302 Beer, Scientifically and Socially Considered. [ July, 



the cause has long been well known to chemists. It arises from the 

 presence in the water of " earthy sulphates and carbonates," and 

 the absence of organic matter which is fatal to the brewing process. 

 Analysis has shown the Burton water to contain nearly 19 grains 

 of sulphate and 15 grains of carbonate of lime to the imperial 

 gallon (besides sulphates of potassa and magnesia), and the theory is 

 that these alkalies combine with the acid of the malt extract, and, 

 in the form of insoluble salts, are precipitated and carry down with 

 them the nitrogenous substances which it is desirable to get rid of 

 in the brewing process ; so, for the same reason that the presence of 

 salts of lime and potash in the Burton water is advantageous, that 

 of organic matter would be injurious, and the freedom of the water 

 from the latter is therefore very advantageous to the brewer. 

 Should any of my readers desire further information on this subject 

 for practical purposes, they may obtain it in the able article on 

 " Beer," in Dr. Muspratt's ' Dictionary of Chemistry/ or in those on 

 the same subject in Ure's ' Dictionary of Arts,' and Watts's ' Dic- 

 tionary of Chemistry ;' while Mr. Molyneux's work, already named, 

 also contains an excellent chapter on the " "Waters of Burton," and 

 the effect upon them of the strata through which they percolate. 



Malt, as every one knows, is barley steeped and dried. There 

 are various kinds of malt, known as pale, amber, brown, and black, 

 of which the first-named is employed in brewing pale ale, and the 

 last (which is roasted like coffee) is used for colouring porter. 

 Barley undergoes two kinds of change during its conversion into 

 malt, the one morphological, that is to say, in its plant life, the 

 other chemical. In order to effect the conversion it is steeped for 

 two or three days in water, then spread out upon a floor to germi- 

 nate, and when it has sprouted to a certain 

 length it is taken to the kiln to dry, and in the 

 subsequent handling "the radicles " which have 

 shot forth during germination, are broken off 

 and the grain assumes to a great extent its 

 original appearance. The annexed woodcuts 

 will render the morphological change appa- 

 rent to the eye ; Fig. 1 being a grain of barley 

 with the husk removed to show the embryo ; 

 Figs. 2 and 3 the same after germination.* 

 But a chemical change, not so easily understood, also takes 

 place in the malting process, and I will endeavour in a few sentences 

 to make it as clear as possible. For our purposes, the barley may 



* These wondcuts, and some others in this article, have been copied, with the 

 permission of the publishers, from the plates in a beautiful and interesting volume 

 ' On Strong Drink and Tobacco Smoke,' by the late H. P. Prescott, F.L.S., just 

 published by Messrs. Macmillan and Co. Frequent references will be made to this 

 work. Mr. Prescott died recently of consumption, and his book has been passed 

 through the press, and edited, with much good feeling, by Professor Huxley. 



