Biscuit and aromatic malts compared

Two malts that look the same

Open a sack of each and you will struggle to tell them apart. Both are light brown, both are kilned well beyond a base malt and both sit roughly in the 45 to 65 EBC range depending on the maltster. The difference is in how they are made and what they taste like.

Biscuit malt is roasted dry at a fairly high temperature, which gives toasty, cracker-like flavours. Aromatic malt is made more like melanoidin malt: the green malt is kept warm and moist before kilning, so Maillard reactions build rich, honeyed malt flavour. Both styles of malt come from the Belgian brewing tradition.

What each one tastes like

Biscuit malt brings:

• Fresh toast and plain biscuits or crackers.
• A dry, slightly nutty finish.
• A very little roast edge at high doses.

Aromatic malt brings:

• Intense malt aroma, often described as honey and bread crust.
• A fuller, rounder malt flavour.
• A sweeter impression, though it is not as sweet as crystal malt.

A good way to learn them is to make a small tea with a handful of each in hot water. Taste the two side by side. The difference is obvious in a minute.

How much to use

Both malts are strong. Most recipes use them at 3 to 10% of the grist.

• Biscuit: 3 to 10% in English bitter, brown ale, Belgian pale ale and some amber ales. Above about 10% it can taste harsh and dry.
• Aromatic: 3 to 10% in Belgian dubbel, bock, amber ale and Scottish ales. Some dubbel recipes go higher for a big malt nose.

Neither malt should be counted on for enzymes. Always use them with a base malt that can convert the whole grist.

A 20 litre amber ale using both

This recipe shows the two malts working together. It targets about 1.042 to 1.045 original gravity at around 70% homebrew efficiency.

• Pale ale malt: 3.4 kg (85%)
• Biscuit malt: 0.3 kg (7.5%)
• Aromatic malt: 0.3 kg (7.5%)
• Total: 4.0 kg (100%)

Mash at 66 to 67 °C for 60 minutes. Bitter to about 25 IBU with an English hop such as East Kent Goldings or Fuggle. Ferment with a clean English ale yeast at 18 to 20 °C. The biscuit gives a dry, toasty backbone. The aromatic gives a honeyed malt nose on top.

When to choose one over the other

Pick biscuit when you want dryness and toast, for example in a brown ale that should finish crisp or a bitter that needs a firmer malt backbone. Pick aromatic when you want rich malt aroma and roundness, for example in a dubbel or a bock.

The two can also work together, as in the recipe above. Biscuit sets a dry toasty base. Aromatic adds a rounder malt nose on top. Keep the combined share of both at or below about 15% so neither takes over the beer.

If you can only buy one, think about the beer's finish. A beer that already feels sweet benefits from biscuit. A beer that feels thin benefits from aromatic. Weyermann's Melanoidin Malt is often used in place of aromatic. Our guide to crystal and caramel malts explains how those differ from both of these.

Buying and storing in India

Most speciality malts for homebrewers in India are imported in small packs. Buy whole kernels if you have a mill and crush them on brew day. Crushed speciality malts lose aroma faster, especially in humid weather.

Buy small amounts. A homebrewer using 300 g per batch does not need a 5 kg sack that will sit open through a monsoon. Two or three batches' worth at a time keeps the malt fresh.

Store them in airtight jars, away from the kitchen stove and direct sun. Kilned malts arrive very dry and soak up moisture quickly. A malt that no longer snaps when you bite a kernel has gone slack. Our guide to base malts explained covers the malts these two depend on to convert.

Where to go next

Once you can taste the difference between biscuit and aromatic, you are on the way to designing grists rather than copying them. That skill, choosing each malt for a reason and balancing them for colour, body and flavour, is the heart of recipe design.

Your first step: make the two malt teas described above and taste them side by side before your next brew day.

Common questions

What is the difference between biscuit and aromatic malt?

Biscuit malt is roasted dry and tastes of toast and crackers. Aromatic malt is kilned more like melanoidin malt and tastes of honey and rich malt.

How much biscuit malt should I use?

Usually 3 to 10% of the grist. Above about 10% it can taste harsh and dry.

Can I use melanoidin malt instead of aromatic malt?

Yes, it is a common substitute with a similar honeyed malt character.

Do biscuit and aromatic malts convert themselves?

Do not rely on them for enzymes. Always use a base malt that can convert the whole grist.