what happens during the boil (sciencewise)

[Brewer #426506]

I am brewing from kits. The instructions say to boil 60 min.
What happens science wise during the boil for 60 minutes?
Could beer be made if it was boiled for 10 min?

I assume a few things are happening, like melting and evenly mixing sugars, giving the hops time to release oils and disperse. The hot break happens at the initial boil.

Once the hot break happens, is there really any benefit to boiling another 50 minutes or so?
Does the hot break actually need to occur, what happens if you just warm up wort to mix the sugars and throw it in the fermenter, does the stuff that doesnt hot break prevent fermentation or taste bad etc?

could you boil hops in a pot of water separate and then just add that liquid to the wort?
hypothetical, make hop extract by boiling 60 min in suacepan, heat gallons of wort to hot break, turn off heat, throw in the hop extract and put in fermenter?

I dont have money to just experiment on these ideas and get a bunch of bad beer, just wondering if other people know the science and if any of this really makes an actual difference.

 

[Zambi]

What type of kit do you use?
Grain or malt extract?
If malt extract, then I figure it is mainly for the hops and to sanitise/sterilise.

If all grain, it's a whole different ball game

 

[Minbari]

Great book to read. Palmers "how to brew" explains everything in painful detail.

If it is all extract, then a boil is really only to sterilize it (as @Zambi said)

You can go the hop tea route if you are using hops, you just have to boil them for certain amounts of time to isomerize them if they are for bittering.

 

[Daniel Parshley]

I do a lot of extract brewing and only do a 60 minute boil when using grains or for full bittering. Otherwise, I use a 30 minute boil which I prefer for taste and usually add flavor hops at 5-10 minutes, and more at shutoff. After shutoff, I let the pot sit for another 30 minutes. Like Zambi wrote, the boil is mostly to sterilize when using DME or LME.

 

[Bigbre04]

I am brewing from kits. The instructions say to boil 60 min.
What happens science wise during the boil for 60 minutes?
Could beer be made if it was boiled for 10 min?

As was stated above, Palmers book or some some youtube videos are gonna be alot more useful. In theory, yes you could make a beer in 10 mins, but there is alot going on, especially hop wise.

I assume a few things are happening, like melting and evenly mixing sugars, giving the hops time to release oils and disperse. The hot break happens at the initial boil.

I dont think you get hot break from extract? I honestly dont know though.

Once the hot break happens, is there really any benefit to boiling another 50 minutes or so?

Hops

Does the hot break actually need to occur, what happens if you just warm up wort to mix the sugars and throw it in the fermenter, does the stuff that doesnt hot break prevent fermentation or taste bad etc?

Look up what hot break is. You generally dont want to ferment on hot break if you can avoid it.

could you boil hops in a pot of water separate and then just add that liquid to the wort?
hypothetical, make hop extract by boiling 60 min in suacepan, heat gallons of wort to hot break, turn off heat, throw in the hop extract and put in fermenter?

yes you could, but that is not the normal.

I dont have money to just experiment on these ideas and get a bunch of bad beer, just wondering if other people know the science and if any of this really makes an actual difference.

This is a big question...

If you are brewing for the first time, be sure to follow the instructions and do your research. To be honest, cleaning and sanitizing is the most important aspect of the whole process. Cleaning and Oxygen prevention are what will make or break your beer.

 

[Sandy Feet]

And, if you can't get what you need from the Palmer book, none of us are going to help you in a few sentences. The Palmer book is a VERY good investment if you want to learn the process.

 

[NorthCoastBrewer]

I dont think you get hot break from extract?

It likely depends on the specific product. Some LME products are 'pre-boiled' as are the "Flash Brewing" DME products from MoreBeer. And some pre-hopped LME products (Coopers, Muntons) are already boiled.

 

[Limey]

It likely depends on the specific product. Some LME products are 'pre-boiled' as are the "Flash Brewing" DME products from MoreBeer. And some pre-hopped LME products (Coopers, Muntons) are already boiled.

All the kits I made prior to going "all grain" used LME and they DEFINATELY had a hot break. (Don't ask how I know!) Most kits came from Northern Brewer or More Beer.