is a member of the carbohydrate family (literally hydrated carbon molecules). In general, a sugar is any sweet, soluble monosaccharide or disaccharide. The most common example is sucrose (table sugar). Monosaccharides of immediate interest to the brewer include glucose and fructose. Glucose (also known as dextrose) is primarily used by yeast for metabolism followed by maltose, the main sugar in brewers’ wort. Fructose (also known as fruit sugar) is the sweetest of all sugars and may enter the brewing process through the use of high-fructose corn syrup adjuncts or in beers flavored with honey. Disaccharides belong to a group of sugars that are formed from the condensation of two monosaccharide sugars. Maltose (malt sugar), ironically, is the least common disaccharide present in nature but is the most important brewing sugar. Maltose is a disaccharide composed of two glucose units linked between the number 1 and number 4 carbon atoms of glucose in its alpha conformation. Maltose is derived during malting and mashing from the breakdown of starch.

See also brown sugar, candi sugar, corn sugar, fermentation, invert sugar, mashing, priming sugar, residual sugars, and sucrose.