Title: Brewing with Corn - Brew Your Own
Headings: Brewing with Corn
Brewing with Corn
Corn Used for Brewing
Corn Sugar
Flaked Maize
Milled Corn Grits
Give Corn a Chance
Recipes
Classic American Pilsner
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.050 FG = 1.012
IBU = 30 SRM = 4 ABV = 5%
Ingredients
Step by Step
Classic American Pilsner
(5 gallons/19 L, partial mash)
OG = 1.050 FG = 1.012
IBU = 30 SRM = 4 ABV = 5%
Ingredients
Step by Step
Mexican Cerveza
(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.052 FG = 1.012
IBU = 28 SRM = 4 ABV = 5.3%
Ingredients
Step by Step
Mexican Cerveza
(5 gallons/19 L, partial mash)
OG = 1.052 FG = 1.012
IBU = 28 SRM = 4 ABV = 5.3%
Ingredients
Step by Step
Written by Jon Stika
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Content: Corn can also play a role in a variety of Belgian, British, and American ales, as well as many varieties of lager beer. I have used flaked maize to adjust the flavor and body of English bitters, German lagers, classic American Pilsner, and cream ale, to name a few. Corn Used for Brewing
There are many approaches to using corn in a beer recipe, and different forms of corn you can add, including malted corn, cornmeal, corn grits, flaked maize (as shown in the photo on this page), popped corn, corn sugar (dextrose), and even corn that has been chewed and spit into a pot (chicha). Some of these forms of corn are readily available or easily handled and others are not. Malted corn is not readily available commercially, but can be made in the same way wheat or barley malt is made by sprouting and drying the grain under controlled conditions. Making corn malt is certainly doable at home, but is a time and space consuming process and not practical for most homebrewers to do for themselves. Popped popcorn is not easily incorporated into a mash due to its fluffy, floating nature. If you are considering popped popcorn in a mash, it is best to use an air popper rather than a kettle and oil as the oil can cause problems with beer foam later on. Popped popcorn is also easier to handle if it is crushed into smaller pieces before mixing into the mash. Producing chicha by using one’s own saliva as a source of amylase enzymes to convert the starches into fermentable sugars by chewing and then expectorating corn into a “mash” is also both time consuming and may not be a very acceptable approach of including corn in your beer unless you are going to be the only one drinking it (although Dogfish Head Craft Brewery makes a chicha beer!).