Abstract The principal ions in beer are the cations – calcium, magnesium, sodium, and potassium – and the anions – sulfate, nitrate, phosphate, chlorides, and silicate. The minor ions are iron, copper, zinc and manganese. Cereals, water, hops and adjuncts are the main sources of the minerals present in beer, while in yeast, industrial processing and the containers contribute to a lesser extent. The mineral content of the brewing water is particularly important for the brewing process and hence for the quality and flavor of the final beer. In beer most of the minerals originate from the barley. About 75% derives from the malt, while the remaining 25% originates from the water. The mineral composition of the malt depends on the variety, place where it was grown, atmospheric condition, growing techniques, harvesting, storage, and malting system. Hops contribute a negligible amount of the minerals in beer because of the small quantities used (200 g to produce 100 l beer). However hops make a notable contribution of nitrate to the beer wort. In many countries a part of the malt can be substituted with other cereals like maize grits and rice. These cereal matrices normally contain fewer minerals than malt and so the metal level is less than an all-malt wort. The large amount of minerals from the raw materials decreases during the brewing process due to some minerals being removed through precipitations.