Biscuit vs Amber vs Brown Malt

[topherman]

Hey all,

I've started doing partial mashes recently, and I love the variety of grains I have available to me now. I've been reading about all the different grains, and think I'm getting a handle on most of them.

However, one thing remains confusing to me. Biscuit, Amber, and Brown malts are pretty much all described as toasty and bready, and occasionally nutty. I was wondering, is there any major distinction between these three, besides color?

Thanks!

 

[Ølbart]

Yes. Or rather, it depends. Amber malt from different maltsters can vary enormously, so you can't always expect one to sub for another. Thomas Fawcett makes an amber malt that seems like a slightly lighter version of their brown malt, with a strong roasty character. I think the only biscuit malt I've used is from Castle Malting (Belgium), and it's nothing like that at all. It's pure biscuit. Or bread. They also have an amber malt which is less than half the EBC of Fawcett's, so I expect it will be very different.