Kilning schedules according to the American Handy Book of the Brewing Malting and Auxiliary Trades by Robert Wahl and Max Henius published in 1902:

Finally a description of Vienna malt!, well it’s missing a few key details but it will have to do. Even though this book is online I thought I’d share these schedules with the Celsius temperatures added. (Makes my life easier) There are a lot of details in this section I have left out. I just tried to include essential information useful for malting on a small scale. (There is an interesting paragraph on the differences of drum malting as opposed to floor malting worth the read if you’re set up that way.) These schedules describe kilning in a 2 story malt kiln where the two floors could be loaded simultaneously with the lower floor being hotter as it would be closer to the heat source.

Kilning of American malt for pale beer: total 48 hrs.

Green malt loaded on upper floor of 2 floor kiln.

Temp raised during 10 hours to 90 F or 32 C

Raised during the next 4 hrs to 120 For 49 C and maintained for 10 hours.

Lower floor

Malt moved to lower floor where the temp is raised over next 4 hours to 130 F or 54.5 C

Raised over the next 12 hours to 150 F or 65.5

Next three hrs to 180 F or 82 C held for 3 hrs.

Unloading and loading accounts for the last 2 hours.

Kilning American malt for extra pale beer: total 48 hrs.

Same upper floor schedule as pale

Temp raised over the next 4 hours to 125 For 52 C

And during the next 12 hours to 130 F or 54.5 C

Then raised within 3 hours to 145 F or 63 C and held for 3 hours.

Kilning American malt for dark beer: total 24 hrs.

On the upper kiln the malt is heated in 5 hrs to 90 For 32 C

In the next 2 hrs to 120 F or 49 C and held for 5 hrs.

Lower floor brought in 2 hrs to 140 F or 60 C

In the next 5 hrs. To 180 F or 82 C

In the next 2 hrs. To 220 F or 104 C and held for 2 hrs.

English Malting :

According to Thatcher- Steeping liquid 50-54 F 10-12 C

Grain depth on floor 2-10 inches temp 50-54 F 10-12 C turned every 3-5 hrs.

Germination takes 10-15 days

“Sprinkling, if done at all…should not be later than the fifth or seventh day after the grain has left the cistern (steep tank).

Germination is arrested by withering. Malt is spread very thinly on the floor to dry out

Kilning: depth 4-6 inches

First day – 95-100F 35-38 C

Second day raise slowly to 120F 49 C

Third day raise slowly to 140-150F 60-65.5 C

Fourth day 185-200 F 85-93 C for pale malts 200-225 93-107 C or even 230F 110 C for “high-dried” malts 5-6 hrs.

With all malts it is recommended to store for 6-8 weeks before being used.

Unfortunately, the recommendations for crystal malt are disappointing in that he describes the practice of “moistening the malt during the drying process with a solution of sugar and then drying it off at a high temperature” (cheaters)

Malting in Germany:

Three types of malt are distinguished in Germany: Bohemian (Pilsner), Wiener(Vienna), and Bavarian (Munich).

“As to the taste and aroma of the malt, that of the Bohemian type should have no caramel and very little aroma; the Vienna malt , on the other hand , should possess it distinctly, and in the Bavarian this aroma should be very strong, without a bitter empyreumatic” (burnt organic matter) taste. (Had to look that one up)

According to Leyser–Heiss: Steep water 48-54.5 F 9-12.5 C renewed every 12 hrs. Under unfavorable circumstances the water should be renewed every 6-8 hrs.

Floor depth 11.8-19.7 inches. Turned every 12 hrs.

Maximum temp.of grain bed 70-72.5F 21- 22.5 C

Germination period 6-8 days then spread to a depth of 2 inches to wither.

Malting descriptions taken from Michel’s “Lehrbuch der Bierbrauerei”

Bavarian (Munich): 44-45 % moisture. Steep temp. 54.5F 12.5 C time of steeping 90-120 hours

Floor depth 8-10 inches turned every 12 hrs. Or more depending on temp.

5-6th day allowed to lie 15-18 hrs in order to mat. Generally malt is allowed to mat twice and the temperature allowed to rise to 72 F or 22 C

Temp. of germination room at 48-50 F 9-10 C and the temp. of grain rises gradually on it’s own over the germination period.

Kilning: 48 hrs

Upper floor first 24hrs not stated

Lower floor 12 hrs at 104-111 F 40-44 C Drafts or dampers then closed

Raised over 6 hrs to 133-140 F 56-60 C

Temp raised for 3 hrs held for last 3 hrs. Air temp in kiln rises gradually from 140F -183F 60 -84 C over the 6 hrs.

Interestingly the temps. For under the lower kiln floor are included for the last 6 hrs which goes from 207 -250 F 97- 121 C for the first 3 and maintained at 250F or 121 C for the last 3.

Temperature in the malt goes from 180 – 223 F 82- 106 C. Quite a difference from the air temperature.

Moisture content during kilning:

On reaching upper floor …37-40%

After the first 12 hours on lower floor……20-24%

After next 6 hours…………..10-14%

After last 6 hours…………….5-6 %

Finished malt (after cooling) 1.5-2 %

Weiner (Vienna) malt

Moisture 38-42 % Couch temp. No higher than 66 F or 19 C

Germination period 9-10 days malt never allowed to mat depth 4.5-7 inches

Floor record example:

Temp. Day 1 50-57 F 10-14 C 7- 6.3 inches deep

Day 2 57-63.5F 14-17.5 C 6-5.5 inches deep

Day 3 66-68F 19-20 C Next 5 days temp maintained at 68F or 20 C 4.7-5.5 inches deep. Turned every 6-8 hrs. Never allowed to mat.

Kilning: 24 hrs.

The malt is loaded on the upper floor at 95-100 F 35-38 C all draughts being open until it is “air-dry” Unfortunately it does not state what the moisture content is at this point.

“The draught is checked and temperature raised to 144-156F 62-69 C”

However, an example of a kiln record is shown which states that the air off temperature goes up to 183 F 84 C during the final 2 hrs. and the malt temperature goes from 149 – 212 F 62-100 C during the last 6 hours.

The last 6 hours of malt temperatures go like this: 149F 65C, 156F 69C, 171F 77C, 185F 85C, 200F 93C, 202F 95C, 212F 100C.

Malt for Bohemian Beer (Pilsner Malt)

Moisture 38-42%

Germination room temp. 50-54.5 F 10-12.5 C. 8 inch depth turned every 12 hours when roots develop turn every 6-8 hours and spread lower. Max temp. 68 F 20 C

Time of growth 9-10 days

Kilning 24-36 hours

The last 15 hours of a 30 hour kilning record is shown as an example but the temp. of the first 15 hours are not stated. As kilning would have been done in a two floor kiln we know that the temperature would have gradually increased up to 37.8 C or 100 F during the first 15 hours.

Last 15 hrs – Hours 1-12 Malt temperature raised from 37.8 C – 67.2 C or 100 F-153 F. Draft holes open.

Last 3 hours malt temperature at 81.1 C or 178 F Draft holes gradually closed.