What does mash temp have to do with beer?

Okay, so this is obviously a fairly broad subjected question and from the reading material quite long and lengthy, but what I am looking for basically what temperature does to the mash and what temps I should try to hit for particular styles.

Typically I hit about 150 for my mash and keep it constant to about 149 for about 90min for my typical mash schedule. This is for all styles, all the time. Sometimes I hit 152, but then I cool it down a bit to 150.

I am reading designing great brews, and I see mash ranges from 147-160, does 147 produce less dextrinous beer then say, 150? Does 2 degrees make a ton of difference between say, 150 and 152, or 154 and 156? If I wanted a sweeter beer, I should most likely mash at higher temperatures, is there a temperature which really is just too much and how sweet are we talking? He tells us that Scottish Ales were mashed about 155, so if I mash, say an IPA should I expect that same intense sweetness from the finished beer?

This is one aspect which I have a hard time finding information about beyond the phrases:
"Keep the mash at 150" (This I believe was the recommendation from Palmer) and "The higher the mash temp, the more dextrinous the wort will be".

Thank you all.

basically there are two enzymes in the grain that chop the big starches down to smaller sugars, the one that produces larger [harder to digest] sugars is most active at ~157F and the one that produces smaller sugars is more active at ~149F.

Read this http://www.howtobrew.com/section3/chapter14.html


I recommend that you buy the book.

arturo7 said:

Read this http://www.howtobrew.com/section3/chapter14.html


I recommend that you buy the book.

Click to expand...

I wholeheartedly agree. If you read and understand basic texts on the subject first you will better understand the topics covered in more specialized books.

It doesn't necessarily mean "sweeter" the higher you mash, it means more longer chain dextrins will be present in the final product and thus have more body and mouthfeel. Sure a higher FG may sometimes be sweeter than a lower one, but this may be more dependent on the malts you use and the yeast strain you select as opposed to just the FG.

For example, mashing low with a low-attenuating yeast and mashing high with a high attenuating yeast may yield you the same FG, but the higher mashed one will be heavier and have a fuller mouthfeel.

+1 on the How To Brew

I actually do own that book. I have a feeling that I didn't read it when I started brewing because it seemed really complicated or I didn't understand all the terminology. I do remember the part about specific enzymes being most active at specific temperatures, and he actually goes into great detail about this (So does Palmer). I just wasn't expecting a crowding out affect, I will have to reread these parts.

Honestly I didn't quite understand the metaphors, I do know about complex carbohydrate chains and that enzymes basically chew down the chain one by one, but this video is really really good.

somebody beat me to linking Bobbys video, Its 20 minutes but explains it very well with props to boot.

Yea, that was an excellent video. It was very very dry reading about it. I do remember the alpha and beta amalaise but I think I fell asleep and just... well... his explication is very very good. Sounds like the 150-152 range is about right for almost everything unless I want a very particular affect. Thanks all!

I actually understood the whole discussion. I am impressed with myself.:cross:

Rant on:

I think Palmer's book is excellent and I have great respect for him and many other home brewing author so please don't get me wrong when I critize it and most other homebrewing books and resources on this one thing: IMO, of all of the topics in home brewing, the discussions of how mashing works is ALWAYS over-complicated to be readily useful. This is one of "geekiest" areas in home brewing and it really shows in all of the instruction texts and videos.

The technical explanations are important and should be there, but what is REALLY needed in all of these discussions is a simple, practical and easily understandable table or other illustration that immediately answers questions like the ones the OP asked - i.e. what effect does mash temperature have on the finished product? Yes, the answer to that question IS in Palmer's text and it IS in the video, but to get to it, you have to read or sit through a lengthy explanation of sugar types and the activities of enzymes, etc. - which is all very good to know and is important stuff, but it doesn't help the novice brewer or less-technically inclined types to get to the answers they need in a quick and easy way.

Something like this:

Mash temps below 147 not recommended due to extreme length of time required for conversion

Mash at 148 - 149 = thinner, more fermentable beer, but also requires longer mash time (i.e. 75-90 min) Typically used for xxxxxxx style beers

Mash at 150-152 = good "all around" temperature resulting in good fermentalbility but also moderate mouthfeel. Mash completes in about 45 - 60 min. Usesful for most xxxxxx styles.

Mash at 154 - 156 = less fermentable, thicker mouthfeel. Mash completes in about 30 - 45 min. typically used for xxxxxxxxxx style.

Mash temps above 158 not generally used due to xxxxxxxxxxx

Notes: Thick mouthfeel does NOT equal 'sweetness". Thats' a result of the balance between the malt and hop bitterness in the beer. Also variations of a couple of degrees will not have a significant effect on the finished product

I believe THAT'S the kind of information that most beginners and many more advanced brewers want/need. Who cares about long and short chain molecules and alpha and beta amylase when all you want to know is what the effect on the finished beer will be? Those that are intereted in such things can turn the page to find out the details. The rest of us can skip them and still have what we need to get the results we're looking for.

Rant off

THANK YOU! I am definitely in the advanced brewers school, and honestly you just summed up about 60 pages of dense scientific documentation about mash chemistry.

asterix404 said:

THANK YOU! I am definitely in the advanced brewers school, and honestly you just summed up about 60 pages of dense scientific documentation about mash chemistry.

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Glad to be of assistance but please note that this was just off the top of my head and it is in need of refinement before it becomes a legit guide. I always mash at between 148 and 154 because that temp range fits the kinds of beers I brew, so I can say that the info above for those temps is accurate based on my experience and my understanding of the books I've read (Palmer, Papazian, Mosher, etc. ). As for high temp and low temp mashing, well, that's another story...I don;t know why you'd want to mash at 158 - not saying you can't or that it doesn't happen, but it's outside of my experience.

It would be interesting and instructive to assemble a list of beer styles and their corresponding mash temp ranges as a guide to the novice (and some of us more advanced types!). Perhaps this will be my summer project....

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