Milling and Mash Preparation
Everything that happens in the mash is shaped by what happens in the mill. Gluten-free grains behave differently under the roller, and a poor crush sets up conversion failures before hot water is ever added.
Barley has a natural husk that protects the endosperm during milling and forms a filtration bed during lautering. Gluten-free grains do not. That single difference changes how you mill, how you build the grist, and how you design your mash tun setup.
The Core Problem: No Husk
Barley's husk stays mostly intact through milling and creates a natural filter bed during lautering. When you sparge over a barley grain bed, the husks hold the bed open and wort flows through cleanly.
GF grains — sorghum, millet, rice, buckwheat — have no husk. Mill them incorrectly and you end up with a compacted paste that either blocks your lauter completely or passes so much fine material into the wort that every downstream stage suffers.
This is why milling and mash preparation for GF brewing is its own discipline, not just a settings adjustment from a barley workflow.
What This Section Covers
- Milling GF Grains — roller gap settings, crush targets, and how sorghum, millet, and rice behave differently under the mill
- Rice Hulls and Lautering Aids — why GF grain beds get stuck and how to prevent it
- Grist Design — particle size distribution, mixed-grain considerations, and how to read a crush
- Mash Tun Considerations — false bottoms, grain bed depth, and lauter equipment for huskless grain
Source Notes
Crush behavior data based on commercial GF brewing practice and academic milling studies on sorghum and millet endosperm structure. Rice hull addition rates reflect craft brewing production norms.