Beer Making - Using Whey

[Gustav]

I just read a good article about making alot of stuff out of whey, Does anyone perhaps have a recipe to make whey beer or know where I may find one?

[Tomer1]

Since it doesnt posses alot of flavour and aroma but may contribute to mouthfeel I would just use a good recipe you like ,perhaps a light ale so the whey can still "cut through" somewhat and replace the water with whey.
Be sure to boil the whey first to eliminate the lactic bacteria.

[tnbquilt]

Beer and whey don't mix. It's the whole dairy cultures versus beer yeast issue. I can't imagine that anything good would come from that.

[Tomer1]

Theres no problem using dead whey in your wort to replace water.
It may decrease your PH by some if the whey is really acidified.

[Sailor Con Queso]

I would make Ricotta out of the whey first. By heating to 190-200F you not only produce Ricotta, but you remove the albumin proteins and sterilize the whey. I'm not a beer maker, but you can always adjust the pH of the whey if necessary.

[dthelmers]

In Scotland, they used to make a fermented whey drink called blaand. Like kvass and kumis, it was a sort of cottage industry beverage. My brother had kumis in Khazakstan that was actually fermented from cow whey, rather than the traditional mare's milk. From what I understand, fermented whey was just left to ferment in a cask; I guess picking up wild yeast. Or perhaps they used some of a previous batch as a starter. I had a room ate who was experimenting with catching wild yeasts and ferment things, but I found the taste always too sour for me. I think that maybe I'll try pitching a little ale yeast into my whey this weekend when I make my cheese, in a fermentation bucket with an air lock and see what happens.
Dave in CT

[Tomer1]

"fermented whey was just left to ferment in a cask"
Thats how lambic (sour) beer is made,
I dont like it.
Alot of lactic and acetic acid.

[DeejayDebi]

I was going to say if you like the odd flavor of a lambic it might be worth a shot. I do not not it at all!

[Tomer1]

 http://www.p2pays.org/ref/12/11458.pdf
"UTILIZATION OF CHEESE WHEY FOR WINE PRODUCTION"

[Boofer]

I laid back and lurked over this thread from time to time, but finally decided to chime in.

Over the years, I've seen references to beverages made from milk. I thought of the Masai warriors who mixed blood with milk to create their special drink. Yum!  ;)

Here's another drink that may be a little more commercial: Kumis.

-Boofer-

[mchcllns]

I know this is an old topic, but has anyone considered using whet to replace their mash water in a Stout?  Milk Stouts use lactose.

[Tomer1]

If you want a sweet finish you will need a fairly sweet whey with low acidicy (low lactic convertion)\high draining ph. (a swiss maybe?)
After which you will want to boil the whey to kill the lactic bacteria and precipitate the proteins (albumin) since you dont want all that protein in your beer.   I imagine it might be possible for the proteins to float during boil but im not sure.

The ph of the whey may need adjustment with calcium carbonate. (you want it at around 6.0 right?)

[beechercreature]

If you want a sweet finish you will need a fairly sweet whey with low acidicy (low lactic convertion)\high draining ph. (a swiss maybe?)
After which you will want to boil the whey to kill the lactic bacteria and precipitate the proteins (albumin) since you dont want all that protein in your beer.   I imagine it might be possible for the proteins to float during boil but im not sure.

The ph of the whey may need adjustment with calcium carbonate. (you want it at around 6.0 right?)

if you were using it to replace mash water, you wouldn't need to boil it. barley is covered in lactic bacteria already. The sparging should filter out most of the solids in the whey, and the boil should take care of the rest. Ideally, you would want a ph of 7 to match the water ph. You can adjust ph once the mash is already mixed, though. 5.2 is generally considered ideal for mashing

[Tomer1]

"if you were using it to replace mash water, you wouldn't need to boil it"
Im suggesting you need to stop the acidification. if your using a messo whey then its easier to do so.

"The sparging should filter out most of the solids in the whey"
The residual proteins are yet in a large particle state, sparging is done way below the 85c needed. you may end up with riccota when you boil.   

[beechercreature]

The residual proteins are yet in a large particle state, sparging is done way below the 85c needed. you may end up with riccota when you boil.

wouldn't be the weirdest thing i've heard of in a beer!  :o