Q. How is barley malted?
A. The barley is moistened with water, and heaped up; by which means, great heat is produced, which makes the barley sprout.
Q. Why is not the barley suffered to grow, as well as sprout?
A. Plants in the germ contain more sugar than in any other state; as soon as the germ puts forth shoots, the sugar of the plant is consumed, to support the shoot.
Q. How is barley prevented from shooting, in the process of malting?
A. The barley is put into a kiln as soon as it sprouts; and the heat of the kiln checks or destroys the young shoot.
Q. Why is yeast put into beer to make it work?
A. Yeast supplies the beer with nitrogen, which is one of the ingredients of alcohol.
Alcohol consists of oxygen, carbon, and hydrogen, (obtained from the sugar of malt), and nitrogen, (obtained from yeast).