Malt for U.S. beer in 2019.

Hops are an herb, but without a fermentable starch, you ain't got beer.

Each year, the American Malting Barley Association (AMBA) releases its list of recommended malting barley varieties to US growers. AMBA is a nonprofit trade association of 76 brewing, distilling and malting companies that are end users of US malting barley. The list is meant to inform US producers which malting barley varieties the industry intends to use in the upcoming year. Some varieties will be used in large quantities and others are only utilized in niche markets, so producers are encouraged to contact their local elevator, grain handler or processor to gauge market demand for any variety grown in their region prior to seeding.

There are several changes from the 2018 list. The two-row varieties Harrington and Propino are being dropped from the list and four two-row varieties are being added. These additions include ABI Growler, Bill Coors 100, Moravian 165, and Thunder. ABI Growler is a two-rowed, midseason, spring barley developed by Busch Agricultural Resources, Ft. Collins, Colorado. Bill Coors 100 and Moravian 165 are two-rowed, spring varieties bred by Molson Coors in Burley, ID. Bill Coors 100 was released in 2016 in celebration of Mr. Bill Coors 100th birthday. Thunder is a two-rowed, winter variety released by Oregon State University and has performed very well in the Pacific Northwest.

— Craft Malting Guild

Related pondering:
With the midwest, especially Nebraska, devastated by the flooding caused by the recent so-called 'cyclone bomb,' will barley farmers in other areas convert their fields to produce feed barley or other feed grains to fill the void, driving up the cost of malt?

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More 'craft' barley, please!

The 'craft' beer world buzzes about hops. On the other hand, it often seems to relegate barley malt —just the essential principal source of beer's starch and thus its fermentation— to the level of inconvenience. In 2013, I attended a short presentation at the Craft Brewers Conference at which the lecturers almost begged 'craft' brewers to tell them what characteristics they wanted in their barley malt.

In their choice of barley, craft brewers share, with the macro-brewers, a need for lower free amino nitrogen, lower total protein levels, and a lower Kolbach Index (ratio of soluble protein to total protein). The macros, however, use a high amount of adjuncts in their grists, usually corn and/or rice. A higher diastatic power is needed in their preferred barley to convert the starches of the adjuncts to fermentable sugar. 'Craft' brewers generally rely on all-malt grists; thus, diastatic power is not as important a parameter for them. Macro brewers want neutrally flavored barley. 'Craft' brewers prefer the opposite. They want the barley malt to contribute unique and discernible flavors.

Up to this point, barley has been developed and grown almost exclusively for the macros; where it has been grown in North America, it has been geographically limited. To be clear, there are numerous malting companies and there are some specifically targeted at 'craft' breweries. But, as to the barley varieties themselves, except for some imports, 'craft' brewers have not had much of a say.

According to the [U.S.] Brewers Association (BA) —the association for American 'craft' brewers, i.e., small American-owned breweries— when 'craft' beer reaches a twenty percent volume share in a few years (possibly as soon as 2020), 'craft' brewers will be snapping up fifty-one percent of all malt used by U.S. brewers. To satisfy that demand, malting capacity in North America will have to increase by twenty-eight percent —even as total barley acreage decreases.

Things are beginning to change.

A few years ago, the Craft Malsters Guild was created. Last year, the BA joined the Brewing and Malting Barley Research Institute (BMBRI) as a corporate associate member. The BMBRI works to identify and evaluate barley varieties that are suitable for the production of high-quality malt and beer.

And yesterday, the BA announced that is granting nearly a half-million dollars —$440,000 to be precise— to nineteen unique research projects. Thirteen of those are devoted to research on growing barley specifically for 'craft' brewing.

As North Dakota State University (et al.) stated about its funded project, identifying (and commercializing) malting barley varieties better suited to all-malt brewing for cultivation in the U.S.:

Craft brewers represent a 36% customer for U.S. malt consumption as of 2016. And yet, there are currently no malting barley varieties specifically bred for all-malt brewing in production in the U.S. Craft brewers currently use malt made from barley varieties bred for adjunct brewing, with negative stability outcomes in packaged beer.

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The other twelve BA 'craft' barley grants

• Understanding the Genetics of Barley Contributions to Beer Flavor —Oregon State University

  Mapping the genetic determinants of barley contributions to beer flavor using two very different types of germplasm and mapping strategies.



