Water used for this style of beer tend to be harder, with a higher calcium and magnesium content than water used for lager. The color of pilsner is also lighter than that of lager beer.
The production involves malting, milling, mashing, extract separation, hop addition and boiling, removal of hops and precipitates, cooling and aeration, fermentation, separation of yeast from young beer, aging, maturing, and packaging.
Barley grains are made to germinate by soaking in water. The germination process is interrupted in a special moment and the grain is then dried and heated. By this way is barley transformed to the malt.
Hot water is mixed with cracked grain in a large vessel commonly known as a “Mash Tun.” Due to the enzymes present in the malt, starches from the malt are converted into sugars. What brewers are creating in the mash tun is called wort: a sugar-rich liquid made from malt and other grains.
The malt is cooked with water in large cupreous tanks above an open flame during mashing. This process is repeated three times.
During lautering (separation of the liquid) process is the liquid extract (known as wort) separated from the grain scrap. Lautering refers to the process of separating the wort, or mash, from the residual grain as efficiently as possible. However, to obtain the highest level of efficiency during this step, lautering is generally broken into three phases: mashout, recirculation, and sparging.
Then hops finally step in at this stage. The hops release bitter essences that give Pilsner beer its typical aroma. Hot wort is again "cleaned" from hops and other settlements.
The wort is then cooled to the fermentation temperature 6-7 °C (44 °F). Subsequent fermentation takes place in stainless steel cylindroconical tanks in two phases: fermentation and maturation. Pilsners are bottom-fermenting types of beer made with a carbonation and brewing process characterized by cooler temperatures. Bottom fermentation beers need a longer rest period after the main fermentation that occurs in cold conditions (around 0 degrees) compared to top fermenting beers.
When the fermentation is over, the yeast is removed. During maturation phase is the beer allowed to lie and to mature for 3-4 weeks.
Manufacturing of Pilsner beer
