Good Malting Quality Research Articles

Barley varieties registered in the Czech Republic after the harvest of 2023

After the 2023 harvest, four varieties of spring barley were registered in the Czech Republic. The malting quality was determined in three varieties. After four years of testing, LG Tuplak was registered. After three years of testing, the spring barley varieties LG Lokal, Sting, and the non-malting variety Ranee were registered. LG Tuplak and LG Lokal showed low activity of proteolytic and cytolytic enzymes and a low level of apparent final attenuation and thus fulfilled the conditionsfor varieties recommended for the production of beer with the protected geographical indication 'České pivo'. The spring barley variety Sting showed very good malting quality. It provided a sweet wort with a rich extract content in malt dry matter (above 83%). Proteolytic modification was optimal to higher in this variety. Cell wall degradation was at an optimal level in the Sting variety. The varieties tested gave clear to opalescent sweet wort.

Registration of three winter malting barley lines

AbstractGermplasm lines are the most important genetic resources for cultivar development. ARS669W (Reg. no. GP‐216, PI 699131), ARS671W (Reg. no. GP‐215, PI 699130), and ARS431W (Reg. no. GP‐214, PI 699129) are three high yield and good malting quality two‐rowed winter type malting barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) germplasm lines developed by the USDA‐ARS breeding program at Aberdeen, ID. All three germplasm lines have been evaluated in 23 trials. Compared with the checks, all three lines have about the same or higher yield potentials. The lodging resistance of ARS669W and ARS671W is similar to the checks but better than ARS431W. The test weight of three lines was like the ‘Endeavor’ cultivar and higher than the ‘Charles’ cultivar. The winter survival rates are all the same statistically. Malting evaluation results showed acceptable quality profiles with specific quality traits including high malt extract, low protein content, and low beta‐glucan for the years tested. These lines are good winter malting barley genetic stocks for future breeding or for further evaluation as possible cultivars.

Registration of spring malting barley germplasm ARS84‐27, ARS98‐31, and ARS10‐82

AbstractGermplasm lines are the most important genetic resources for cultivar development. ARS84‐27 (Reg. no. GP‐212, PI 693601), ARS98‐31 (Reg. no. GP‐213, PI 693602), and ARS10‐82 (Reg. no. GP‐214, PI 693603) are three high‐yield and good malting quality two‐rowed spring malting barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) germplasm lines developed by the USDA‐ARS breeding program at Aberdeen, ID. All three germplasm lines were evaluated in 27 irrigated and 14 dryland trials. ARS10‐82 had significantly higher yield than all the checks, and ARS98‐31 and ARS84‐27 were competitive with the best check cultivar ‘Voyager’ (Busch Agricultural Resources). Malting evaluation results showed acceptable quality profiles with specific quality traits including high extract, low protein content, and low beta‐glucan for the years tested. They are all classified as moderately resistant to Fusarium head blight infection with low deoxynivalenol (DON) levels.

‘Butta 12’, a two‐rowed malting barley adapted to the California Central Valley with proven floor‐malting success and craft brewer acceptance

Abstract‘Butta 12’ (Reg. no. CV‐371, PI 692639) is the first malting barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) released by the University of California to complete plant‐scale malting evaluation and to be brewed successfully by scores of craft brewers. In cooperation with Admiral Maltings, Alameda, CA, Butta 12 has been malted and marketed primarily under the names Gallagher's Best, Feldblume, and Admiral Pils for all‐malt brewing and distilling. Butta 12 combines good malting quality, adequate disease resistance, and good agronomic performance to provide a local maltster with a grower‐accepted local source of malting barley. Kilning variables produced a wide range of flavors. Additionally, Butta 12 and a related malting cultivar ‘UC Tahoe’ are nonproducers of glycosidic nitrile, which is an advantage for their use by distillers. With no initial California two‐rowed malting barley germplasm as a starting point, it took over 20 yr of breeding work to combine favorable alleles for malting quality from the Oregon State University barley improvement program with increased disease resistance from the barley breeding program of International Center for the Improvement of Agriculture in the Dry Areas (ICARDA)/International Center for Maize and Wheat Improvement (CIMMYT), Mexico. The focus on disease resistance was necessary because several barley diseases in California prevent the direct introduction of malting cultivars into California's Central Valley from the northern tier of U.S. states and Canada.

