Editing Beer (section)

=== Ingredients ===

[[File:Sjb whiskey malt.jpg|thumb|[[Malted barley]] before roasting]]

The basic ingredients of beer are water; a starch source, usually [[malt]]ed [[barley]]; a [[brewer's yeast]] to produce the fermentation; and a flavouring such as [[hops]].<ref>[http://www.alabev.com/ingredie.htm Alabev.com] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160123045417/http://www.alabev.com/ingredie.htm |date=23 January 2016 }} ''The Ingredients of Beer''. Retrieved 29 September 2008.</ref> A mixture of starch sources may be used, with a secondary carbohydrate source, such as maize (corn), rice, wheat, or sugar, often termed an [[adjunct (beer)|adjunct]], especially when used alongside malted barley.<ref>[http://www.beer-brewing.com/apex/beer_chapters/ch06_beer_adjuncts.htm beer-brewing.com Beer-brewing.com] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071027063059/http://www.beer-brewing.com/apex/beer_chapters/ch06_beer_adjuncts.htm |date=27 October 2007 }} Ted Goldammer, ''The Brewers Handbook'', Chapter 6&nbsp;– Beer Adjuncts, Apex Pub (1 January 2000), {{ISBN|0-9675212-0-3}}. Retrieved 29 September 2008</ref> Less widely used starch sources include [[millet]], [[sorghum]], and [[cassava]] root in Africa; potato in Brazil; and [[agave]] in Mexico.<ref>[http://www.beerhunter.com/documents/19133-000120.html BeerHunter.com] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101204115213/http://www.beerhunter.com/documents/19133-000120.html |date=4 December 2010 }} Michael Jackson, ''A good beer is a thorny problem down Mexico way'', What's Brewing, 1 October 1997. Retrieved 29 September 2008.</ref>

[[Water]] is the main ingredient, accounting for 93% of beer's weight.<ref>[https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/a-pint-a-day--/9706.article "A pint a day..."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170827215542/https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/a-pint-a-day--/9706.article |date=27 August 2017 }} The Royal Society of Chemistry: ''Chemistry World''; 1 December 1996. Retrieved 27 August 2017.</ref> The level of dissolved bicarbonate influences beer's finished taste.<ref>[https://phys.org/news/2015-12-science-beer.html "Questions about the science of beer", by Matt Shipman.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170829081127/https://phys.org/news/2015-12-science-beer.html |date=29 August 2017 }} Science X: ''Phys.org''; 3 December 2015. Retrieved 28 August 2017.</ref> Due to the [[mineral]] properties of each [[region]]'s water, specific areas were originally the sole producers of certain types of beer, each identifiable by regional characteristics.<ref name="geot"/> [[Dublin]]'s [[hard water]] is well-suited to making [[stout]], such as [[Guinness]], while the [[Plzeň Region]]'s soft water is ideal for brewing [[Pilsner]], such as [[Pilsner Urquell]].<ref name="geot">{{cite news |url=http://www.agiweb.org/geotimes/aug04/resources.html|title=Geology and Beer|work=Geotimes|date=August 2004|access-date=5 November 2007}}</ref> The waters of [[Burton Bridge Brewery|Burton]] in England contain [[gypsum]], which benefits making [[pale ale]] to such a degree that brewers of pale ale add gypsum in a process known as [[Burtonisation]].<ref>[http://www.beerhunter.com/documents/19133-000098.html] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100619014900/http://www.beerhunter.com/documents/19133-000098.html|date=19 June 2010}} 19 October 1991, "Brewing a good glass of water". Retrieved 13 September 2008.</ref>

The starch source provides the fermentable material and determines the strength and flavour of the beer. The most common starch source used in beer is malted grain. Grain is malted by soaking it in water, allowing it to begin [[germination]], and then drying the partially germinated grain in a kiln. Malting produces enzymes that convert starches into fermentable sugars.<ref>[[s:en:1911 Encyclopædia Britannica/Brewing/Chemistry|Wikisource]] 1911 ''Encyclopædia Britannica''/Brewing/Chemistry. Retrieved 29 September 2008.</ref> Different roasting times and temperatures produce different colours of malt from the same grain. Darker malts produce darker beers.<ref>[http://www.farm-direct.co.uk/farming/stockcrop/barley/malt.html Farm-direct.co.uk] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090814221734/http://www.farm-direct.co.uk/farming/stockcrop/barley/malt.html |date=14 August 2009 }} Oz, ''Barley Malt'', 6 February 2002. Retrieved 29 September 2008.</ref> Nearly all beers use barley malt for most of the starch, as its fibrous hull remains attached to the grain during threshing. After malting, barley is milled, which finally removes the hull, breaking it into large pieces. These pieces remain with the grain during the [[Mashing|mash]] and act as a filter bed during [[lautering]], when sweet [[wort]] is separated from insoluble grain material. Other grains, including wheat, rice, [[oats]], and [[rye]], and less frequently, corn and sorghum may be used. Some brewers have produced [[gluten-free beer]], made with sorghum, for those who cannot consume [[gluten]]-containing grains like wheat, barley, and rye.<ref>{{cite web |first=Carolyn |last=Smagalski |year=2006 |url=http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art39558.asp |title=CAMRA & The First International Gluten Free Beer Festival |publisher=Carolyn Smagalski, Bella Online}}</ref>

