Brewspeak Lexicon: T

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tannic

A group of substances called tannins are what's responsible for the dry, "furry mouth" feeling you get from drinking strong pekoe tea or eating wild cherries (choke cherries). In some particularly bitter beers, a tannic hang from especially tannin-rich hop crops or varieties can occur that detracts significantly from the sensation of refreshment.

tap

A faucet (tapping) device designed to draw beer from a container by injecting carbon dioxide into the container to pressurize it so that the beer is literally pushed out through the faucet by gas pressure rather than pulled by gravity. Tapping adds carbonation to the beer and helps insure even carbonation and a full head right down to the bottom of the keg or cask, but aside from producing a slight carbonic-acid bite on the tongue and throat, it has no effect on flavor or beer quality. Devices used for drawing beer without the addition of carbon dioxide are referred to as beer engines.

temporary hardness

Hardness is determined by the type and amount of mineral salts (usually calcium salts) in the water. Temporary hardness is a hardness that is reducible by the boil, which causes some of these salts to bind and separate out of the wort. Temporary hardness can impart a cleaner-than-normal taste to some beers without impairing fullness of flavor by limiting what can be dissolved in the mashing stage and not sticking around to impair fermentation or conditioning.

terminal gravity

See final specific gravity.

trappist ale

One of only two "official" names for beer, the other being kölsch. (Does anyone have any idea who exactly these "officials" are?) Trappists are monks of a specific monastic discipline, and Belgian trappists were responsible for developing this style. Trappist ale is typically high-alcohol, medium-bodied, very lightly hopped and often sweet-tasting, with a distinctive flavor derived from the strains of yeast used in its production.

trub

Technically, protein residues left after fermentation. More commonly, any type of particulate left after the boil. "Hot break" trub refers to coagulated proteins and hop particles; "cold break" trub refers to colloidal proteins and dead yeast cells that settle in the fermentation tank.

tun

Generic brewing term for any large container used in brewing, becoming less common than "tub" or "tank".

two-row barley

See six-row barley