• Metabolite Profiling of Heirloom Barley to Breed for Flavor and Sustainability
  —Colorado State University

  This research will perform metabolite profiling of heirloom barley breeding lines developed at Montana State University (MSU) to facilitate breeding for flavor. Investigating the relationship between barley chemical composition and beer flavor is an important area of research. Some craft brewers have preference for malts from older, ‘heirloom’ varieties, although the chemical basis for this preference is unclear. Further, heirloom varieties are not adapted to many U.S. growing regions, and barley growers would be hesitant to adopt them for their poor agronomic performance, yield and malting quality.



• Stable and Sustainable Dryland Production of High Quality Malt Barley
  —Montana State University

  Barley is well adapted to dryland farming, however historic production of malting barley has been in higher moisture to ensure malt quality. In dryland conditions, current barley varieties have an increased risk of rejection due to poor malt quality, resulting in a significant economic loss to farmers. This research will facilitate regional production of malt for brewing in the Rocky Mountain region.



• Sustainable Grower Production Practices: 2-Row Barley and Nitrogen Usage
  —University of Idaho

  Identification of two-row-barley cultivars with the best fit for all-malt brewing, and development of best practices for sustainable cultivation of those varieties.



• Eastern United States Spring Barley Nursery (ESBN)
  —North Dakota State University

  The 2017 ESBN [Eastern States Spring Barley Nursery organized by the Craft Maltsters Guild] includes 25 barley varieties from ten different breeding programs being grown in Indiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Vermont. Trial data will be available for use by local university/extension personnel to educate growers and other stakeholders on varieties that perform best in their region.



• Building a Multi-state Dataset to Support Coordinated Breeding of Local Malting Barley
  —University of Minnesota

  The University of Minnesota will organize a coordinated project with 14 breeders/researchers across 12 states/provinces to evaluate two-row spring malting barley lines in the upstream stages of breeding.



• Barley Breeding For All-Malt Brewing
  —United States Department of Agiculture (USDA)-Agricultural Research Service, Aberdeen, Idaho

  Selecting low protein 2-row barley lines from all over the world will greatly enrich the genetic diversity of barley breeding and germplasm resources; and help ensure a supply of barley varieties suitable for all-malt brewing. To improve the genetic background of North American barley lines, genetic sources for stress tolerance, better malting and brewing quality traits, and disease resistance will be introduced to create genetic diversity and improve on current barley qualities for use in all-malt beer production.



• Enhancement of Winter Hardiness in Two-Rowed Barley Varieties for the Craft Brewing Industry
  —University of Minnesota

  The overall goal of this research is the establishment of a sustainable Midwest winter barley industry for U.S. craft brewers. This requires the development of cultivars with acceptable malt quality profiles and adaptation to the climate. This project will exploit Russian barley accessions to develop winter two-rowed barley cultivars suitable for growing malt-quality barley in the Midwest; which will provide the Midwest craft brewing industry with more locally grown ingredients.



• Mapping Malt Quality Traits to Facilitate Marker Assisted Breeding and Development of Winter Malt Barley
  —Virginia Tech

  [DNA] markers will be identified to facilitate and expedite the process of developing high quality, high yielding malt barley varieties for the Mid-Atlantic and eastern regions of the U.S.



• Building a Winter Malting Barley Market for the Great Plains
  —University of Nebraska

  The ultimate outcome and impact will be new cultivars and an expanding barley market for malting barley (as well as feed and forage) in the Great Plains, a region with generally few diseases (very little Fusarium head blight), but known for abiotic stresses (harsh winters and heat/drought) and aphid pressure.



• Breeding for Winter 2-row Malting Barley Cultivars for the Eastern U.S.
  —USDA Agricultural Research Service, Raleigh, North Carolina

  Our goal is to develop superior malting quality barleys having high grain yield, desirable agronomic qualities, and the disease and insect resistance needed for production in the high-humidity environments of the eastern U.S.[...] from Georgia to New York.



• Ensuring Malt Quality from the Field to the Malthouse
  —North American Craft Maltsters Guild

  The Craft Maltsters Guild would like to develop a guide for barley producers outlining storage and handling [specifically for the craft brewing industry].

The Craft Malsters Guild will be meeting and exhibiting at April's Craft Brewers Conference in Washington, D.C. But the conference itself —the annual, premier conference of/for American 'craft' brewers— has scheduled only one seminar on the subject of barley.

More, please. More 'craft' barley, please.

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Pic(k) of the Week. A silo for 5 Seasons.

Many 'craft' beer drinkers tend to pay hops a lot of attention, yet barley malt not so much. Incorrectly. Hops are herbs, spice in beer. It is malt that is beer's fermentable foundation —its quiet soul.

