BEER INGREDIENTS
Water is the main ingredient in beer and any
imperfections in the water will come through
in the finished product. Generally, if your water
is safe to drink and tastes fine then it will be
okay for brewing. If you’re not sure about the
quality of your water or just want the best
possible beer, it is recommended to run the
water through a filter (like a Brita® filter) or
buy spring water to use in your beer.
Yeast is a living organism that is technically a
fungus. It grows and multiplies by eating the
sugar (malt), converting the sugar to alcohol
and then releasing CO2 (yeast will eventually
help to carbonate your beer). Different strains
of yeast give different flavors to your beer.
Some yeast produce fruity flavors while
others may create a spicy character during
fermentation. Different strains of yeast also
have different tolerances to the alcohol levels
they create. Eventually the yeast will die in
the presence of alcohol and this will slow and
eventually stop fermentation. This is why there
are no beers as strong as spirits. The strongest
a beer can get naturally is just over 20%
Alcohol By Volume, which is not easily achieved.
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