How craft brewery achieve same attenuation?

[kontrol]

Craft brewery have beer they make all year long. But how do they manage to reproduce the same beer every time?

I know that controlling your yeast (Aeration, generation count, fermentation temperature, cell pitched etc etc etc) will get you to a point to achieve a similar fermentation but is that enough?

What's the tolerance to changes from batches to batches. Specially on the alcohol level. Could a batch show 4.5% and the next one 5%?.

 

[progmac]

if you mash at the same temperature, use the same grain bill, mash thickness, and pitch a roughly similar amount of yeast, the alcohol content will be the same. these factors are all relatively easy to control. the one factor that might be somewhat difficult for a brewpub to control is seasonal changes in the water, which could result in better/worse efficiency and corresponding higher/lower ABV. even this can be controlled by a good brewer.

 

[afr0byte]

Also, afaik breweries are allowed a .3% swing in ABV.

 

[kontrol]

if you mash at the same temperature, use the same grain bill, mash thickness, and pitch a roughly similar amount of yeast, the alcohol content will be the same. these factors are all relatively easy to control. the one factor that might be somewhat difficult for a brewpub to control is seasonal changes in the water, which could result in better/worse efficiency and corresponding higher/lower ABV. even this can be controlled by a good brewer.

What about the malt? I guess that it could change season to season?

 

[kontrol]

Also, afaik breweries are allowed a .3% swing in ABV.

.3% That you don't need to put the change on your sticker?

 

[afr0byte]

.3% That you don't need to put the change on your sticker?

Correct.

 

[afr0byte]

What about the malt? I guess that it could change season to season?

That's why the maltsters provide malt analysis sheets so you know what to expect sugar-wise/ protein-wise etc.

 

[kontrol]

That's why the maltsters provide malt analysis sheets so you know what to expect sugar-wise/ protein-wise etc.

And according to these sheets breweries adjust the quantity of malt they use? Or the difference is usually not enough to make a change to the recipe?

 

[afr0byte]

And according to these sheets breweries adjust the quantity of malt they use? Or the difference is usually not enough to make a change to the recipe?

I'd imagine it's usually not enough to require changes, but yes theoretically they might add more or less malt.

 

[daksin]

Brewers definitely do adjust recipes based on malt analysis sheets, but even that requires a bit of educated guessing. Also, brewers can often buy from the same lot of barley for a very very long time, and some will even reserve entire lots (the big guys) to fill their silos. With big batches, precisely controlled equipment and a very consistent process, the pros can turn out extremely similar beers batch to batch.

 

[kontrol]

Cool thank guys. Answer my questions

 

[Varmintman]

I live near a huge AB malting plant and so many of my neighbors and friends grow barley under contract for them. Let me tell you the pain it is to sell to those folks is almost not worth the money. It is truly amazing what quality control they have over the grain even before they malt it