Heritage 6-Row Malted Barley - Riverbend

Six-Row Barley • Caramel and Toasted Bread • A Riverbend Original

Heritage is Riverbend Malt House's own creation, malted from six-row barley. Riverbend developed its color and aroma to carry further than a standard pale malt, and the result leads with caramel and toasted bread rather than the clean, neutral character most base malts are built for.

It is unusual among six-row malts. Most are kilned pale and chosen purely for enzyme power, while this one is taken further in the kiln, which is where the caramel and biscuit come from. At 35 PPG and 8 °Lovibond it still carries a grain bill on its own, and its 80 °Lintner diastatic power converts its own starch plus a share of specialty grain alongside it.

Flavor & Aroma Profile

• Caramel sweetness
• Toasted bread crust
• Biscuit and light nuttiness
• Light toast with no roast or char
• Deep gold to light amber color

At a low percentage it works as a seasoning malt, adding a caramel and biscuit layer to a beer built on a pale base. Taken toward the top of its range it becomes the malt backbone itself, which is how Riverbend intends it in a Belgian Dubbel.

Brewing Applications

Heritage suits malt-forward beers that want depth without roast, including:

• Belgian Dubbel
• Ordinary Bitter
• Best Bitter
• English Brown Ale
• Amber Ale
• Saison

Riverbend also calls it out for bourbon mash bills, where the caramel and bread character carries through the distillate.

Usage Recommendations

Heritage can run as the base malt of a recipe or sit in the specialty range, which is what makes it flexible. Riverbend's own guidance is a Belgian Dubbel built on it as the base, or an Ordinary Bitter using it at a lower percentage. Around 10 to 20% it adds caramel and toast to a pale base; from 40 to 60% it defines the beer.

Its diastatic power is moderate rather than high, so if your recipe leans on a large share of unmalted adjuncts or low-enzyme specialty malts, pair it with a well-modified pale base malt to carry the conversion.

Specifications

• PPG (Points Per Pound Per Gallon): 35
• Color: 8 °Lovibond (6–10 SRM)
• Diastatic Power: 80 °Lintner minimum
• Minimum Extract (Fine Grind, Dry Basis): 78%
• Protein: 11.6%
• Grain: Six-row barley
• Flavor Notes: Biscuity, caramel, light toast
• Usage Rate: 10–60% of grain bill
• Beer Styles: Belgian Dubbel, bitters, brown and amber ales, saison

Whether you're building a Belgian Dubbel on it as a base, adding a caramel layer to an English bitter, or working it into a bourbon mash bill, Heritage brings toasted bread and caramel without the roast of a darker specialty malt.