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​Brewhouse Efficiency Improvements: Implementing a Balanced Milling, Mashing, and Lautering Philosophy

Historically, breweries have operated milling, mashing, and lautering processes as separate, compartmentalized processes. For instance, mill grinds are set to maximize throughput instead of driving increased extract recovery, while mashing processes are thought of as setting profile and not looked at as the first step in effective extraction. Even lauter tuns are operated in a way in which differential pressure is thought of as a detriment to production instead of as leverage over other control methods to achieve extraction while simultaneously maintaining your brewing schedule. To effectively operate, these steps need to be considered as one balanced, overall wort extraction process. In this article, we will define the lexicon for the harmonization of extraction processes and provide a path to enhance extract recovery by effectively milling and balancing various operational parameters, including water volume, time, temperature, and flow rates. Additionally, we have put the methods we are sharing today to the test, improving lautering efficiency on the majority of our large-format brands to 98%. We then applied these same principles to our 20- and 2-bbl systems, improving lautering efficiencies on our craft brands by 5%—proving that any brewery is capable of enhancing brewhouse efficiency by implementing these practices, no matter the scale or product formulations.

Keywords: brewhouse optimization, efficiency, extract recovery, water balance​