I just got Yeast: The Practical Guide to Beer Fermentation in the mail this week and I have been reading it on the train to and from work.  Within the first the few pages, I learned something new.

The difference between the word “fermentor” and “fermenter”. 

Although it seems they can be used interchangeably, the two words have two different meanings.

Fermentor is the vessel where fermentation happens. 

Fermenter is the creature that does the fermentation.

I think I have a few spelling errors to change on the blog.

Here’s another addition to the glossary of terms.  This time around, it is the definition of Krausen.

Krausen is a term that describes two things: one is a noun and one is a verb.

Krausen (the noun) is the foam that the yeast produce on top of the wort during fermentation.  I see it all the time when I make yeast starters.  You’ll see the term “high krausen” a lot in different text.  This is the point during fermentation where that foam is at its peak.

Krausen (the verb) is a term for carbonating beer by introducing wort to newly finished fermenting beer.  It’s a German tradition where they add it to a conditioning tank.  I guess homebrewer could do the same thing if they had some dry malt extract to prime with instead of corn sugar.

What does the term Vorlauf mean?

Vorlauf is the process of pulling the initial runnings from the mash tun prior to the sparge.  Wort removed from the lauter tun is added back to the top of the mash.  This process of recirculation helps to set the grain bed around the lautering/seperation device (e.g. false bottom, pipe manifold or stainless braid.).

Vorlaufing the wort helps remove large grain particles that may have slipped through the lautering manifold.  The process also aids in wort clarity by trapping large coaggulated proteins that may have formed during heating in the grain bed.

Vorlaufing can be perfomed simply through using a pitcher to collect wort and pour it back on the surface of the mash.  It can also be as elegant as using a pump to pull wort out and return it to the top of the mash via a return hose and manifold.

The primary thing to keep in mind when performing a vorlauf is to not add the wort to quickly to the top of the grain bed.  As this may disrupt the settling of the bed that vorlauf is meant to create.

For a couple references check these links below:
Homebrewtalk Wiki
RealBeer.com Discussion

BREW ON!

Since this is a homebrewing resource blog, Mike and I decided to start writing up posts that define homebrewing terms that people new to the hobby may not know.  We even created a new category called Glossary to keep them in their own place on the blog.

The first term we want to define is Doughing in.

Doughing in is the process of introducing hot water to the grain in your mash tun.  Sometimes I will read recipes that state that I should “dough in” at a certain temperature.  This instruction means I should pour water into the mash tun to get the grains to the stated temperature.

If you have anything to add to this definition, please comment below.