Altbier

Tasting Notes

Altbiers made in northern Germany are associated with the area around the city of Düsseldorf. Most altbiers are copper to brownish-amber in color, and light to medium in body, with a pronounced malt character that is not overpowering. Altbier lacks hop aroma but has medium to high bitterness, especially in the finish. The hops must balance but not be assertive. Fruitiness from top-fermentation can be a character, but is often minimized by lagering at very cold temperatures, much colder than for typical British ales. Diacetyl character is minimal to nonexistent in altbiers. They have a smoother palate, less yeastiness, and less acidity than classic British ales. Altbier has a dryish finish despite the rather pronounced malt character, but with no roasty overtones.

Ingredients

The alt style uses top-fermenting ale yeast with an apparent attenuative approaching 80%, and with low ester production. Altbiers are brewed with excessively clean, almost antiseptic ale strains. Water hardness generally ranges between 215 to 235 ppm, expressed as calcium carbonate.

Brewing Techniques

German breweries use either a step-infusion process, an infusion in conjunction with either a one- or two-step decoction process, or a two-step decoction process for mashing. A typical step-infusion mash sequence begins with mashing-in at 50ºC and is held for 45 minutes. The temperature is then increased to 62ºC by 1ºC per minute and held for 20 minutes. After the rest, the temperature is further increased to 70ºC by 1ºC per minute and held for conversion. It is finally raised to 76ºC for mash-off over a 2.5 hour period. Some German brewers use an infusion in conjunction with a decoction mash. Mashing-in starts out between 48 and 53ºC for a protein rest, followed by a combination of infusions and decoctions to raise the mash temperature for saccharification.

The information on this page was provided by beer-brewing.com (http://www.beer-brewing.com).