Performance Evaluation of Malt Barley: from Malting Quality and Breeding Perspective

Lack of suitable malt barley varieties that exhibit high yielding, stable performance, and good malting quality is the major factor among several production constraints contributing to low productivity of malt barley in the North Gondar Zone. The present study was done to evaluate and recommend the best performing varieties in the major potential areas of North Gondar. The experiment was conducted at three locations for two consecutive years (2015 and 2016) during the main cropping season using twelve improved varieties. The design was randomized complete block design with three replications. Analysis of variance and GGE [genotype main effect (G) and genotype-by-environment interaction (GE)] biplot analysis were conducted following their respective procedures. Combined analysis of variance revealed a highly significant difference (P < 0.01) among genotypes, environments, and genotype-by-environment interaction for grain yield, most agronomic and malt quality traits. All the varieties had acceptable malt quality traits. The variety IBON-174/03 was found to be the highest yielding and the most stable variety across environments. According to the polygon view of biplot analysis, the varieties were spread across four sections and the test environments spread across two sections. Among the six test environments, D and C were more discriminating and F and B were less discriminating. Test environments F, E, and A were found to be more representative of the mega-environment than D. Considering early maturity, malt quality, grain yield, and stability performance; it is recommended to use the variety IBON-174/03 for production in the study areas and in similar areas.

Mutations in the gene of the G\u03b1 subunit of the heterotrimeric G protein are the cause for the brachytic1 semi-dwarf phenotype in barley and applicable for practical breeding

BackgroundShort-culm mutants have been widely used in breeding programs to increase lodging resistance. In barley (Hordeum vulgare L.), several hundreds of short-culm mutants have been isolated over the years. The objective of the present study was to identify the Brachytic1 (Brh1) semi-dwarfing gene and to test its effect on yield and malting quality.ResultsDouble-haploid lines generated through a cross between a brh1.a mutant and the European elite malting cultivar Quench, showed good malting quality but a decrease in yield. Especially the activities of the starch degrading enzymes β-amylase and free limit dextrinase were high. A syntenic approach comparing markers in barley to those in rice (Oryza sativa L.), sorghum (Sorghum bicolor Moench) and brachypodium (Brachypodium distachyon P. Beauv) helped us to identify Brh1 as an orthologue of rice D1 encoding the Gα subunit of a heterotrimeric G protein. We demonstrated that Brh1 is allelic to Ari-m. Sixteen different mutant alleles were described at the DNA level.ConclusionsMutants in the Brh1 locus are deficient in the Gα subunit of a heterotrimeric G protein, which shows that heterotrimeric G proteins are important regulators of culm length in barley. Mutant alleles do not have any major negative effects on malting quality.

Optimizing the Malting Conditions of Landrace Six-Row Arupo S Barley Adapted to Grow in Tropical Nigeria

The major climatic limitations associated with barley production in the tropics are temperature, humidity, and soils. Arupo S is a six-row landrace barley variety successfully grown in Nigeria, where environmental conditions are often unfavorable. Arupo S is a semi-dwarf, medium maturity with very high yield potential under favorable conditions. It has excellent lodging resistance and good levels of resistance to most diseases, for example, stem rust, leaf rust, and so on. It has good malting quality. Arupo S barley malted at a wide range of temperature conditions (16–25°C) produced malts that met the requirements for brewing purposes. The results of this study showed that the growing conditions of Arupo S barley under irrigation (flooding) did not have any observed negative impact on the quality of malt made from Arupo barley. Arupo S barley steeped and germinated in the temperature range 16–25°C developed good levels of amylolytic enzymes (α-amylase and β-amylase) and produced good hot water extracts (HWE), free amino nitrogen (FAN), amino acids, and reducing sugars. Although the malt made at 25°C developed the least amount of amylolytic enzymes and FAN products, it produced the highest levels of HWE and reducing sugars (glucose and maltose). On the other hand, Arupo S malt made at 18°C developed higher levels of amylolytic enzymes but gave lower amounts of HWE, especially at day 4 of germination. In terms of amino acid distribution in the worts of malted Arupo S barley, the malts made at the lower temperatures of 16 and 18°C gave higher levels of the individual amino acids. The malt made at higher temperatures also produced reasonable amounts of individual amino acids. These results show the difficulties of using only a few parameters in assessing malt quality, indicating that a holistic approach is required when assessing barley and malt quality. Furthermore, this study showed that using a higher malting temperature to produce malt from Arupo S barley in hot countries where malting temperature is difficult to control will not have much detrimental effect on the quality of the malt produced. This is an advantage because use of refrigeration during malting would be expensive.

