Since 1870 we’ve lived and breathed malting. With this passion and expertise, and by combining traditional and modern techniques, we create an impressive range of malted and non-malted products, including several unique and exclusive barley malts.
We have a wide range of malts suitable for brewing and distilling to provide you with the foundations for creating your next beer or whisky.
There is nothing more we love than talking to brewers and distillers so if you have any questions, or would like to arrange a call with a member of our team, please feel free to get in touch – we would love to hear from you!
Every batch of malt produced by Crisp Malt is supplied with a Certificate of Analysis (CoA), giving brewers and distillers the information they need to assess malt quality and consistency before production.
This guide explains each section of the Certificate of Analysis, what the values mean, and how they can influence brewing and distilling performance. Whether you’re reviewing moisture, extract, nitrogen levels or enzyme activity, understanding these measurements can help you optimise efficiency, consistency and final product quality.
Every Crisp Malt customer has access to the Certificate of Analysis (CoA) for the malt they have ordered. This handy malt analysis guide explains all the sections, and should help you understand the results and what they mean for your brewing or distilling process.
You can also access your Certificate of Analysis online or scan the QR code using the Crisp Malt App for instant access.
This measures how much water there is in the malt. A higher kilned malt will have a lower moisture. Typical maximum is 3.5% for Pale malt and 4.5% for Extra Pale malts. Remember to store grains in a dry environment for maximum shelf life. Learn more about storing brewers malt in our blog post – how to store your brewing malt.
This is the amount of soluble material within the malt. The IoB method mashes the grain for 60 mins at 65℃ so it strongly approximates the infusion method of brewing. The EBC mashing method uses a stepped temperature programme so is more representative of a typical continental mashing process. This is the extract value used in calculations in the brewhouse.
This expression of extract takes into account the moisture content of the malt and allows direct comparison of extract between different malts. Base malts typically have a minimum 305 L°/kg extract dry basis.
An important measure of the nitrogen (protein) in the grain. The higher the protein, the lower the extract and vice versa. High protein will cause issues with clarity and fermentation. Ale malt should be around 1.35-1.55% and up to 1.75% for lager malt.
The nitrogen (protein) that has been broken down in the malting process. Soluble nitrogen will aid head retention, provide yeast nutrition and add body and mouthfeel to the beer.
The ratio of total to soluble nitrogen, it gives a very good indication of the modification of the malt. We are looking for 38-42 for ale malt.
A measure of how easily the malt will mill. It is also a good measure of the extent of cell wall modification of the barley. A minimum of 85% is expected. If friability changes then you may need to adjust your milling regime.
A measure of some of the starch degrading enzyme activity in the grain; the higher the DP the greater the conversion rate from starch to fermentable sugar. A minimum figure of 40 IoB is expected for base malts. If you’re using lots of speciality malt or un-malted cereals then a higher DP may be beneficial to conversion.
If you have questions about your Certificate of Analysis or would like advice on selecting the right malt for your brewing or distilling process, our technical support team is here to help.
Browse our brewing and distilling malts or get in touch with our technical experts for guidance.
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