“My elevator pitch for our Cumberland Corn Malt is, ‘Think cornbread instead of basic grits,’ says Brent Manning, founder and head of product development at Riverbend Malt House in Asheville, North Carolina. “Richer, more nuanced sweetness is what is delivered.”
Meanwhile, he says, heirloom varieties such as Bloody Butcher “see their spice character elevated post-malting.”
While most brewers are familiar with flaked corn as an ingredient, Riverbend and other maltsters across North America are malting corn, including some obscure and once-overlooked varieties, to offer a flavorful new ingredient to craft brewers.