Danish Malt Barley

[rain]

Charlie is there any way to get confirmation about whether Canada is actually importing Malt barley from overseas?

[charliep]

Short answer is yes. One cargo for sure. Indications of a second.

[rain]

How do you get or who can you get the confimation from. Their are not many who doubt it but how do you confirm it?

[charliep]

Industry contacts (perhaps why I am quiet on this matter). As in your business, gathering market intellegence (some may say that is an oxymoron) is something I work at every day. Lots of information isn't readily available from normal channels (by the time you have seen it in the newspaper, it isn't a factor in the market anymore) so you have to find individuals you can trade information with. You also learn to stay alert based on the environment (i.e. not a surprise that there are no malt barley supplies and maltsters will be considering every alternative) and watch for signals and watch for signs/behavior patterns (knowing where deer feed helps in hunting them).

[rain]

No one doubts it has happened or that it will happen again. I do not see any wrong with importing this product. I do not care who bought, sold, handled or transported this product. But is there any way to confirm that Danish Malt Barley has been imported into Western Canada?

[TOM4CWB]

Rain;

Give a call to the malt people in Calgary, or Alex... you may just be surprised how much a little research can do...

This is the Alberta Barley Commission's phone number..(403)291-9111. Clifton Foster or even Ken Sackett (Chairman) (403)946-5016... can probably either fill you in or put you in touch with someone who might answer your questions!

I appreciate people who ask hard questions... it means they are thinking... are salespeople... will possibly mentor someone in our younger next generation to farm!

[rain]

Tom the most interesting thing about the maybe malt as I call it is that everyone is 99.9% sure it got done. 99%sure who bought it. But actually getting confirmation that it got done is near impossible at this point. Confirmation and hearsay are not the same. But most rumours are based on some truth. In the process of looking for the answer I have a new question to pose. Canada regularly imports malt it is classified as roasted and unroasted. Can some one tell me what these two terms mean?

[TOM4CWB]

Rain;

I got the card of Mr. Ian John, Manager of Grain Procurement, Westcan Malting, Alex AB.

Tel. 403-747-2777

Email: ian@westcanmalt.com

Give your questions to him, maybe he can help?

[ianben]

Had a trip round a brewery once. If I remember right, bit of a problem there a very hospitable visit, roasting malt is used to give colour to darker beers, browns and stouts we call them. Dont think they used any to produce larger and paler ales.

[charliep]

From what I know, Ianben is right. Darker ales use roasted malt. A site that I found that goes into a little detail on the process is:

http://hbd.org/brewery/library/Malt.html

[parsley]

Hey, ianben, I'm going to guess you don't remember right! It's beer, lad!
Parsley

[charliep]

Actually I have to step in and comment that calling the lighter lagers we produce in Canada a beer (for the most) is a mismoner. Ales and darker stouts (including Guinness) is real beer.

On the roasted malt barley front, I remember doing a tour of a brewery in Edmonton. They had bags of malt that was imported from Europe but was made from Canadian barley (herrington). A long round about trip for barley we produce at home.

[ianben]

Glad to see you take this market research seriously too Charlie!!!
Looked into Scotch whisky a few years ago. Now that is colourless till they put it in second-hand oak casks which have held red wine previously.
All scotch whisky is stored in oak for at least 8yrs and the better ones even longer.
Some market research can be quite a pleasant experience I find!!!

[rain]

I got confirmation that one cargoe of Danish malt barley is to arrive on the West Coast in November and that two more cargoes are expected on the lakehead later this winter. does any one know which grain companies can unload grain on the West Coast?

[charliep]

No answers. Just more questions. None of the terminals have unloading capabilities (unless there is a bulk facility that can unload grain). There are self unloading ships although I don't know the mechanics. West coast is also on strike. Would they unload at Portland or Seattle? Again, don't know unload capabilities.

What classes/varieties of malt barley are being brought in? Six or two row? Any rumors of six row into the US/Minneapolis?