Brewing process

With the recipe of the master brewer and the good ingredients the “Original Schlüssel” gets its strong, full-bodied and hops accented taste. Additionally the skilled art of brewing gives this beer a very inimitable and distinctive touch, which makes it a popular speciality among the top-fermented beers of Düsseldorf. But why talk about the taste you probably know our “Original Schlüssel” already.

To start the production of the beer a brew must be made. For one brew 800kg of malt are needed. The dark and pale malts are grinded before mixed with water. A certain temperature ensures that the malt ingredients become soluble. During this process enzymes from the malt finally break down the malt starch to sugars (by the way, this malt-water mixture is called mash). In the lauter tun the liquid and fluid phases are separated again. The wort (the liquid part of the mash) is put in kettle and boiled with the addition of hops.

The wort is boiled for various reasons; to sterilise it, to precipitate the proteins and hop tannins and to convert and dissolve the bitter substances from the hops. By evaporating a certain amount of water, the wort is also adjusted to its original gravity. For our “Schlüssel Alt” the original gravity is precisely 12.5 %. And that is precisely the best, we think!

After boiling the whirlpool separates the trub from the wort, which afterwards is cooled down to 16° C. This is also the temperature at which, after pitching of the yeast, the fermentation begins. After a fermenting time of three to four days, the beer is pumped into a lage cellar for maturation. This takes about 20 days at almost 2° C, until it is finally ready for you to enjoy. During this time the aroma compounds and carbon dioxide are formed as well, which make up the special taste of our beer.

After maturation, the beer is filtered and then filled into kegs or bottles. For bottled beer a tank truck carries the beer to a bottling company. The beer which is sold in our own venues is filled into wooden barrels, most of them holding 100 litres. Those barrels are stored in cold-storage rooms with a temperature of 4° C. This is to make sure you can always enjoy your “Schlüssel Alt” at its ideal temperature.

Cheers!