• Sorghum is a grain similar in some ways to corn.grain image by Alex White from Fotolia.com
  
  Sorghum is a grain grown throughout the world in hot and dry climates. Sorghum's primary uses are food for both people and livestock. Because one of the primary ingredients in beer is malt made from grains, sorghum can be used as a primary ingredient in the brewing process. Starting in the early 2000s, sorghum became more popular as a brewing agent with major international breweries.
  
  

Grains in Brewing

• A combination of grains, most commonly barley mixed with rye or wheat, is the main ingredient in beer. Grain malt produces fermentable maltose sugars that work with the yeast over time to create the alcohol content in beer. Malted sorghum, being a similar grain, can take the place of malted barley in the creation of beer, yielding different and potentially interesting results.
  
  

Sorghum Brewing Facts

• Regular grain sorghum (not the sweet sorghum used to make sorghum molasses) is required to brew beer, and it is generally mixed with varying quantities of maize or millet (other grains) before the brewing process. Sorghum beer is gluten-free, thus making it drinkable for adults with celiac disease, a disease that makes adults intolerant to gluten. Sorghum opens the world of beer up to people with this disease, because gluten is present in barley and rye.
  
  

History of Sorghum Beer

• Sorghum has been used for hundreds of years to brew beer in areas of Africa that are too hot and dry for other types grains to grow. African weddings in particular are occasions for which a great deal of sorghum beer has been and still is brewed. Craft breweries such as Bard's Beer have been making beers with sorghum for several years, and major international beer distributors such as Heineken International and Diageo (owner of Guinness) have recently begun to experiment with sorghum to brew their beer.
  
  

Economic Implications

• The rising popularity of sorghum in beer has resulted in economic growth in the regions of Europe and Africa where sorghum is grown. Sierra Leone in particular is experiencing a great deal of growth resulting from the sale of sorghum to brewers.