The brew behind the beverage

Ed Herman, head brewer at Upland Brewery, explains that the process of brewing beer is quite a complicated procedure. It is done in a small warehouse behind the bar. Brewers begin by breaking the grains, then mashing them in one of the large silver barrels. This turns the starch into sugar. Because different temperatures produce different sugars, brewers have to monitor the sugar level to the exact amount.\nHops and spices are added once the brew starts to boil. For instance, in Upland's Wheat Ale, brewers add orange peels to produce the flavor in the beer. (The boil also adds more flavor.) There are 75 to 100 different varieties of hops. Brewers then send the concoction into another large silver barrel, called a wort, where they grind their fresh orange peels for the Wheat Ale. Then they inject yeast and beer into the primary fermenter (another silver barrel). There are close to 100 varieties of yeast, which eats the sugar and creates carbon dioxide and alcohol. \nThen the temperature is lowered to 32 degrees Celsius. The temperature is monitored like the air conditioning of a house, switching on and off to keep it right at 32 degrees. The beer is then fed into conditioning tanks, where it will sit for at least a week, sometimes up to a month. Once ready to distribute, the beer is put into bright tanks, where it is then placed in bottles and kegs. A bright tank can fill four kegs at a time. On a typical brew day, Herman and his crew of three men get started at 5:30 a.m., and usually don't finish until around 5:30 p.m. They do this for three days straight -- then the drinking can begin.