It's a warm summer morning when master brewer Jochen Albrecht pulls over on the right and steps out of his car. He is on his way to work and is driving past a field of barley as he does every morning. Today he stops briefly in order to look more closely at the crop. After all, it is one of the raw materials that is most important in brewing beer. He approaches the stalks at the side of the road and reaches for an ear. "A top summer barley," Albrecht remarks, pleased. "That will make an excellent brewer's malt."

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Paulaner has worked with the same malting plants for many years. The wheat and barley for Paulaner are farmed primarily in southern Germany. During the malting process, the kernels are first softened and then placed in the germination box. "Enzymes form in the process. These turn starch into malt sugar later in the brewing process," Albrecht explains. After germination, the kernels are taken for kilning, the drying process. All operations require long experience, because malting is a natural process that can only be controlled by means of temperature, moisture and ventilation.

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The main factor affecting the beer's taste and colour is the temperature during kilning. Dark malt is kilned at a temperature of 100 degrees Celsius. This creates more colourings and flavourings than in the case of light malt, which dries at 80 degrees Celsius. The type of grain also plays a crucial role. Paulaner wheat beer is made primarily with wheat malt, while the other beer varieties are made from barley malt. The malt for Paulaner is stored for an especially long time after being kilned in order to better activate the enzymes. "Rome wasn't built in a day," says Albrecht.

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For master brewer Jochen Albrecht, every delivery from the malting plant means a lot of work. "All senses come into play then," Albrecht says. Once the malt is delivered to the brewery, he holds the kernels up to the light to check their size and shape. How do the husks look? What about the endosperm? Ampenberger then checks for friability and protein and water content in the laboratory. "Everything has to be just right at this point," says the master brewer, "because too much protein can lower the quality of the beer."

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