Hull to caryopsis adhesion and grain skinning in malting barley: Identification of key growth stages in the adhesion process

Strong adhesion between the hull and the caryopsis is essential for barley to be of good malting quality. Poor hull adhesion, a condition known as grain skinning, is undesirable for malting and downstream processes. At present, the processes mediating hull adhesion during grain development are poorly understood. The barley cultivar Chariot was grown in greenhouse conditions and grain development was recorded at defined growth stages to examine the timing of hull adhesion. Initiation of adhesion was first observed when caryopsis fresh weight and volume were approaching their maximum at 19 days after anthesis, during early dough. Hull adhesion was complete by 27 days after anthesis, or soft dough. Sections of developing grains were observed using light and transmission electron microscopy to examine a lipid-rich cementing layer believed to be responsible for adhesion between the hull and the pericarp. Evidence for a lipid-rich cementing material was supported by the observation that neither pectinase nor cellulase effected hull loosening. Grain growth, the presence of globular material originating from the pericarp and an electron dense material in the cementing layer are discussed in relation to hull adhesion. Grain skinning could be caused by poor adherence of cuticular material or inadequate fusion between cuticles.

New spring malting barley varieties: NS Mile and NS Marko

Breeding program at the Institute of Field and Vegetable Crops is directed to the development of new barley cultivars with a high and stable yield, good malting quality and high resistance abiotic and biotic stress. As a result of this work, two new varieties of spring malting barley NS Mile and NS Marko were developed in the 2012. The two-year trial of Commission for the registration of varieties, Republic of Serbia, showed that the NS Marko and NS Mile are distinct, uniform and stable varieties, and that on average they had significantly higher yield and better quality than standard variety for all the test sites and all years. NS Marko and NS Mile are new early varieties of NS malting barley that are characterized by high genetic potential for yield, which is more than 9 t ha-1, as well as by high quality, especially high content of malt extract and lower protein content compared to standard cultivar.

Spring barley breeding for malting quality

The aim of this contribution is to illustrate the results of spring barley breeding for malting quality and point out an important position of variety in production of qualitative raw material for maltinq and beer industry as well as the system of evaluation the qualitative parameters of breeding materials and adaptation of barley breeding programms to the new requirements of malting and beer industry. As an example of the results obtained most recently description is made of the Ezer, Levan, Donaris, Sladar spring barley varieties with very good malting quality and effective resistance to powdery mildew. Cultivation of these varieties and malting barley production with reduced use of pesticidies is environmentally friedly alternative.

Coincident quantitative trait loci effects for dormancy, water sensitivity and malting quality traits in the BCD47×Baronesse barley mapping population

A degree of seed dormancy (SD) is required for malting barley varieties in Uruguay, and many other parts of the world, in order to prevent pre-harvest sprouting. Water sensitivity (WS) (a decrease in germination under excess water) is a related trait that can create problems at the malthouse. Both traits are affected by environmental conditions during grain filling. We used a population of 100 doubled haploid lines derived from the cross BCD47 × Baronesse to map quantitative trait loci (QTL) affecting SD, WS, and malting quality traits. Preliminary experiments revealed that BCD47 has low SD and Baronesse has high SD. WS for these accessions was not known before this research. A major SD QTL – detected in four experiments – is on chromosome 5H, with BCD47 contributing the low dormancy allele. Four other regions with QTL effects for SD were mapped, but these QTL were significant in data from only one or two environments. Four regions were detected with QTL effects for WS, but only two – in 5H coincident with the SD QTL, and 3H – were significant in more than one environment. SD and WS were affected by the average temperature at the end of the grain-filling period, with higher temperatures associated with lower values for SD. At the same region on 5H where SD and WS QTL were detected, we found significant QTL for malt extract, α-amylase activity, β-glucans, FAN, Kolbach index, wort turbidity and protein content, with BCD47 contributing favourable alleles for all traits. These results underscore the importance of environmental effects on both SD and WS as well as the difficulties of combining good malting quality with adequate levels of SD and WS.

Newdale barley

Newdale is a two-row spring malting barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) cultivar widely adapted to western Canada that has performed particularly well in Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Developed from a cross made in 1991, Newdale was evaluated in the Western Cooperative Two-row Barley Registration Test (1998-1999) and the Collaborative Malting Barley Trials (1999-2000) conducted by the malting and brewing industry before being registered in 2001. Newdale is a significantly higher yielding cultivar with good agronomic traits, moderate disease resistance and good malting quality. Key words: Malting barley, Hordeum vulgare L., cultivar description, yield, disease resistance, malting quality

Effect of Low-Phytate Barley on Malt Quality, Including Mineral Loss, during Fermentation

