Yueshu Li (1), Andrew Nguyen (1), Aaron Onio (1), Peter Watts (1); (1) Canadian Malting Barley Technical Centre, Winnipeg, MB, Canada

Malt and Grains
Poster

The malting and brewing quality potential of a new Canadian hulless malting barley variety, CDC Clear, was tested at the Canadian Malting Barley Technical Centre (CMBTC). The malting trials were conducted using a 100 kg pilot malting system, while the brewing trials were conducted with a 3 hL brewing system. All-malt brews were conducted using 100%, 50% and 30% of CDC Clear malt produced from the pilot malting trials supplemented with 0%, 50% and 70% of regular barley malt, respectively, sourced from a local commercial malting company. Each of the malt blends were milled using either a hammer mill or a two-roll malt mill. Wort separations were carried out using either a Meura mash filter or a lauter tun. The finished worts were fermented and pitched with commercial lager yeast at 13.5°C. All of the beers were aged, bottled and pasteurized under CMBTC’s standard procedures. Organoleptic attributes of the finished beers were then evaluated by CMBTC’s sensory panel. Under the given processing conditions, the hulless CDC Clear barley produced malt with an overall quality comparable to the malt produced from hulled malting barley but with exceptionally high extract yield. CDC Clear malt exhibited friability and beta-glucan content significantly better than that often expected from hulless barley varieties. Increased brewing yields were observed without any processing difficulties or significant changes in wort filtration time. Beer sensory analysis indicated that no quality defects were noticed and that the quality of beer brewed from this hulless barley was comparable to beer produced from hulled barley. This suggests that quality malt and beer can be produced from this hulless barley and that the malt can be used in the brewing process without use of the mash filter for wort separation. With significantly higher extract levels than most hulled barleys, CDC Clear could offer a competitive advantage for certain brewers.

Yueshu Li joined the Canadian Malting Barley Technical Centre in 2000 and is the center’s director of malting and brewing operations. Previously, he was senior technical consultant for malting barley in the Market Development Department of the Canadian Wheat Board. Yueshu has held several senior research and management positions in the malting industry in both North America and China, including Prairie Malt Limited, Canada Malting, Schreier Malting, USA, and CUC Nanjing Malt Limited, PRC. Yueshu completed his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in China and holds a Ph.D. degree from the University of Saskatchewan.