preview

The Role Of Geology And Its Effect On The Quality Of The Drinks

Good Essays

This article discusses the role of geology in the making of wines, beers and whiskies, along with the importance of certain geological factors in relation to overall flavour, character and even colour of these beverages. It is argued that geological factors do or do not have an effect on the quality of the drinks. In my summary of this article I will establish how the Geological features of an area can affect the characteristics of these drinks, or if they have any effect on the drinks whatsoever.

Topography is possibly the first geological factor that would come to mind when discussing this topic, albeit not the only one, or arguably, not the most significant. A Maltman initially discusses how these physiographical factors affect the …show more content…

Although the cereals used to produce whisky and beer are also effected by topography, this effect is not thought to be as noticeable as in wine, as wine is almost totally based around grape juices, where as beer and whisky are more water based.

The topography of an area also has an effect on the water flow in areas, and it is this water flow that is more closely associated with the production of beer and whisky. In the mashing process during beer production, the cereals are steeped in hot water so that the organic compounds can be extracted. The article details the importance of brewing water with a pH of 5-5.5 in order to create optimum conditions for the yeast and hops to react in the mashing phase, without the enzymes denaturing. Brewing water is often naturally slightly alkaline with a pH around 7, so needs altering to become the optimum pH. This alteration is done using roasted malts which can work against the high bicarbonate levels in the water thanks to the natural phosphate contained within them, higher intensities of roast are able to alter acidity the most. In whisky making an optimum pH of water is still desired, however, the roasted malts are not added like in beer, so this optimum must be reached a different way. Different cereals can help to lower acidity, and thus reach optimum pH, the article uses the example of

Get Access