a thought from atop the commode; LME and hot break

[Walker]

So, I was sitting and thinking about brewing (weird, eh?) and I asked myself, "Self, why do you get a hot break when brewing with LME?"

If my understanding is correct about the way in which LME and DME are produced (and I can't see how my thinking COULD be correct given this EUREKA moment I had), it goes something like this:

The malster mashes a bunch of grain, just like you AG gurus.
They draw off the sweet liquor, just like you AG gurus.

From here, they go in one of two directions....

To produce DME, they spray it into a hot rolling cylinder and it crystalilzes into powder.
To produce LME, they don't spray it, but boil it down to a thick syrup and can it.

So.. if this is true, wouldn't the maslter have achieved a hot break while boiling down the liquor into the LME syrup prior to canning it???

edit: I realize that if you steep grains in the water prior to adding LME, these grains would have added protein that would cause a break, but if you are brewing with ONLY LME (and I can't even remember the last time I did this, if ever) will you get a hot break? If so, how does this happen given what I believe to be correct about the production of LME by a maltster?

-walker

 

[Chairman Cheyco]

I think I read somewhere that they cook LME under lower than normal pressure, therefore not getting it as hot to evaporate the water out of it. Even if I didn't read that, it sounds great. Or they may not boil it to reduce, but cook it at a temp below hot-break formation.

EDIT: 'The Bible' says they make LME in a vacuum, I'm so smrt.

 

[Walker]

thanks, Cheyco. Now I can finish my paperwork and get off the john.

cooking it down under low pressure makes total sense. if they did not, the stuff would be a SUPER dark caramelized mess.

-walker