exBEERiment | Flaked vs. Malted Corn In A Mexican Amber Lager

Author: Jordan Folks

The cereal grain most associated with brewing is barley, which is typically malted in order to activate the enzymes necessary to convert starches into fermentable sugar, though there are other forms of barley. Similarly, other cereal grains are used by brewers, one of which is corn, which can increase beer’s strength while contributing minimal aroma, flavor, or mouthfeel. And it, too, comes in various forms, the most common being flaked, though it can also be malted.

Produced by steaming corn and running it through hot rollers, flaked maize (aka corn) is pre-gelatinized, meaning it doesn’t require a cereal mash. Malted corn goes through the same process as malted barley, activating the endogenous enzymes responsible for the conversion of starches to sugar during the mash.

I don’t brew too many beers with adjuncts, but I’ve really come to appreciate corn for its ability to increase strength and crispness while contributing little aroma, flavor, or mouthfeel. My go-to has always flaked maize, though I’ve been interested to explore what malted corn can do and recently picked some up to play with. Curious how it would compare to flaked maize, I designed an xBmt to test it out.

| PURPOSE |

To evaluate the differences between a Mexican Amber Lager made with 30% flaked maize and one made with the same amount of malted corn.

| METHODS |

For this xBmt, I went with a simple Mexican Amber Lager recipe that I felt would emphasize any differences caused by the variable.

Corn Maize

While planning out this brew day, I received equal amounts of flaked and malted corn from our sponsor, Northern Brewer.

After collecting the full volume of water for two 5 gallon/19 liter batches, adjusting each to the same mineral profile, and setting the controllers to heat them up, I milled the grain.

When the waters were properly heated, I incorporated the grains and set the controllers to maintain 147°F/63°C for a 45 minute rest before raising the temperature to 154˚F/68˚C.

During the mash rests, I weighed out the single kettle hop addition.

After removing the grains, the worts were boiled for 60 minutes then quickly chilled before taking refractometer readings showing a notable difference in OG.

After transferring identical volumes of wort from either batch to sanitized fermentation kegs and letting them chill in my chamber to 47˚F/8˚C, I pitched 3 pouches of Imperial Yeast L13 Global into each batch.

The beers were left to ferment for a week before I gradually raised the temperature to 60˚F/16˚C for a diacetyl rest. The following day, I took hydrometer measurements showing a minor difference in FG.

At this point, I cold crashed the beers overnight then transferred them under pressure to CO2 purged serving kegs that were placed on gas in my keezer. After a month of lagering, they were carbonated, clear, and ready for evaluation.

| RESULTS |

A total of 27 people of varying levels of experience participated in this xBmt. Each participant was served 1 sample of beer made with flaked corn and 2 samples of the beer made with malted corn in different colored opaque cups then asked to identify the unique sample. While 14 tasters (p<0.05) would have had to accurately identify the unique sample to reach statistical significance, 15 did (p=0.01), indicating participants in this xBmt were able to reliably distinguish a Mexican Amber Lager made with 30% flaked corn from one made with the same amount of malted corn.

The 15 participants who made the accurate selection on the triangle test were instructed to complete a brief preference survey comparing only the beers that were different. A total of 3 tasters reported preferring the beer made with flaked corn, 7 said they liked the beer made malted corn more, 3 had no preference despite noticing a difference, and 2 reported perceiving no difference between the beers.

My Impressions: Out of the 5 semi-blind triangle tests I attempted, I correctly identified the odd-beer-out 4 times. To my palate, the beer made with flaked corn had a slight peanut butter aroma with a thinner body and less complex character, while the one made with malted corn had more overall malt flavor that was quite nice. I really enjoyed both, making it difficult to pick a preference – both were super crushable and delicious!

| DISCUSSION |

Corn is one of the most common adjunct grains associated with beer, and while the flaked version is often touted as contributing strength with minimal impact on aroma or flavor, malted corn is said to add more depth of flavor. Indeed, tasters in this xBmt were able to reliably distinguish a Mexican Amber Lager made with 30% flaked corn from one made with the same amount of malted corn.

The most plausible explanation for the organoleptic differences between this beers is that while flaked corn is steamed and pressed between rollers, malted corn goes through a kilning process similar to barley, which is known to create deeper, more complex flavors. This was validated in post-survey conversations with tasters who commented that the malted corn beer had a maltier flavor compared to the flaked corn version, which aligns with my experience.

Despite tasting different, I was quite pleased with both of these beers and found myself going back and forth between the kegs. The depth of flavor in the malted corn batch was very pleasing, though I also appreciated the crispness of the version made with flaked corn, which I’d say was more inline with what I expect from a genuine Mexican Amber Lager. This experience confirmed for me that malted corn has a place in my brewery, and while I’ll continue using flaked corn for certain styles, I’ll be keeping malted corn on-hand as well.

If you have any thoughts about this xBmt, please do not hesitate to share in the comments section below!

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