Weyermann Eraclea Pilsner malt: an Italian barley for pale beers

Italian barley in a Pilsner malt

Weyermann makes Eraclea Pilsner malt from Italian malting barley grown in northern Italy, on farmland near the Adriatic coast. It sits in the terroir and heirloom group with the Bohemian malts, on the same idea: where the barley grows shows up in the beer.

The intended beers are crisp ones. Mediterranean-style lager and Pilsner, Italian lager, Italian Pilsner and German Pilsner are on the list, with pre-Prohibition lager and Italian grape ale. The Weyermann range guide puts it among the other pale base malts.

The spec sheet and what it means

From the 2025 crop datasheet's analysis table:

• Colour 2.5 to 4.5 EBC (1.4 to 2.1 °L), boiled wort colour 4 to 5.5 EBC.
• Extract at least 80.5%, moisture at most 5%.
• Protein 9.5 to 12%, Kolbach index 36 to 42.5%. Well modified.
• Saccharification up to 15 minutes, enzyme activity high.
• Friability at least 84%, glassy kernels at most 2.5%, viscosity at most 1.58 mPa s.

Weyermann also says the malt processes easily, yields well and gives very good foam. On a brewpub kit those claims show up as a smooth run-off, an extract close to what your standard Pilsner malt gives and a stable head on a beer with little else in the grist to support one. They are claims rather than measured numbers, so check them against your own brewhouse yield and foam over the first few brews.

What it tastes like

The sensory note is short: malty-sweet with light honey. On the wheel below, scored on wort by a trained panel, sweet taste reaches higher than on most of the Pilsner malts, with malty-sweet and bread crust also well out from the centre. The roast and smoke sectors stay close to zero.

In a lager that reads as clean, lightly sweet grain with a honeyed edge, which is a good stage for floral hops. Compared with a German Pilsner malt it tastes a touch softer and sweeter. Compared with the Bohemian malts it is lighter and less nutty. It will not carry a malt-led beer such as a Märzen on its own. It was never meant to.

How much to use and how to mash it

Weyermann says up to 100% is possible. With high enzyme activity it converts without help. For a crisp, dry lager, mash at 63 to 64 °C for 45 minutes, raise to 72 °C for 15 to 20 minutes and mash out at 76 to 78 °C. Keep mash pH at 5.2 to 5.4 for a lager. The protein range is a little wider than on standard Pilsner malt, so watch clarity after lagering.

An Italian Pilsner for 20 litres

For 20 litres at about 12 °P on a homebrew system with around 70% efficiency:

• Weyermann Eraclea Pilsner malt: 4.41 kg (98%)
• Weyermann Acidulated malt: 0.09 kg (2%)

Total 4.5 kg. Bitter to around 30 to 35 IBU with German or Czech aroma hops, ferment at 9 to 10 °C, then dry hop with about 2 g per litre (40 g) once fermentation is nearly done and the diacetyl rest is under way. Pull the hops, or the beer off them, after three to four days. Lager cold afterwards.

That last step is where the style lives. The malt has to be clean and quiet enough for the dry hop to sit on top, which is a grist decision as much as a hop one.

Using it in India

The 24 month minimum shelf life assumes dry storage between 0 and 30 °C, unopened. Store it like any imported base malt here: off the floor, in the coolest dry room, sealed between brews. Slack malt mills to flour and loses the crispness that is the reason to buy this one.

A crisp Italian-style Pilsner suits Indian heat well. If Eraclea is out of stock, standard Pilsner or Extra Pale Premium Pilsner malt works. Expect a little less sweetness and keep the dry hop the same. Hop freshness matters more than the malt swap here. A dry hop with pellets that sat warm for months will taste of hay whatever base you use, so keep hops frozen and sealed.