Glossary
Husk
The fibrous outer layer of a barley kernel, which forms the filter bed during lautering and carries tannins that cause astringency if over-extracted.
Husks are why barley remains the dominant brewing grain. Wheat, rye and oats have little or no husk, which is why beers using much of them are prone to a stuck sparge and often need rice hulls added for drainage.
Related
- Lautering — What husks make possible.
- Tannin — What husks contribute when over-extracted.
- Stuck sparge — What too few husks cause.
More vocabulary
Adjunct · Aroma hop · Base malt · Bittering hop · Black malt · Brettanomyces · Candi sugar · Chocolate malt · Crystal malt · Dextrin
See every term on the glossary index.
Last reviewed 2026-08-16.
Evidence
What BeerHQ knows about this, and how. Every statement carries the state of the evidence behind it rather than being presented flatly as fact.
Barley husks form the filter bed that separates wort from grain, which is why barley remains the dominant brewing grain and why high proportions of huskless wheat, rye or oats risk a stuck run-off.
Backed by a source
Sources: Brewing: Science and Practice — print; How to Brew (4th edition) — print