Dextrine malt for head retention

[foxbat]

What your English bitter should look like, low carbonation, good head retention and good lacing. 4% dextrin malt, dough in with crystal malt at mash out.
View attachment 50850View attachment 50852

No traditional brewery over here that I've toured or spoken with uses Dextrin malt in their bitter. It's all pale or pale + crystal. Basically GW has it right in his BYOBRA book.

 

[The-Engineer-That-Brews]

thanks all - I increased the CO2 pressure in the Corny and the head is much better now :-)

 

[JockyBrewer]

Outside of playing with the grist, I can highly recommend a 20 minute glycoprotein rest at 72c at the end of your mash.

It helps boost head retention and lacing - that is to say if you’re getting none it won’t help much, but if you get some then it’ll further improve it.

 

[crescent city Mike]

The glycoprotein rest was a favorite of the late, great George Fix. I use it in most of my lager beers.

 

[The-Engineer-That-Brews]

highly recommend a 20 minute glycoprotein rest at 72c at the end of your mash.

Thanks - as it happens, I turned out to do a 72° rest at the end of my London Bitter yesterday although it was more like 10mins. I was planning to do a mash-out but got fed up waiting for the temperature to rise

 

[Hanglow]

All my beers have improved markedly since I started step mashing, can thoroughly recommend doing it.

 

[clib]

I tend to think that head retention is a multiple cause thing. Grain, hops and yeast all contribute, I think. Yeast health and strain don't get mentioned much, but I believe yeast and fermentation are important factors in beer health generally, including head formation and retention.

 

[The-Engineer-That-Brews]

All my beers have improved markedly since I started step mashing, can thoroughly recommend doing it.

A wholehearted agreement to this: I couldn’t agree more… I found this article massively useful to understand it: The Science of Step Mashing - Brew Your Own

 

[dmtaylor]

Dextrin malt doesn't do anything but maybe add a tiny bit of caramel flavor. That's it.

If you want body and/or head retention, you need to use wheat or rye. Flaked is a little better than the malt, but either one will do. I usually use the malt because it's easier. Figure 10-15% of the total grist.

 

[JockyBrewer]

The glycoprotein rest was a favorite of the late, great George Fix. I use it in most of my lager beers.

I was sceptical until someone presented me with two beers that tasted near identical, but the head retention was markedly better on one. They'd been made the same way on an all in one system, with the only difference being a 20 minutes glycoprotein rest.

I do it for most of my beers now.

 

[foxy]

Dextrin malt doesn't do anything but maybe add a tiny bit of caramel flavor. That's it.

If you want body and/or head retention, you need to use wheat or rye. Flaked is a little better than the malt, but either one will do. I usually use the malt because it's easier. Figure 10-15% of the total grist.

Dextrin malt doesn't add any colour or flavour to the beer. It just increases body, mouthfeel and head retention. All the maltsters produce a dextrin malt of some sort, if it didn't do anything there would be no demand and therefore no production.
Flaked wheat and rye contain dextrins just not as much, that is why you would need a larger percentage for the same effect.

 

[LeeH]

My latest wheat beer which is about 50/50 pilsner/wheat malt has carbed up nicely but the couple I've tried seem to have virtually zero head retention. I wonder why?

Is it light on hops? They are greatly foam positive.

 

[Clint]

Is it light on hops? They are greatly foam positive.

It only gets a small bittering addition at the start.

 

[LeeH]

Could be a contributing factor then.

 

[Clint]

Found some interesting reading regarding wheat and head retention.
Using more wheat doesn't automatically guarantee more or better head retention or a cloudier beer. Increasing from say,20% to 40% will have the opposite effect. Adding some flaked barley to the grist sorts it out.
..

 

[foxy]

Found some interesting reading regarding wheat and head retention.
Using more wheat doesn't automatically guarantee more or better head retention or a cloudier beer. Increasing from say,20% to 40% will have the opposite effect. Adding some flaked barley to the grist sorts it out.
..

This may help you Clint.

 

[Pennine]

All my beers have improved markedly since I started step mashing, can thoroughly recommend doing it.

I'm curious what you have noticed that is better? Also what is your step regimen?

 

[Hanglow]

I'm curious what you have noticed that is better? Also what is your step regimen?

Head formation and retention is the main one, also attenuation is a bit better, which helps increase malt flavours.

I usually do a rest around 64c for 45mins, 73c for 30 mins then mashout at 78c.

Although sometimes mash in about 55c then immediately raise it to 64c - you get less doughballs this way, although I don't tend to get too many as I underlet

also for hefeweizens I always do the ferulic acid rest too at 45c for 20mins or so

 

[Pennine]

Head formation and retention is the main one, also attenuation is a bit better, which helps increase malt flavours.

I usually do a rest around 64c for 45mins, 73c for 30 mins then mashout at 78c.

Although sometimes mash in about 55c then immediately raise it to 64c - you get less doughballs this way, although I don't tend to get too many as I underlet

also for hefeweizens I always do the ferulic acid rest too at 45c for 20mins or so

Interesting thanks for the comment. I have always done them 50-60-67-78 or some variation I never thought to do a step between 67 and mashout. I will give it a shot next brew.

 

[An Ankoù]

If a beer's carbonated, even to a low level, it should keep a head. Have you thought about your glass? The slightest remnant of detergent will destroy the head. If that doesn't fix it then stop wearing lipstick while drinking beer.