A SCIENTIFIC APPROACH TO MALTING*

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Abstract
By co-ordinating the author's researches on barley and malting, an attempt has been made to develop an understanding of the basic principles which can guide malting operations in the best way to meet recently altered conditions, particularly changes introduced by the growing mechanization of barley harvesting, and by the increased dependence of maltsters on the wide range in barley quality produced in this country from season to season From the results obtained, it appears that the effects of the characters of the soil and of the growing season are reflected in the biochemical composition of the crops—that is, chiefly in the relative proportions of nitrogenous and carbohydrate compounds. Each of these main groups has been found to be sub-divided into regular proportions of individual compounds, and in turn, this regularity is reflected in the composition of the wort ultimately produced from the malt. On the other hand, harvest weather and the subsequent treatment and storage of the barley before malting have been found to influence the biological processes of the grain; whereas varieties have been found to differ from one another both biochemically and biologically. It is considered that the biological effects which are of importance for malting can be assessed by the germinative capacity and energy of the grain, and suitable methods for measuring these have been developed. An indication is given how these methods, in conjunction with estimations of moisture and nitrogen content, can be used as guides to obtain the best results in the operations of drying, blending and storage, as well as in the malting process itself.

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