More decoction mashing fun

Today were going to take a look a variation on decoction mashing, Lautermaisch. It's taken from "Schule der Bierbrauerei" by Conrad Schneider of 1875, pages 298-299.

It's a great book. I could only afford a copy because I bought an example with a broken spine. (What do I care if the book is perfect or not? It's only the information that I'm interested in. I'm not a collector. The broken spine has the advantage of making the book easier to lay flat on the scanner.)

Back to the book itself. It has one of the longest chapters on mashing I've seen, describing British, French, Dutch, Swedish and Belgian methods in addition the German ones you would expect.

Did I mention that I'd tried to get in touch with the Carslberg archivist? To ask some questions about Carlsberg's mashing techniques in the 19th century. Unfortunately she's on holiday at the moment.

The Lautermaish method has its home in the Bamberg area, but is also employed in Belgium and Holland.

The distiguishing feature of this method is that the rise in temperature in the mash tun is not achieved through the addition pure water (as in an infusion mash), but though heating tapped wort (Lautermaisch). This is partly cloudy, full of starch which boiling gelatinises. This hot Kleister wort is put back into the tun. Sometimes clear wort is also used to transfer heat this way.

The execution of this method varies widely.

The Bambergers work with cloudy Lautermaisch. The ground malt is put into the mash tun dry, lower in the middle and higher around the edges. Boiling water in the kettle is mixed with enough cold water to give it a temperature of 80º C. This water is let into the mash tun from below, through the underlet, so that the malt is lifted and swimms like a cake on the surface. It is left for 30 minutes to soak through. The tap is then opened, so that a cloudy broth (like buttermilk) pours out. This is put immediately into the kettle and brought to the boil. Finally a fairly clear wort flows out and this is put into the underback.

The Lautermaisch in the kettle, whose starch is gelatinised, gives off an aromatic smell and a scum forms, which is a sign of saccharification. Care has to be taken that it does not boil over, which Lautermaisch tends to do. It is left to boil for 75 minutes. After this part of the Lautermaisch is put back into the mash tun from below to gelatinise the starch deposits (Unterteig") that have formed there. The rest of the Lautermaisch is poured over the grains, mashed well and left to stand. The wort in the underback is put into the kettle to protect the bottom from burning.

In Kulmbach they work with clear Lautermaisch. The ground malt is put into the mash tun and mixed with enough water at 50º C to wet evenly it through. It is then left to stand for an hour. Then enough boiling water is let into the tun through the underlet so that after a half hour mashing the temperature is 54 to 56º C. After the grains have settled, the clear wort is drawn off, put into the kettle and brought to the boil. After putting the Lautermaisch back into the tun the temperature is raised to 70-72º C. After 45 minutes mashing the mash is left to rest.

I was quite surpised to learn that they didn't use a classic Dickmaisch in Bamberg. But why should they use the same techniques as in Munich? Franconia had only become part of Bavaria 50 years earlier.

The book has many more pages on mashing. I'll be working my way through them next week.