosing the right water during the brewing.
There are several accessible water sources:
– The water that flows in the rivers,
– The water that criss-crosses the earth’s depths,
– Spring water.
RIVER WATER is mainly used in Scotland. Pure and limpid, it contributes to soften the whisky during its tasting. As for Japan, the distilleries tend to use SUDDEN water in the production of their whisky. Highly mineralized and rich in elements according to the soils, this water will allow to obtain strong whiskies, but especially with an interesting aromatic complexity. SOURCE water is a perfect balance between the water that flows in the rivers and the water that runs deep in the earth.
In other words, from one region to another, water and its components will play a role in the final aromatic palette of a whisky.