The recent development of low-phytate barley offers the possibility of improving fermentation efficiency and reducing the need for mineral supplementation in the brewhouse. Three barley lines have been developed with ≈50, 25, and 5% of normal phytate. The lines have a Harrington background, which increases the probability of producing barley with good malting quality from the lines. Samples of Harrington and the three lines were malted and tested for quality, including zinc and magnesium usage during fermentation. Effects of zinc supplementation at mashing-in and kettle-full also were investigated. The low-phytate lines all had adequate malt quality and were similar to Harrington. The 5% of normal phytate wort (not supplemented) had significantly higher levels of zinc and magnesium than the other three samples. Worts from the 50 and 25% of normal phytate lines also had significantly higher levels of magnesium than the Harrington wort. The 5% of normal phytate worts, both the control and mash-supplemented, used significantly more zinc during fermentation than all other worts. The mash-supplemented wort from the 50% of normal phytate malt also used significantly more zinc during fermentation than the 25% of normal phytate or Harrington worts. There were no significant differences in zinc usage among the worts supplemented at kettle-full. The low-phytate trait showed an insignificant tendency to improve fermentation, as measured by apparent attenuation limit, supporting further testing of low-phytate malts with pilot-scale brewing facilities and higher gravity worts in which minerals more likely would be limiting.

Tolerance of barley seed germination to cold‐ and drought‐stress expressed as seed vigour

AbstractIn barley, high seed vigour is a precondition for rapid and homogenous field emergence and good malting quality. Seed vigour was defined as germination percentage under stress conditions (10°C, drought stress ‐ 2 Bars) in 7‐8 barley varieties grown in 7‐8 locations in the Czech Republic over 7 years. Three of the 7 years were not suitable for high seed quality, probably because of unsuitable weather, as average seed vigour reached only 61, 77 and 86%, respectively. In the remaining 4 years, the average vigour exceeded 94%. The impact of variety on seed vigour was higher in the ‘bad years’ and the impact of location was higher in the other years. Varieties with higher vigour from all locations in the ‘bad years’ were identified. Lower vigour was related to the high occurrence of fungi (indicated by ergosterol assays) and to lower field emergence rates of seed samples. The results support the possibility of selecting for improvement of barley seed vigour, which is related to tolerance to various conditions during emergence and to homogenous malting.

Prospects for molecular breeding of barley

SummaryData from UK Recommended List Trials showed that the introduction of new cultivars of spring and winter barley has maintained a significant increase in yield over time, whereas there has been no significant improvement in hot water extract, the major determinant of good malting quality, in either crop. Commercial barley breeding is based upon phenotypic selection, and the introduction of molecular breeding methods must either increase the rate of advance, or offer an improvement in the cost‐effectiveness of breeding programmes. Molecular breeding can be applied to either single gene or polygenic characters but is not widely used in commercial barley breeding, other than as a marker for resistance to the Barley Yellow Mosaic Virus complex. There are many reports of potential targets for use in molecular breeding but the few validation studies that have been carried out to date are disappointing. Results from genomics studies are likely to lead to the identification of key candidate genes, which can be associated with economically important characters through co‐location on certain chromosomal regions. Associations between candidate gene sequence haplotypes and phenotypic characteristics is expected to identify allelic combinations, which are most frequently observed in successful cultivars, that can be used in molecular breeding of barley on a commercial scale.

Barley malting quality and yield interrelationships and the effect on yield distribution of selection for malting quality in the early generations

Relationships between malting quality attributes and grain yield in segregating populations can profoundly influence the intensity and sequence of trait selection. Consequently, the interrelationships between malting quality parameters predicted by near infrared transmittance (NIT) spectroscopy, grain weight, and grain yield in unselected populations of F2, F3, and F4 breeding lines from 4 barley crosses were examined. The simple and partial correlations between malt extract, protein content, and diastatic power were similar to those reported in previous studies except for a positive correlation between malt extract and diastatic power in the F2 and F3 generations. This positive relationship should enhance selection for improved malting quality in breeding programs. There were no relationships between grain yield and malting quality attributes, which would have an adverse impact on the intensity and sequence of trait selection. The effect of F2 and F3 selection for malting quality on F3 and F4 yield distributions was estimated by comparing the F3 and F4 yield distributions of the entire unselected population with those for the selected populations. Individual selection and sequential independent selection in the F2 and F3 generation for malting quality parameters predicted by NIT spectroscopy and grain weight in 4 crosses generally did not alter the nature of the subsequent yield distributions, yet 78–90% of lines could be discarded and there still existed adequate genetic gain for grain yield in the retained population of potentially good malting quality lines. These results indicate that barley breeders could use NIT spectroscopy to efficiently select in the early generations for malting quality prior to the conduct of yield testing and obtain good genetic gain for both malting quality and grain yield.