[[File:Humulus Lupulus Hopfendolde-mit-hopfengarten.jpg|thumb|[[Hops|Hop cone]] in a [[Hallertau]], Germany, hop yard]]

Flavouring beer is the sole commercial use of [[hops]].<ref>A. H. Burgess, ''Hops: Botany, Cultivation and Utilization'', Leonard Hill (1964), {{ISBN|0-471-12350-1}}</ref> The flower of the [[Humulus lupulus|hop vine]] acts as a flavouring and preservative agent in nearly all beer made today. The flowers themselves are often called "hops". The first historical mention of the use of hops in beer dates from 822 AD in monastery rules written by [[Adalard of Corbie]],<ref name="sotp"/><!-- p62 --><ref name="bmar">{{cite book |first=Richard W. |last=Unger |title=Beer in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance |pages=54–55 |isbn=978-0-8122-3795-5 |year=2004 |publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press |location=Philadelphia}}</ref> though widespread cultivation of hops for use in beer began in the thirteenth century.<ref name="sotp"/><!-- p63 --><ref name="bmar"/> Before then, beer was flavoured with other plants such as [[grains of paradise]] or '[[alehoof]]'. Combinations of aromatic herbs, berries, and even [[Absinth Wormwood|wormwood]] were combined into aflavouring mixture known as [[gruit]].<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=rMNf-p1mu6AC&dq=gruit+beer&pg=PA30 Books.google.co.uk] Richard W. Unger, ''Beer in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance'', University of Pennsylvania Press (2004), {{ISBN|0-8122-3795-1}}. Retrieved 14 September 2008.</ref> Some beers today, such as Fraoch' by the Scottish Heather Ales company use plants other than hops for flavouring.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fraoch.com/historicales.htm |title=Heatherale.co.uk |publisher=Fraoch.com |access-date=28 September 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080629071231/http://www.fraoch.com/historicales.htm |archive-date=29 June 2008}}</ref> and Cervoise Lancelot by the French Brasserie-Lancelot company,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.brasserie-lancelot.com/brasserie-lancelot.php |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080819030220/http://www.brasserie-lancelot.com/brasserie-lancelot.php |url-status=dead |archive-date=19 August 2008 |title=La Brasserie Lancelot est située au coeur de la Bretagne, dans des bâtiments rénovés de l'ancienne mine d'Or du Roc St-André, construits au 19 ème siècle sur des vestiges néolithiques |publisher=Brasserie-lancelot.com |language=fr |access-date=28 September 2008 }}</ref> 

Hops contribute a bitterness that balances the sweetness of the malt; the bitterness of beers is measured on the [[International Bitterness Units scale]]. Hops further contribute floral, citrus, and herbal aromas and flavours. They have an [[antibiotic]] effect that favours the activity of brewer's yeast over less desirable microorganisms, and aids in "[[Head (beer)|head]] retention",<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.brewwiki.com/index.php/Head_Retention |title=Head Retention |publisher=BrewWiki |access-date=5 November 2007 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071011144640/http://brewwiki.com/index.php/Head_Retention |archive-date=11 October 2007 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.hopsteiner.com/isopg1.htm |title=Hop Products: Iso-Extract |publisher=Hopsteiner |access-date=5 November 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071011212319/http://hopsteiner.com/isopg1.htm |archive-date=11 October 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref> the length of time that a foamy head created by carbonation will last. The acidity of hops is a preservative.<ref>[http://beer.pdqguides.com/beer-ingredient-hops.html PDQ Guides, ''Hops: Clever Use For a Useless Plan''] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081016111537/http://beer.pdqguides.com/beer-ingredient-hops.html |date=16 October 2008 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Blanco |first1=Carlos A. |last2=Rojas |first2=Antonio |last3=Caballero |first3=Pedro A. |last4=Ronda |first4=Felicidad |last5=Gomez |first5=Manuel |last6=Caballero |first6=Isabel |title=A better control of beer properties by predicting acidity of hop iso-α-acids |journal=Trends in Food Science & Technology |date=July 2006 |volume=17 |issue=7 |pages=373–377 |doi=10.1016/j.tifs.2005.11.012 }}</ref>

