When talking about brewing German beers, one of the first grains that come to mind is Munich Malt. Oh but Munich is not just for German style beers. Its malty goodness can provide flavor for any number of styles.

What is Munich Malt anyway? A 2 row and sometimes 6 row base malt that is kilned slightly different than your normal Pilsner and other 2 row malts. While most malts are dried to very low moisture points before the kilning process begins, Munich keeps a higher moisture point before the heat is applied. Kinda sorta like a crystal malt,, but not as extreme.

By doing this, Munich gets a very different flavor profile and deeper color. While most 2 row malts are in the 3-4 SRM range, Munich is generally in the 7-10 range.  20 and now even 30 SRM versions are becoming available as well. 

Each one of these variations brings subtle changes to the bready, grainy and malty flavors and aromas that are the trademark of Munich malt. These changes generally get more intense the darker you go.

While the lighter versions can certainly be used as a 100% grain bill because of its relatively high diastatic power, the darker versions have much lower power and are more often used with a lighter base malt like the Pilsners and standard 2 rows for conversion.

A little does go a long way with the darker Munichs, so they are usually used in smaller amounts to secondarily add depths or layers of flavor to your grain bills.

Of course German style beers such as Oktoberfests, Bocks, Marzens and the like really feature heavy Munich use, but nearly every style of beer out there can use it to some degree for a bit of malty goodness. 

And nowadays, nearly every Maltster out there is making some level of Munich malt,, so the varieties and variations are endless. 

Here is a quick and easy Munich Smash recipe to get a feel for the general properties of Munich malt.

Here is another fantastic recipe using one of the darker Munich Malts
Dark Munich Amber
http://blog.brewingwithbriess.com/dark-munich-amber-ale/

Some of the informations here came from
The Magic of Munich Malt by Jim Busch
BYO- Using Munich and Vienna malts – Thomas J Miller
Thanks alot!

Thanks alot!