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Virtual Brewery Tour
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| Click on the small (thumbnail)
images below to see a full size picture.
| Click on any part of
the diagram below to see a more detailed description of that process.
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MILLING
Malted Barley is lightly crushed in our mill so as to expose the grain's
starchy endosperm without pulverizing the husk. Various malts are mixed
to contribute to the color, flavor and mouthfeel of the particular style
of beer being produced.
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MASHING
The crushed malt, called grist, is then dropped into the mash-tun and
mixed with hot water, 158 degrees Fahrenheit. This becomes mash. The mash
is stirred and maintained at the high temperature until enzymes from the
malt convert its starches into fermentable sugars (this usually takes
1 hour).
SPARGING
The mash is then flushed with hot water in a process called sparging.
In this, the fermentable sugars are rinsed away from the grain leaving
the empty husks in the mash tun. The resulting sweet liquid, called wort,
is pumped into the kettle for boiling.
BOILING
Once in the kettle, the sweet wort is boiled for one and one-half hours.
It is here that the hops are added. Hops are flowers which constitue only
a small part of the overall ingredients, but contribute greatly to the
flavor of the finished beer. Adding hops to the boil early creates the
bitterness needed to balance the sweetness of the wort; while, adding
hops late in the boil or even after the boil creates hop flavor and aroma.
The amounts and styles of hops and the timing of adding them varies according
to the desired flavor.
CHILLING
After the boil, the wort is sent through a heat exchanger and cooled down
to an acceptable temperature as it is being pumped into the fermenter.
Cooling the wort is essential because the yeast, soon to be added, will
be killed if the temperature is to high.
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A pure strain of brewing yeast is added to the wort in the fermenter which
in turn ferments the wort (for 5-7 days). During this process, the yeast
consumes the fermentable sugars converting them to alcohol and carbon
dioxide (CO2). Creating beer.
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After fermentation, the beer is chilled, filtered, and allowed to age
in one of our conditioning tanks. Aging takes 2-3 weeks for ales and 6-8
weeks for lagers. The tanks are then "tapped" for dispensing and we pour
our beer directly from the conditioning tanks into your glass providing
the freshest beer possible.
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