— are commonly added to the liquid to lower the amount of malt needed, and so the brewer’s production costs Unlike malt, they contribute little or no flavor of their own They’re therefore mostly limited to pale, mild brews like standard American lagers, which may start with almost as much adjunct grain as malt Water Water is the main ingredient in beer, so its quality has a definite influence on beer quality Though modern brewers can tailor the mineral content of their water to the kind of beer they’re making, early brewers tailored their beers in part to make the best of the local waters The sulfate-rich water of Burton-onTrent gave English pale ales a bitterness that limited the use of hops, while the mild water of Pilsen encouraged Czech brewers to add large amounts of bitter and aromatic hops The alkaline, carbonate-rich waters of Munich, southern England, and Dublin can balance the acidity of dark malts that normally extract too much astringent material from barley husks, and encouraged the development of dark German beers and British porters and stouts Boiling the Wort Once the liquid wort has been drawn off the grain solids, the brewer runs it into a large metal tank, adds hops, and boils it vigorously for up to 90 minutes Boiling converts the insoluble hop alpha acids into their soluble form and develops the beer’s bitterness, and inactivates the barley enzymes and so fixes the carbohydrate mix — a certain portion of sugar for the yeasts to convert into alcohol, a certain portion of dextrins for the beer’s body It sterilizes the wort so that the brewing yeasts won’t have any competition during fermentation, and it concentrates the wort by evaporating off some of its water Boiling deepens the wort’s color by encouraging browning reactions, mainly ... portion of dextrins for the beer’s body It sterilizes the wort so that the brewing yeasts won’t have any competition during fermentation, and it concentrates the wort by evaporating off some of its water... Boiling converts the insoluble hop alpha acids into their soluble form and develops the beer’s bitterness, and inactivates the barley enzymes and so fixes the carbohydrate mix — a certain portion of sugar for the yeasts to convert into...balance the acidity of dark malts that normally extract too much astringent material from barley husks, and encouraged the development of dark German beers and British porters and stouts Boiling the