🍺 Top-down Brew: Codes for Recipes

Overview

The codes used by the beer engine are documented and explained. Ingredients that require multiple values, like malt and hops, need commas inbetween the values (comma separated values). Each code includes a definition, the conceptual form, and an example. The code format has changed since the 2024 version to make understanding more straightforward.

Code Dictionary (in alphabetical order)

dme:

For partial mash recipes with fixed dry malt extract weight

dme: weight

dme: 1

dry:

Dry hopping with name and dosage

dry: name, grams per liter

dry: Cascade, 2

eff:

Mash efficiency percentage, typically between 65% (BIAB) and 90% (continuous sparge)

eff: 75

hop:

Boiled hops

hop: name, percent of IBUs, alpha acid percentage, boil time in minutes

hop: Cascade, 70, 5.5, 60

ibu:

The desired bitterness expressed in international bittering units

ibu: bittering value

ibu: 25

lateboil:

Herbs, yeast nutrients, and other additions added just before flame out

lateboil: name, grams per liter

lateboil: yeast nutrient, 1

lme:

For partial mash recipes with a fixed weight of liquid malt extract

lme: weight

lme: 3.3

malt:

Entry of malts (base and specialty) and adjunct grains

malt: name, wort gravity percentage, lovibond, yield (either percent or SG)

malt: Rahr two-row malt, 90, 3, 80

name:

The name of the beer

name: title

name: My Favorite Beer

og:

Original gravity in either specific gravity (1.xxx) or degrees Plato

og: gravity

og: 1.050

og: 12

prime:

Priming sugar calculations based upon desired volumes of CO2 and fermentation maximum temperature

prime: volume of CO2, highest fermentation temperature

prime: 2.5, 72

sugar:

Sugars (dry or liquid) and malt extract

sugar: name, wort gravity percentage, lovibond, yield (either percent or SG)

sugar: sucrose, 5, 2, 100

system:

The desired measurement system, metric, US, or barrels

system: US

vol:

Target volume at the end of the boil

vol: desired liters, gallons, or barrels

vol: 5

yeast:

Type of yeast

yeast: ale or lager

yeast: ale