rpt
Brewing without a hat
The mash temperature affects the fermentability of the sugars produced - alpha amylase works better at a higher mash temperature and produces more complex, less fermentable sugars. Beta amylase works at a lower mash temperature and produces simpler, more fermentable sugars. If I have a perfectly insulated mash tun (or some form of heating) I can set a temperature for the full 90 minutes mash time, but in practice I lose 2 degrees over that period. If I do an overnight mash I lose 12C so in that case even if I start at a high enough temperature to favour the alpha amylase at some point the temperature will drop down to the beta amylase temperature and will make simple sugars. So how do I get a nice malty wort? Is it just the starting mash temperature that matters or do I have to ensure that the mash is short enough to never get down to the beta amylase temperature?