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Proposed: GFB Grain Profile (GFB-GP, draft v0.1)

One blank form for a brewing grain: thirteen rows, always in the same order, each saying where it is measured and who reads it. Sorghum fills it twice, once for the process we run today and once for the sorghum Seed Standard 2 describes. Every other grain fills it once.

Status: proposed, draft v0.1, never ratified by anyone. The sorghum values below are proposed targets for non-tannin (Type I) sorghum, restated from the Malting Sorghum Specification (GFB-MSS) and the two seed standards. None of them is new, and each is cited on the page it comes from. The thresholds a single delivery is bought against stay in GFB-MSS Part 3.

The form covers a grain from the field to the wort. It does not yet cover fat, a lot's gluten status, identity and supply, or flavour, which the seed standards carry today; where each of those belongs against this form is still to be decided.

The form​

GFB Grain Profile · Sorghum · Column A
Profile
GFB-GP-SORGHUM-A
Version
draft v0.1
Effective
2026-10-27

Today's process: external enzymes own conversion, and the malt is a character ingredient.

#RowMeasured onTargetBasis
1Tannin classgrainNon-tannin (Type I), confirmed by assaySource
2Starch% d.b.grain≥ 65Ideal ≥ 72Source
3Protein% d.b.grain9–12Ideal 9–10.5Source
4Gelatinization°C, DSCgrainDeclared: onset, peak, conclusion†Source
5Kernel qualitygrainTest weight ≥ 56 lb/bu; moisture ≤ 14%; no desiccantSource
6Germination3 daysgrain≥ 85%Ideal ≥ 95% and evenSource
7MycotoxinsgrainDON ≤ 0.5 ppm; aflatoxin ≤ 5.0 ppbSource
8Enzymes3-day germinationmaltNo requirementSource
9ExtractmaltAs high as the line givesSource
10ColourmaltDeclaredSource
11FAN / soluble proteinmg/LwortAs high as the line gives, at a stated gravitySource
12Filtration / viscositywortFree-running wortSource
13AgronomicsfieldYield, maturity, grain-mold and disease resistance, repeatable qualitySource

† Row 4: Sorghum starch gelatinizes across 68–81 °C (154–178 °F), so each lot declares its own values.

Review when: A threshold moves on GFB-MSS or Seed Standard 1. Sorghum Seed Standard 1

GFB Grain Profile · Sorghum · Column B
Profile
GFB-GP-SORGHUM-B
Version
draft v0.1
Effective
2026-10-27

Seed Standard 2's target: a sorghum whose starch opens in a standard mash and whose malt converts it with no added enzymes.

#RowMeasured onTargetBasis
1Tannin classgrainNon-tannin (Type I), confirmed by assaySource
2Starch% d.b.grain≥ 65Ideal ≥ 70Source
3Protein% d.b.grain11–14Ideal 12–13Source
4Gelatinization°C, DSCgrainConclusion ≤ 65; ceiling 69.6 (α-amylase Tm)†Source
5Kernel qualitygrainTest weight ≥ 56 lb/bu; moisture ≤ 14%; no desiccantSource
6Germination3 daysgrain≥ 90%Ideal ≥ 95% and evenSource
7MycotoxinsgrainDON ≤ 0.5 ppm; aflatoxin ≤ 5.0 ppbSource
8Enzymes3-day germinationmaltDP ≥ 30 °ASBC; α-amylase ≥ 62 DU; β-amylase reportedIdeal DP ≥ 40 °ASBC; α-amylase ≥ 78 DUSource
9ExtractmaltFrom the malt's own enzymesSource
10ColourmaltDeclaredSource
11FAN / soluble proteinmg/LwortAs high as the line gives, at a stated gravitySource
12Filtration / viscositywortFree-running wortSource
13AgronomicsfieldYield, maturity, grain-mold and disease resistance, repeatable qualitySource

† Row 4: The 69.6 °C ceiling is derived from the literature (purified enzyme at pH 4.8) and has not been measured on sorghum malt in a mash.

Review when: A threshold moves on GFB-MSS or Seed Standard 2, or a sourced denaturation figure for sorghum malt amylase replaces the 69.6 °C literature value. Sorghum Seed Standard 2

Row 4, column B. Seed Standard 2 carries the citation for the 69.6 °C ceiling, and Ask 21 asks for a figure measured on sorghum malt in a mash.

Where each number comes from​

  • Rows 2, 3, 6 and 8: GFB-MSS Part 3b, Profiles A and B, with the screening data behind each range.
  • Rows 5 and 7: GFB-MSS Part 3, the floor every lot must meet.
  • Row 4: property 6 of Seed Standard 1 for column A, and property 6 of Seed Standard 2 for column B.
  • Rows 1 and 9 to 12: the matching properties of both seed standards.
  • Row 13: the Field profile of Sorghum Seed Data Profiles, which explains why field ranges depend on where the crop is grown.

Where each row is measured​

  • Grain, rows 1 to 7. Measured on the harvested kernel before it is malted. These are what a grower delivers and what a buyer tests when a lot arrives.
  • Malt, rows 8 to 10. Measured after malting. An enzyme figure in row 8 is bound to three-day germination and to the method that produced it; GFB-MSS shows two of this site's datasets disagreeing on α-amylase by roughly five to ten times for exactly that reason.
  • Wort, rows 11 and 12. Measured in the mash and at the lauter, at a stated gravity.
  • Field, row 13. Measured in the growing crop, over seasons and locations.

Who reads which rows​

The breeder targets all thirteen. The grower delivers rows 5, 6, 7 and 13. A pass-through maltster accepts grain on rows 5, 6 and 7, and an active maltster works rows 1 to 10. The brewer reads rows 8 to 12 and designs the mash from row 4.

Two columns for sorghum​

Column A is today's process, where external enzymes do the converting: Seed Standard 1 and GFB-MSS Profile A. Its enzyme row has no requirement, because the brewhouse supplies the enzymes.

Column B is Seed Standard 2's target, a sorghum whose malt converts a standard mash on its own. In column B, rows 4 and 8 are one target. A malt with plenty of enzymes still needs a cereal cook if its starch does not finish gelatinizing until 81 °C, and the cook destroys the enzymes the line was selected for. Moving one row without the other changes which workaround the brewer needs.

Other grains​

Millet, buckwheat, rice and corn will each fill the form once. A row with no sourced number will read "not stated"; nothing is estimated to fill it. Teff and quinoa will be filled for the research directory first.

Oats get no profile. The Truly Gluten-Free Standard excludes them.

Version history​

  • v0.1, 2026-10-27. First draft: the thirteen rows set as a table, with where each is measured and who reads it. DR-0097.