Malt: Identifying its Flavor and What it Means for your Beer

By: Paula Polei

I want to take you back in time. My first real beer show was the Great American Beer Festival, and I was pretty new to the craft beer scene. Being a little naïve, I was fearful of sampling any dark craft beer because I thought it would be too rich and filling. In fact, I was dreading the moment when one of my colleagues would ask me to sample a dark brew.

Like myself, many people believe that dark beers are rich, heavy, and full of calories. Unfortunately, sometimes beer is judged by the color of its malt. Not all dark beers are heavy, bitter, and full of calories. In fact, the color of a beer is directly related to its malt content. When the brewer adds more roasted, toasted, or caramelized malt to the mixture, a darker beer results.

The Malt Wheel

Any maltster will tell you that the art of brewing beer starts long before the mash or boil. It begins in the barley field and continues to the malt house where barley is turned into malt – one of the fundamental ingredients of craft beer. The following malt flavor wheel is a great reference point.

Briess Malt Flavor Wheel showing flavor profiles from light to dark roasted malts

What You Should Know

  • Light roasted malts produce straw and golden colored brews with biscuit flavor
  • Medium roasted malts produce amber and copper colored brews with caramel and nut flavors
  • Darker roasted malts produce brown and light black colored brews with chocolate and coffee notes
  • Heaviest roasts produce black colored brews with a bold, burnt flavor

Try a Drink on the Dark Side

Let’s face it — many people prefer light-colored lagers. But don’t be so quick to judge. If you haven’t tried a dark beer, you should give it a go. Here are a few recommendations from BOB:

If you’re looking for something smooth, moderately crisp, light in body, and highly carbonated, BOB recommends Sprecher Brewing Company’s Black Bavarian. This brew is known for its distinctive flavors and aromas of coffee, caramel, and chocolate, with a superb, renowned smoothness.

Sprecher Brewing Company Black Bavarian dark beer bottle

If you’re contemplating trying a stout and you love coffee, BOB recommends Bell’s Brewery’s Java Stout. Using a fresh, custom blend of roasted coffee beans, this dark, roasty stout is highly drinkable and rich in flavor.

Bell’s Brewery Java Stout dark beer bottle

Another great brew to try is Founder’s Brewing Company’s Porter. The aroma is sweet with strong chocolate and caramel malt notes. It has a well-balanced flavor profile with just the right amount of maltiness for a beer packed with character.

Founders Brewing Company Porter beer bottle

The moral of the story: don’t fear the dark beer. BOB promises there’s a dark beer out there for every steadfast light beer drinker. Be brave and try a drink on the dark side.

Cheers!

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