Merchant du Vin beer e-newsletter – Tuesday Nov. 4, 2003: Gravity

GRAVITY MADE SIMPLE: What does the term “gravity” mean to beer folks?  Well, water with sugar dissolved in it is heavier than plain water.  The liquid in a brewkettle (called wort) contains barley-derived sugar, which the yeast later consumes to produce alcohol and carbon dioxide. 

So, unfermented wort with lots of sugar, or a high Original Gravity (O.G.) is more likely to produce a beer with higher alcohol.  To oversimplify for clarity, more barley = more sugar = more yeast food = more alcohol.

The numbers come from using plain water at 60 degrees F as a reference.  Water = Specific Gravity 1.000.  O.G. for beer worts might range from 1.040 all the way up to 1.100.  After fermentation, Final Gravity or Terminal Gravity might range from 1.006 - 1.020.  Why the change? The yeast consumed sugar from the sweet (and heavy!) wort and produced alcohol (lighter than water).  And the change indicates how much alcohol was produced, so brewers who know the OG and the FG can determine the alcohol in the finished beer.

What about OG in the Balling scale, measured in degrees Plato?  Simple -- just a different reference scale: multiply Plato times 4 and move the decimal  3 places left to get Specific Gravity; divide SG by 4 and move the decimal  3 places right to get Plato.  OG 1.048 = 12 Plato.  14 Plato = OG 1.056.

Merchant du Vin events and accolades:

In the upcoming issue, Saveur magazine will feature a discussion of a classic beer style, porter. One of the world classics, Samuel Smith Taddy Porter, will be featured. www.saveur.com

It’s official – the exquisite Trappist ales from Westmalle, in Belgium, will become part of the Merchant du Vin portfolio in January. More details next issue.

The highly-respected Ommegang Brewery, of Cooperstown, NY, has released their Three Philosophers, a very limited winter seasonal ale. In a fine Belgian tradition, it is made by blending hand-selected batches with other beers from other breweries, and this year it contains Lindemans Kreik, lambic ale from Belgium. Go to www.ommegang.com for the rollout parties.

Beverage Retailer Magazine’s next issue (available around Dec. 1) will discuss fruit beers, and it will include Lindemans, lambic ales from Belgium; and Melbourn, spontaneously fermented ales from England.

Look for a beer article in Satya Magazine, a leader in vegetarianism & environmentalism, in early December . . . and note that Merchant du Vin beers are vegan – no animal products and no animal testing! www.satyamag.com

The Washington Cask Fest, held Oct. 25, 2003, was a resounding success: 30 Washington breweries (and two from Oregon) brought rare cask-conditioned beers to the Seattle Center, to the delight of the sellout crowd. Pike served absolutely delicious dry-hopped Auld Acquaintance Ale to raves . . . www.washingtonbrewersguild.org

And: Tastings and Events! From the Hops Harvest Festival in Charlotte, NC, to the Museum of Flight in Seattle, the world of Great Beer has lots to offer. For a complete listing, go to:

http://merchantduvin.com/pages/1_about/news.html

Merchant du Vin imports benchmark beers from Europe to the US: Samuel Smith and Melbourn Bros. from England; Traquair from Scotland; Ayinger and Pinkus from Germany; and Lindemans, Orval, and Duinen from Belgium. The Pike Brewery in Seattle is part of the MdV family, and Pike beers are available in five Northwest states.

http://www.merchantduvin.com