Woe to the malster, brewer, or distiller who simply treats malt as a commodity ingredient. Understanding the relationships between hydration, food reserves, and enzymes within the cereal grain can make the difference between a good tasting product and a great tasting product. The role of maltsters, brewers, and distillers [is] one of "fashioning into a scientifically controlled industry, the noble art of converting barley malt into a wort upon which yeast may feast and ultimately fatten into a beverage with character."

— The Craft Maltster's' Handbook.
Dave Thomas. White Mule Press (August 2014).

Pictured above is a grain silo holding barley malt for a later brew at the 5 Seasons Brewpub, as seen on 22 April 2016, under a deep blue sky in Sandy Springs, Georgia.

But what is barley and what is barley malt? The National Barley Growers Association has a pithy answer:

The The Oxford Companion to Beer (Oxford University Press, 2012) provides more depth:

Barley is the primary cereal grain used as the source of carbohydrates for brewing beer. It is designated Hordeum vulgare, and originates in the fertile Crescent of the Middle East (formerly Mesopotamia and its surroundings, now Syria, Iraq and surrounding lands). [...]

Malting is the process in which raw barley or another grain is made ready to become the main ingredient in the brewing process. It is essentially the first step in beer making. The grain is steeped in water, then rested under precise conditions to encourage germination, and finally dried in a kiln and/or a roaster. One of the key functions of malting is to degrade the grain's proteins and to create the enzymes and modify the starches needed for the brewing process. Professionally, the person responsible for this process is known as a maltster.

Returning to the silo above and referring to its brewpub, a question might arise: What is the fifth season?

The answer is ... beer-drinking season, of course. You can thank a barleycorn for that. And a farmer. And a maltster.

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2011 barley harvest down; 2012 beer prices up?

There's bad news for brewers worldwide, and beer drinkers. From Agrimoney.com (a website for agricultural business and commodities news):

Malting barley is expanding its premium over wheat amid waning hopes for world supplies, with wet weather holding up Canada's sowings and drought denting prospects in Europe, where the UK set for its weakest harvest in more than 40 years.

The UK's Home Grown Cereals Authority has forecast that, even with benign growing conditions from now on, "overall malting barley availability is likely to be tight in 2011-12".

Contrary to often overwrought hang-wringing over hop availability and its effect on beer pricing, it is barley —specifically barley for malting, which, at lower yields, costs more than 'feed' barley— that, with water, is the primary ingredient cost of beer.



According to Agrimony, whereas Scotland had a bumper barley crop (most of which will go to its native whisky distilling business), most of the rest of the world did not. Including the UK and Canada (the principal supplier to the US brewing industry), harvests were low in Australia (a major barley exporter, but where many farmers have switched to wheat), Russia and Ukraine (a late spring sowing season), and France (drought). Exports may increase from Argentina, but will not be enough to offset the worldwide harvest deficits.

Whenever the price for malting barley increases, it's the smaller breweries that pay much more than the conglomerates, lacking the latter's purchasing power. If the bleak predictions hold true, scarcity will increase pricing and, it follows, decrease availability.

On Twitter, Massachusetts Notch Brewing noted that its English malt supplier has announced that Maris Otter malt will not be available per se, but blended with Spring barley, and at a higher cost. Maris Otter is an 'heirloom' variety of 'winter' malting barley, often floor-malted, and regarded by traditionalists (including me) as one if the best malts for its flavor and low nitrogen levels (less haze in cask beers). Even without a bad growing season, Maris Otter is already low-yielding, and not grown by many farmers.

The price for 'craft' beer at the consumer level has continued to increase (2.64% already this year, according to the Brewers Association), despite the ongoing economic downturn. Anticipate a bigger jump in 2012.

Most breweries adjust their pricing in January or February. Buy those 'imperials' and barleywines ... now.

Lower prices for malted barley in 2009?

According to the Farmers Guardian, Europe —Western, Eastern, and the UK— are having a bumper grain crop this year. But the US and Canada are expecting a relatively poor harvest of malting-grade barley. And so,

After harvest is completed, [Larry Raap, grain merchandiser for Sun Prairie Grain in Minot, N.D.] estimates that malting prices will remain close to their current levels of between $5.60 and $6 per bushel.

It's somewhat of a mixed bushel.

Now ... on to the hop harvest reports.

I was alerted to this story by Alan McLeod at A Good Beer Blog, who yesterday posted a good listing of several stories on the worldwide 2008/9 barley situation.