You’ve probably seen soup, cereal, and various other foods made with barley. Did you know that your favorite Hofbrauhaus beer is also made with Barley? One of the only 4 ingredients we use in our beers Barley provides the sugar, color, and body to our beers!
Barley is a key ingredient in beer and whisky production (surprise!). Two-row barley is traditionally used in German and English beers. Six-row barley was traditionally used in US beers, but both varieties are in common usage now. Hofbrauhaus Cleveland uses traditional two-row barley. We turn Barley into beer by using a process called maltying. Malting is the process of converting barley into malt, for use in brewing, distilling, or in foods and takes place in a maltings, sometimes called a malthouse, or a malting floor. The barley is spread out on the malting floor in a layer of 8 to 12 cm (3 to 4.5 in) depth. The malting process starts with drying the grains to a moisture content below 14%, and then storing for around six weeks to overcome seed dormancy. When ready, the grain is immersed or steeped in water two or three times over two or three days to allow the grain to absorb moisture and to start to sprout. When the grain has a moisture content of around 46%, it is transferred to the malting or germination floor, where it is constantly turned over for around five days while it is air-dried. The grain at this point is called “green malt”. The green malt is then dried and pre-toasted in a kiln to the desired colour and specification. Malts range in colour from very pale through crystal and amber to chocolate or black malts
Hofbrauhaus beers all use malted barley for our beer production, each beer uses a different kind of malt to provide the rich colors you see in each of our beers. From the Original Lager & Dunkle to our famous seasonals like the Oktoberfest and Doppelbock, you’ll find a taste for every season!
