Malting in the Lab and at Home: The Forgotten Step on the Path to Beer

Brewing science is an interdisciplinary course taught at many universities in both lecture- and lab-based modalities. The laboratory component of this class typically focuses on the brewing process from malted barley to beer. However, this ignores the malting processan essential step in making beer, although one typically performed by maltsters outside of the brewhouse. In this report we discuss the development of a malting lab that is suitable to incorporate into introductory brewing science courses in order to help students demonstrate and explain the key process of converting raw barley into malt. During this week-long experiment, students start with raw barley (commercially available in scales that work for all course sizes) and, using small scale and inexpensive custom-made equipment, malt the barley at home for later use in the course. This experiment is suitable for hybrid course laboratories in student homes and apartments with minimal course expenses or requirements and can be implemented in any brewing science courseeven those that are predominantly lecture-based.