100% corn test batch

[fermentedhiker]

I'm hoping to get time this afternoon to attempt an all corn 1 gallon test batch. I'm using 3lbs of flaked maize and doing a stovetop mash with alpha amylase. My understanding is that the starches are already available and so I won't need to worry about gelatinizing them(true?). Any suggestions on maximizing the attempt are welcome.

 

[JNye]

Yeah you don't have to worry about gelatinizing them, i would worry about having to drink it though, I once made a cream ale with 35% corn and it was very noticeable, worse then MGD. I'll never exceed 20%.

 

[Skyforger]

You couldn't judge the results of an all-corn beer by the standards of barley beers any more than you could judge sake (all-rice beer) by those standards. It's a different beverage entirely. Personally, I would be interested in what the resulting beverage would be like.

Keep us posted, fermentedhiker.

Maybe you could try toasting a bit of the corn slightly beforehand? Might add a bit of interest.

 

[fermentedhiker]

The idea isn't to make a great all corn beer, but rather this is a continuation of a set of experiments to help me understand individual ingredients better. I tend to be an intuitive, "just wing it" kind of brewer so I'm making a concerted effort to be more organized and methodical about my process. This is just the latest in a series of SMaSH batches i've been doing.

I'm sure toasting some would add some beneficial flavors although it would add more variables to the recipe making it harder to say which component did what.

So many things to brew.........so little time

 

[Skyforger]

Oh, I see. But unless you tend to make beers with a lot of corn, don't you think it would be better to do a batch that's half corn, half pale malt? It seems to me that would give you a better idea what exactly corn does to a barley beer. Corn made into beer by itself gives you a completely different beverage.

I do enjoy the experimental approach. I made 9 1-gallon batches of cider this year, tweaking variables in each....good times.

 

[Brewing Clamper]

don't you think it would be better to do a batch that's half corn, half pale malt?

That would defeat the purpose since this thread is in the "gluten-free Brewing" subforum... no?

 

[Skyforger]

Right. Don't know where my head got to; trying to keep track of too many threads at once, maybe.

 

[fermentedhiker]

Your point is well taken. I certainly concede that it will interact with other ingredients in any recipe. But I'm attempting to at least partially eval what it brings to the table so I'll have an idea if I want to use it in any recipe I may attempt in the future. So far I've done SMaSH's on;

Brown rice syrup
Agave Nectar
Grade B Maple syrup
Barbados Molasses
Blackstrap Molasses

and now I'm attempting corn, and I'm think next of a 100% oat malt test batch and maybe Tapioca syrup if I can find some. Then I'll start to make a serious attempt at formulating a new GF recipe.

 

[Skyforger]

We have a recipe for George Washington's house 'beer' that was just fermented molasses. Apparently he cared less about authenticity than did Thomas Jefferson, who was basically America's first craft brewer. How did the molasses recipes turn out? There's a bit of history there.

These experiments look great. GF brewing is a very new art, and right now it seems too many homebrewers attempting it are just shooting in the dark.

 

[fermentedhiker]

I'll let you know in a couple of weeks. The blackstrap molasses has got another week or two for bottle conditioning. The barbados one is waiting to be bottled. I honestly don't expect either one to taste very good. The unfermentable portions will be pretty cloying I think. Time will tell. They are useful adjuncts in GF brewing as in the right amounts they can add a maltiness that is a challenge to achieve without barley.

 

[DKershner]

Not to rain on this parade, but do you know that Flaked Corn is gluten free? I always figured it wasnt, just from cross contamination.

 

[fermentedhiker]

I don't know if it contaminated or not. I more worried about working with the ingredient itself at this point. If I think it's successful I'll worry about tracking down on that's certified to be GF for use in subsequent "real" recipes.

 

[weirdboy]

You aren't interested in doing a Sorghum batch?

 

[fermentedhiker]

You aren't interested in doing a Sorghum batch?

Well I can buy both liquid and dry sorghum extract so I don't really need to experiment with how to use it as much. With Sorghum it's just a matter of how much I want to use. I currently limit it to about 3lbs total in a batch to keep any off flavors from it to a minimum.

 

[EoinMag]

Here's a thread from a guy in Thailand over on the UK forum JBK, who has done a 100% corn smash BIAB.

http://www.jimsbeerkit.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=36392

 

[jbrookeiv]

Here's a thread from a guy in Thailand over on the UK forum JBK, who has done a 100% corn smash BIAB.

http://www.jimsbeerkit.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=36392

Sounds like a major success. This is very interesting.

Tell you what,I wish I had made a full batch,it was grrrrrrrrreat .
There was a refreshing sourness that left a zing feel after drinking and went well on its own and with food.
It's all gone now,all my mates,and my mum are asking when I'm going to do another .
In the pipeline,might even grow the bloody corn myself just so that I can feel super smug!

 

[EoinMag]

Do note however that he malted the corn himself. You might be able to contact him directly to get more information on it.
He also did it because of a lack of ingredients in Thailand and not for dietary reasons.