Beer Brewing
Glossary
C
CALCIUM DISODIUM EDTA - A foam-stabilizing additive used in commercial beers.
CANDI SUGAR - Candi sugar is made by superheating and then cooling a highly concentrated sugar solution. Pale candi syrup is much darker than sucrose or invert sugar syrup. Belgian brewers prefer to use candi sugar, in either solid or syrup form, because it contributes to good head retention in a high-gravity, lightly hopped beer.
CABOHYDATES - Organic compounds including insoluble cellulose, soluble hemicellulose, starch and sugars.
CAMRA - CAMRA stands for the "Campaign for Real Ale," a British consumers' group that is concerned with changes, primarily in the quality of British beers.
CARBONATES - Alkaline salts whose anions are derived from carbonic acid.
CARBONATION - The process of injecting or dissolving carbon dioxide gas in beer.
CARBON DIOXIDE - A gas produced during fermentation. Carbon dioxide produces the characteristic tingle in the beer and is also extremely important because of the way its level can affect the perception of other flavors.
CASKS - Traditionally casks were made of wood though most modern casks are made with aluminum or stainless steel and are barrel-shaped. In the U.S., drought vessels are commonly called "kegs" made from metal and are cylindrical in shape. Unlike a cask, a keg has only one hole, which is in the center of the head. Casks have two holes, one hole is situated in one of the heads for drawing beer and the other hole is in the middle of the arched side for drawing air.
CASK-CONDITIONED - Beer conditioned in a cask that is neither filtered nor pasteurized.
CENTRIFUGATION - A clarification method using centrifugal force to clarify the wort during the cooling stage and the finished beer during conditioning.
CHELATING AGENT - Any of several chemical compounds that will inactivate metals ions e.g., calcium and magnesium by forming a water-soluble complex with the ions.
CHEMICAL OXYGEN DEMAND - Chemical oxygen demand (COD) does not differentiate between biologically available and inert organic matter and it is a measure of the total quantity of oxygen required to oxidize all organic material into carbon dioxide and water. COD values are always greater than BOD values, but COD measurements can be made in a few hours while BOD measurements take much longer. The results are expressed as mg O2/liter water.
CHILLING - Boiled wort is chilled rapidly with a heat exchanger to the temperature of primary fermentation.
CHILL HAZE - Haziness caused by a combination and precipitation of protein matter and tannin molecules during when beer is chilled.
CHILLPROOFING - A treatment applied to finished beer during conditioning to remove proteins or polyphenols and improve physical stability.
CHLOROPHENOLIC - A flavor effect associated with strong and unpleasant tasting chemical compounds formed by the combination of chlorine with a phenolic compound. Some are carcinogenic.
CLOYING - A beer that is overly sweet to the point of being unpleasant.
COLD BREAK - Cold break is the precipitation of protein and tannin material to a fine coagulum during wort cooling.
COLIFORM - Water-borne bacteria often associated with pollution.
COLLOIDAL STABILITY - It is the ability of a beer to resist turbidity or haziness when exposed to cold temperatures.
COLOR - Three-color scales are commonly used in brewing SRM, Lovibond, and EBC. SRM, or Standard Reference Method, and Lovibond are the same scale, but brewers tend to describe their malts in degrees Lovibond and their finished beer in SRM. The EBC (European Brewery Convention) is an entirely different scale.
CONDITIONING - A process that follows primary fermentation when the beer undergoes maturation, clarification, and stabilization before being filtered. Cold conditioning imparts a clean, round taste whereas warm conditioning develops complex flavors.
CONDITIONING TANKS - They are stainless steel tanks used for conditioning, carbonating, and storing beer. The tanks can either be vertical or horizontal and are normally pressure rated. They are often referred to as bright beer tanks.
CONGELATION - A method for producing stronger beers by freezing the beer, and removing some of the ice. This has the result of concentrating the beer, making it heavier, more alcoholic, and sweeter-tasting.
CONVERSION TIME - It is the time to complete conversion of starch to sugar during mashing.
COPPER - An old term that refers to the brewkettle which used to be made from copper; some brewers still use coppers.
CONTINUOUS FERMENTATION - Continuous fermentation involves recycling part of the fermented beer back to the wort at the start of the fermentation process and requires a continuous supply of wort into the system. The result is a continuous flow of beer out the other end of the process.
CROP - The yeasts that are skimmed off the surface of top fermenting ale during primary fermentation.
