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Fermentability/ attenuation is defined by the ability of the enzymes to break down the long chain carbohydrates, mostly amylopectin and amylose. Amylopectin has alpha 1-6 bonds at the branches, the rest are alpha 1-4 bonds, amylose has only alpha 1-4 bonds. Because alpha and beta amylase combined can only break alpha 1-4 bonds, the fermentability of the wort is defined by the carbohydrates that cannot be broken down because of the alpha 1-6 bonds they have. Unfermentable carbohydrates in wort are in the order of 25-27% depending on the grain and other parameters (the range is a bit more than 25-27%). Reversing this information, fermentable carbohydrates in wort are at most 73-75%; in other words, real attenuation is at most 73-75%.
Because real attenuation is not easy to measure, most brewers use apparent attenuation as a proxy. Because alcohol is less dense than water, apparent attenuation can reach much higher values, as you mentioned.
Hope this explains
Statistics: Posted by lupulus — Tue May 22, 2018 3:11 pm
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In this podcast, discussing malt, the "Group Director, Brewing Raw Materials at Anheuser-Busch, Inc." keeps stating that helles and czech pils are very low attenuating beers (in the 60s). Is he misspeaking or am I misunderstanding something. From what I've seen (WO stats for one) it's more like over 80.
Statistics: Posted by Brody — Tue May 22, 2018 12:06 pm
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