Yeast is the [[microorganism]] responsible for fermenting beer. It [[metabolism|metabolises]] the sugars, producing [[ethanol]] and [[carbon dioxide]], and thereby turns wort into beer. In addition, yeast influences the character and flavour.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Ostergaard |first1=Simon |last2=Olsson |first2=Lisbeth |last3=Nielsen |first3=Jens |title=Metabolic Engineering of Saccharomyces cerevisiae |journal=Microbiology and Molecular Biology Reviews |date=1 March 2000 |volume=64 |issue=1 |pages=34–50 |doi=10.1128/MMBR.64.1.34-50.2000 |pmid=10704473 |pmc=98985 }}</ref> The dominant types of beer yeast are [[Top-fermenting yeast|top-fermenting]] ''[[Saccharomyces cerevisiae]]'' and [[bottom-fermenting]] ''[[Saccharomyces pastorianus]]''.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=0kefSj0_i9sC&dq=types+of+yeast+used+to+make+beer&pg=PA376 Google Books] Paul R. Dittmer, J. Desmond, ''Principles of Food, Beverage, and Labor Cost Controls'', John Wiley and Sons (2005), {{ISBN|0-471-42992-9}}</ref> ''[[Brettanomyces]]'' ferments [[lambic]]s,<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=DvNhR0xfHtMC&dq=Brettanomyces+lambic&pg=PA221 Google Books] Ian Spencer Hornsey, ''Brewing'' pp&nbsp;221–222, Royal Society of Chemistry (1999), {{ISBN|0-85404-568-6}}</ref> and ''[[Torulaspora delbrueckii]]'' ferments Bavarian [[weissbier]].<ref>[http://web.mst.edu/~microbio/BIO221_2001/torulospora_delbrueckii.htm Web.mst.edu] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110809212726/http://web.mst.edu/~microbio/BIO221_2001/torulospora_delbrueckii.htm |date=9 August 2011 }} David Horwitz, ''Torulaspora delbrueckii''. Retrieved 30 September 2008.</ref> Before the role of yeast in fermentation was understood, fermentation involved wild or airborne yeasts. A few styles, such as [[lambics]], rely on this method today, but most modern fermentation adds pure yeast [[Microbiological culture|cultures]].<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=TxCQlmasQh8C&dq=beer+yeast+history&pg=PA847 Google Books] Y. H. Hui, George G. Khachatourians, ''Food Biotechnology'' pp&nbsp;847–848, Wiley-IEEE (1994), {{ISBN|0-471-18570-1}}</ref>

Some brewers add clarifying agents or [[finings]] to beer, which typically [[precipitate]] (collect as a solid) out along with protein solids, and are found only in trace amounts in the finished product. This process makes the beer appear [[Bright beer|bright]] and clean, rather than the cloudy appearance of ethnic and older styles such as [[wheat beer]]s.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.beerhunter.com/documents/19133-000717.html |title=Michael Jackson's Beer Hunter&nbsp;— A pint of cloudy, please |publisher=Beerhunter.com|access-date=28 September 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080926132813/http://www.beerhunter.com/documents/19133-000717.html |archive-date=26 September 2008 |url-status=live}}</ref> Clarifying agents include [[isinglass]], from the [[swimbladder]]s of fish; [[Chondrus crispus|Irish moss]], a seaweed; kappa [[carrageenan]], from the seaweed ''[[Kappaphycus cottonii]]''; [[Polyclar]] (artificial); and [[gelatin]].<ref>[http://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/efsajournal/pub/536 EFSA.europa.eu] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221101033222/https://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/efsajournal/pub/536 |date=1 November 2022 }} ''Opinion of the Scientific Panel on Dietetic Products, Nutrition and Allergies'', 23 August 2007. Retrieved 29 September 2008.</ref> Beer marked "suitable for vegans" is clarified either with seaweed or with artificial agents.<ref>[http://www.food.gov.uk/multimedia/pdfs/consultationresponse/summrespvegi.pdf Food.gov.uk] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081002104412/http://www.food.gov.uk/multimedia/pdfs/consultationresponse/summrespvegi.pdf |date=2 October 2008 }} ''Draft Guidance on the Use of the Terms 'Vegetarian' and 'Vegan' in Food Labelling: Consultation Responses'' pp71, 5 October 2005. Retrieved 29 September 2008.</ref>
[[File:Cerveceria Quilmes en 1910 - 07.jpg|thumb|[[Cerveza Quilmes|Quilmes]]' Brewery in the early 1900s, [[Argentina]].]]