Gluten Free Beer

[Pyper]

Isn't most of the flavour and scent from the hops?

Yeasts only break down sugar, the carbohydrates need to be converted to sugars before the yeasts can work on it. I think that is the malting process, and I am not sure just how much the grain contributes to the texture of the beer.

Malting is sprouting the grain to produce enzyme, and then heating (or roasting) it to kill the sprout. Mashing is the part where you seep the malted grain in hot water to get the enzymes to convert the starch to sugar.

In general the mouthfeel of a beer comes from the carbohydrates that are not converted to alcohol -- that's why something like Coors is watery in comparison to something like an Octoberfest beer. There's also the gluten, which is a protein.

As far as the flavors, it depends on the style of beer. Something like an IPA has a strong hop flavor, while something like an Octoberfest has a strong malt flavor. The brewer, through grain selection, and mashing schedule, controls how much malt flavor is in the beer. S/he then decides on how much hops to use to balance the malt. You can really get a wide range of flavor profiles from a very small number of variables.

Thanks for all the advice, keep it coming! I think I may have found a source for sorgham as well so I'll keep everyone updated. I'm hoping to have all the ingredients and start things by the New Year.

Where do you get the sorghum? I've only ever bought it at roadside stands or the grocery store, where it's about $7 a pint. I'd like to make beer again.

On the wiki webpage listed previously there's a good discussion page with a recipe that sounds like it would be good, along with some important information on yeast.