The ideal grain crush breaks the inner kernel into 3 to 4 small pieces while keeping the husks as intact as possible. It’s important not to confuse crushing with grinding—grinding produces a much finer texture that can cause issues during brewing.

Why does this matter? Because intact husks overlap to form a natural filtration bed, reducing the amount of insoluble particles in the wort and resulting in a clearer beer. The choice of malt crushing method depends on several factors, including your brewing technique and the filtration system you use (brew bag, lauter tun, or false bottom).

A finer crush improves extraction efficiency, but it also slows down wort flow through the spent grains. This makes a fine grind especially well-suited for BIAB (Brew In A Bag) brewing. On the other hand, a coarser crush allows wort to flow more easily through the grain bed, making it better suited for systems that use a lauter tun or false bottom filtration.

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