# Dry Enzyme-What type is it?



## chefeffect (5/8/13)

Does anyone know what the average store bought 'dry enzyme' is? Is it Fungal α-amylase or is it α-amylase? I have a feeling its the fungal variety and if so are they similar, meaning can it be used in the mash like a-amylase. I assume the fungal variety its the same only it comes from plants? 

Cheers!


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## HBHB (6/8/13)

α-amylase Derived from Aspergillus just got a confirming email.

Cheers,
Martin


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## chefeffect (6/8/13)

Thanks for that, that helps a bit more. This is a chart that shows the industrial enzymes, hopefully its correct: http://www.biokemi.org/biozoom/issues/522/articles/2368 does that mean fungal a-amylase is the same thing as Amyloglucosidase? Scroll half way down to table 1.


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## brad81 (6/8/13)

Figure 4 (also in table 1) shows the fermentation stage having the fungal a-amalayse, Aspergillus looks to be a fungal spore from what I can read on wiki. Can you split your batch and do half without adding more enzyme, and the other half with??

You'll need more fermenters matey


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## chefeffect (6/8/13)

Interestingly enough I had to split the batch because I over hit my efficiency probably because of the enzyme during the mash. I have 18lt in one and 7lt in a small 15lt fermentor. May give it a go. I still think its the same thing?? If so adding in fermentor will strip everything out and make a thin crap beer. I did two separate mash one with crystal and no dry enzyme and one with the rice and base malt with the dry enzyme then mashed out to halt the enzyme and added the second mash with the carapils andc melanoiden. Thanks Brad I did say it was controversial and now its out there!! ;-)


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## chefeffect (6/8/13)

HBHB said:


> α-amylase Derived from Aspergillus just got a confirming email.
> 
> Cheers,
> Martin


Which to me means they are the same thing cheers. Just a thought adding enzymes in the home brew world is probably similar to adding peptides in sport, they are all-ready there in amounts but adding more can be controversial


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## HBHB (10/8/13)

No they're not the same thing, but they do work in synergy. 

Can i ask what you're trying to work out/achieve?

Martin


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## chefeffect (10/8/13)

Just an experiment really. Trying to make a really dry finished beer using rice and pilsner malt, while still having some malt flavour and head retention, which sounds like an oxymoron. The goal was to use the enzyme during the mash with the base malt and rice to make an extremely ferment able highly attenuate-able wort except using the Carapils and Melanoidin in a seperate mash added to the main wort at boiling so that the enzyme wouldn't eat up those flavour profiles I was after. I figure the end result could be as low as 1.002?? Beer smith said 1.007 with my recipe but obvoiusly using the enzyme I was hoping for a lower FG. I have used dry enzyme I the fermenter before years ago, and the result was tasteless watery alcohol. I could blame my Canadian wife and her love of Coors, but honestly I wanted to try and see if I could make a nice dry low sugar beer just for the hey of it. So far the it has fermented from 1.040 down to 1.009 in 5 days, tastes bloody sweet I am thinking maybe I used too much Melanoidin?


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## HBHB (11/8/13)

Hmmmm, why not just do a Galaxy Malt base, briess carapils and a touch of melanoidin or crystal then? Want dry.......go Galaxy.


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## chefeffect (11/8/13)

Ok cool thanks for that, had heard of it but only just did some reading then after your comment. Sounds like an interesting malt, gonna have to try and get some, most reports are good on this forum..


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