Later, once the wort has cooled, yeast is added to cause fermentation. Malted Barley Malted barley is the heart and soul of craft beers and home beers. Roasted in a range of flavors and colors, malted barley can be found in light pilsners, full-bodied amber ales and dark stouts. Only pale malt contains the malt sugar which is fermentable. Plain malt is used for flavoring.
Roasted malt adds color characteristics to stouts and porters.
Some beginning homebrewers start by using malt extract, where the process of mashing the grain and converting the carbohydrates to sugars is already done for you. Malt extract can be dry or liquid. Some malt extracts have also been hopped for you, so you don't have to go through the step of adding bittering hops. Use of malt extract is not limited to novices however. Brewmaster and author Charlie Papazian, who has brewed over 500 batches of beer, says he still uses malt extract about 80 percent of the time.