Pilsner malt

Probably not in a blind test for most people and most styles.

 

Another for Weyermann. I'm not firm on style. However, I find my simple strategy when in doubt, brew with local ingredients. German brew with German ingredients, Belgium brew with Belgium ingredients and so on. It's hard to go wrong with this strategy.

 

I used dingmans and say that I have no complaints.

 

Barry, when I brew continental style beers (e.g., Kolsch , Wit,...) I choose to use continental Pilsner Malt (e.g., Castle, Best, Weyermann,...)

I wrote about how I used Rahr Premium Pilsner Malt in my BYO article on how to brew an 1896 Michelob beer (Sept. 2015 issue). I was very pleased with the malt backbone in that beer. This year I made a bulk purchase of Weyermann (principally for my Kolsch) so I used Weyermann to brew my third batch of 1896 Michelob. I was also quite pleased with this version of Pilsner Malt in that 'brand' of beer.

We all have our own unique palates and our own unique desires in what we seek in a given beer style.

I have not stated my old saying in a very long time so permit me to 'bring it out' in this post:

Brew the beers you like and brew them the way you like.

Cheers!

 

Dave, I have been reading good things about Avangard Pilsner Malt (in this thread and other places). Have you brewed with Avangard? If so, what do you think about it?

Cheers!

 

i have not...I have a German pils brewed with Weyermann Barke Pils on tap...definitely like it, but i did go kinda big on the hops and fermented a little warmer than I would have liked to...so hard to distinguish the baseline character from the malt.
I should contact LD to see about getting a sample though...actually have a little story. So my daughter has gained the status as my 'grain taster' (she tastes all the malts as I weigh them out and prep them for crushing) and it's fun because she has gotten really good about distinguishing some key characteristics when tasting. I had her taste the Briess Pils vs the Barke and she liked the Barke more. The Briess was older though so that could have played a bit of a role.

 

I am of the opinion that Briess Pilsner Malt is more flavor neutral as compared to continental Pilsner Malts. Perhaps your daughter picked up on this? Needless to say but if the Briess malt was older, this certainly did not do this malt any favors.

The only beer that I have had which was brewed using Weyermann Barke Pilsner Malt was Summit's 30th anniversary Pilsner beer. For my palate the Barke barley resulted in a distinctive malt flavor in that beer:

https://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/new-beer-sunday-week-594.433764/#post-4891049

Cheers!

 

I'd agree with you, if you want to brew beers like Firestone Walker's. They have some European leanings, so it would make sense that they would use some European malts. I'm sure AB InBev does their fair share of due diligence as well, and I seriously doubt they use Weyermann Pilsner malt in Budweiser.

I would definitely use Weyermann in a traditional German Pils, but would prefer American 6-row or domestic pilsner malt for a CAP. Then again, if you prefer one malt and buy it in bulk, feel free to use it for everything!

 

Jack,
When I think of Pilsner malt, the last thing I think of is malt backbone... I usually want a balance of smoothness, low DMS, and compatibility with flaked and/or malted wheat...but hey, that's me

 

Rightly or wrongly, I always think "crackery".

 

I think there are some very good continental pils malts: Avengard, Best, Dingemans, Weyermann (floor malts bohemian, Barke, any weyermann pils). I cannot tell reliably which I prefer due to lack of controlled experimentation but I do think I would find differences among them if I looked for them. I have mostly used dingemans for Belgian ales (Trappist blonds and saison) and feel like that is the malt that fits my expectations for these types of beers. But that could be a false perception due to lack of blind controls.

 

Light Munich...pretzels...probably why I've been using so much of it lately

 

Barry, feel free to utilize your own word as a substitute for "backbone".

I am looking for the Pilsner Malt to have a 'presence' in the beer. In some commercial Pilsners I perceive a 'sweetness' from the Pilsner Malt. In other commercial Pilsners I perceive a profile of bready. In other commercial Pilsners (e.g., Neshaminy Creek Trauger Pils) I perceive a cracker-like quality. And in other commercial Pilsners I perceive...

Well, I think you get the idea.

Cheers!

 

How do you know that `sweetness`comes from Pilsner malt?

 

The commercial beers I am referencing were brewed solely with Pilsner Malt. What else would be providing a "sweetness" quality in those beers?

Cheers!

 

Crackery, is oxidized pilsner malt flavor. Pilsner malt non-oxidized tastes like chewing on the fresh kernels... flavorful, and fresh grain sometimes even like cornflakes..

 

If you read the ingredients list for corn flakes, Malt extract is on there. It is added for flavor. Corn flakes don't taste like a corn tortilla. Edit - I get the cornflakes taste too.

On the Pils Malt topic, I have been able to source a bag of Durst Pils Malt. Recently have been using Weyermann or Avangard. I had a bag of Best that had problems, so I am glad to revisit Durst after not being able to find it for years.

 

I like Weyermann malts in general, but they are expensive. What I like about Weyermann is good conversion, low dust, good taste.

I had been having a hard time getting Weyermann for a reasonable price so I ventured out and found something I think is just as good.

I have been using Swaen Pilsner malt. Swaen is very similar to Weyermann in quality. The malt house is also similar to Weyermann in how many different specialty malts they make. Most maltster only make a hand full of different malts. But Swaen like Weyerman (and Briess) make close to 80 different malts. Quality is there price is about a third less. So I switched to Swaen.

http://theswaen.com/

 

How would you describe the malt flavor of this malt in a 100% Pilsner Malt, Pilsner beer?

Cheers!