The use of AFLPs to examine genetic relatedness in barley

The generation of AFLPs in spring barley cultivars provided genetic information relating to the development of the crop in the UK since 1953. Principal co-ordinate (PCO) analysis of genetic similarities (gs) confirmed the marked contrast in the cultivars used in the 1970s and 1980s. The earliest cultivars, many derived from Proctor, were succeeded by tall-strawed, disease-resistant types with high yield but poor malting potential. In the 1980s they were in turn replaced by short-strawed cultivars with excellent yield and good malting quality, which originated from Triumph. A PCO plot of gs provided insight into the effects of selection for disease resistance and the antagonism between malting quality and particular resistance genes. The analysis of gs was more useful than pedigrees and estimates of kinship in revealing the genetic relationship between cultivars. Theoretical considerations for maximising the efficiency of an AFLP genotyping programme are discussed in the context of the number of primer pairs required to distinguish genotypes at varying levels of similarity.

Molecular marker-assisted selection for malting quality traits in barley

Selection for malting quality in breeding programs by micromalting and micromashing is time-consuming, and resource-intensive. More efficient and feasible approaches for identifying genotypes with good malting quality would be highly desirable. With the advent of molecular markers, it is possible to map and tag the loci affecting malting quality. The objective of this study was to assess the effectiveness of molecular marker assisted selection for malting quality traits. Two major quantitative trait loci (QTL) regions in six-row barley for malt extract percentage, α-amylase activity, diastatic power, and malt β-glucan content on chromosomes 1 (QTL1) and 4 (QTL2) have been previously identified. The flanking markers, Brz and Amy2, and WG622 and BCD402B, for these two major QTL regions were used in marker-assisted selection. Four alternative selection strategies; phenotypic selection, genotypic selection, tandem genotypic and phenotypic selection, and combined phenotypic and genotypic selection, were compared for both single and multiple trait selection in a population consisting of 92 doubled haploid lines derived from ‘Steptoe’ × ‘Morex’ crosses. Marker assisted selection for QTL1 (tandem genotypic and phenotypic selection, and combined phenotypic and genotypic selection) was more effective than phenotypic selection, but for QTL2 was not as effective as phenotypic selection due to a lack of QTL2 effects in the selection population. The effectiveness of tandem genotypic and phenotypic selection makes marker assisted selection practical for traits which are extremely difficult or expensive to measure such as most malting quality traits. It can substantially eliminate undesirable genotypes by early genotyping and keeping only desirable genotypes for later phenotypic selection.

Structural Differences in the Mature Endosperms of Good and Poor Malting Barley Cultivars

Abstract Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to examine a number of good and poor malting quality barley cultivars of both spring- and winter-sown type. Mature grains were frozen and fractured, and the endosperm surfaces were examined, with particular attention given to the sub-aleurone and starchy endosperm regions. All of the cultivars showed similar patterns of endosperm cell size, distribution and packing. However, variation in the patterns of fracture through the endosperm, and in the extent of starch–protein adhesion, were observed. Poor malting quality cultivars had fracture planes that traversed the starch granule—protein matrix interface, indicating a high degree of starch–protein association similar to that exhibited by hard wheat cultivars. In contrast, good malting quality cultivars had fracture planes around the starch granules, indicating a low degree of starch–protein binding similar to that exhibited by soft wheat cultivars. The possible role of starch–protein binding in malting performance is discussed.

Quantitative Trait Loci for Germination and Malting Quality Characters in a Spring Barley Cross

Absence of dormancy and good malting quality are significant targets of many barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) breeding programs. Expression of dormancy is strongly affected by the environment, and malting quality assays are expensive. Both groups of characters would therefore be suitable for marker‐assisted selection. The objective of this study was to identify quantitative trait loci (QTL) controlling germination and malting quality characters in a cross between the spring barley genotypes ‘Blenheim’ and E224/3 as an initial step in the development of a marker‐assisted selection scheme. The characters were measured on a random sample of doubled haploid lines from the cross grown in replicated trials each year from 1989 to 1992. The QTL were revealed by regression analysis of the data with marker scores from 120 mapped polymorphic loci. The QTL controlling hot water extract were located on barley Chromosomes 2, 3, and 7. Milling energy was largely controlled by a factor on Chromosome 7, a region also associated with extract viscosity. The denso dwarfing gene on Chromosome 3 was associated with a reduction in grain N but this was found to be a dilution effect as the locus had previously been found to be associated with an increase in grain yield. The germination characters showed little relationship with each other, possibly reflecting different mechanisms of control.