Speaking of that, things are progressively re-opening here in Central PA area, as well as in the nation as a whole. We’ll see how that goes, and with fingers crossed, maybe soon we’ll be sharing a pint together at a brewery.

As I said from the beginning of the series, I was doing this class without the certificate, so all of the ‘verified track learner’ pages and assessments were off limits to me. I would love to hear from anyone in the comments section who took the full version of the class, and paid for the certificate and got to see the verified track learner’s content pages. My take on that is this though – the certificate would be NICE to have, and would LOOK good… but, it is ultimately unneeded. The information learned is the real value, and any brewery that you are looking to use this for, will most likely be happy with you having the knowledge over the piece of paper. (Of course, the piece of paper would help a bit more, but I don’t think its a massive jump in ‘helping’ or value.) Brewing, and brewery industry jobs, are kind of still in a medieval sense, or in a ‘wild west’ kind of territory. Most breweries are opened with the owner being the head brewer (for craft breweries in America), and most of them got their start home brewing. So you have a lot of basically self-taught people opening their own businesses who learned by home brewing, not professionally. Now, this isn’t always the case, but it seems to happen frequently enough to bear out the point.

Thats not to take away from getting the certificate. Doing so will be an addition, and will help you in jobs. But so is just taking this class. Just show some proof of doing it, and answer questions and show your knowledge. There is other free (and pay-for) resources and certificates online, getting some of them will help as well.

So lets recap the course a bit. There was ten modules, not counting assessments and all that, there was ten modules with different topics for each. In each module was segments, but lets broadly just look at the modules.

• Module One: The History of Beer Brewing
• Module Two: Barley and Malting
• Module Three: Water
• Module Four: Hops and Spices
• Module Five: Yeast
• Module Six: The Steps of the Brewing Process
• Module Seven: Fermentation and Maturation
• Module Eight: Filtration and Packaging
• Module Nine: Beer Quality and Stability
• Module Ten: Beer Assessment and Tasting

In all of the discussion pages, so far, I’ve received two comments / replies back in the actual modules. I will post my comment and the responses here.

First:
My comment: “I find it in interesting in America that especially in the last few years there has been a greater move to go from bottle to can. Likewise from growler to crowler. I actually tend to prefer bottles for the 12oz and 16oz varieties, but prefer crowler (32oz) over the growler (32oz). Can’t exactly place why, perhaps because of a taste difference. Though I’m told by many there is no taste difference, and The Alchemist brewery even says to drink their IPAs from the can rather than from the glass. (I do typically pour into glasses from either can or glass; unless busy grilling or mowing or whatever, then I drink straight from the can or glass.)

Curious what other’s thoughts are on the glass bottle vs. can debate.”

The response:

“By: kr3846

In my opinion cans are the way to go 100% of the time. They are basically mini-kegs. They protect better against light and oxygen way better than crown/ bottles ever could. Which is a good enough reason to deem them the winner out-right. They are lighter weight which cuts down on shipping cost, both as a raw material and as a finished product. This also means they can be packed more cans per truck/ boat which ultimately leads to less consumption of fossil fuels. They are also 1000 times more recyclable than glass. In America, very few if any breweries (if any) are doing glass bottle returns. Plus, with cans you do not have the concerns with breaking glass around swimming pools, patios, backpacking, camping, etc.

I think (in America at least) there is still a stigma about drinking from a can. As if it is ubiquitous with large crappy breweries like AB-InBev. People seem to see drinking from a bottle as the “craft” or “artisanal” option. I wish we would move past this and accept cans as the clearly superior form of packaging they are for all the reasons listed above.

That being said, in the growler/ crowler debate, I think growlers are the way to go for the simple fact that they are re-usable. The single use aspect of crowlers, while convenient, is not very environmentally friendly. I do not have nearly the strong opinions in this debate than I do in the can vs bottle debate.

As for Heady Topper, they say to drink from a can because the beer looks like shit. Or the more “scientific” reason would be to keep the hop compounds contained in the can rather than losing them to the volatility of pouring into a glass.

Cheers!”

Second:
My comment: “Another great module. I have really been enjoying this course! I am learning a lot!

-B. Kline
https://thebeerthrillers.home.blog/“

The response: “By: StijnS (Staff)

Hi Ben,

Thanks for these nice words. We also appreciate that you keep a blog on your progress throughout the MOOC.

Have fun with the last module of the MOOC,

Stijn”

Overall, I really enjoyed the MOOC and the modules were all well done and very informative. The various expert clips were especially interesting and educational. For those, looking to further their beer or brewery knowledge, or looking for something to do (most modules were very quick and not extremely time consuming), or for someone looking for a foot in the door at a brewery or just hoping to better themselves for a brewery position (or one they already have), I would highly recommend this course.

I will be posting more information on possible other classes I do, and others that I’ve done in the past, when I get to the next beer education series, so be on the alert for that. And as we enter June, be ready to see a lot more beer reviews and brewery reviews as places start to open back up.

Until then, please stay safe and healthy, we’re almost there! Cheers!

-B. Kline

The Beer Education Series:
** EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing
* Beer Education: Series
* Beer Education: Syllabus
* Beer Education: Introduction
* Beer Education: Module One: The History of Beer Brewing
* Beer Education: Module Two: Barley and Malting
* Beer Education: Module Three: Water
* Beer Education: Module Four: Hops and Spices
* Beer Education: Module Five: Yeast
* Beer Education: Module Six: The Steps of the Brewing Process
* Beer Education: Module Seven: Fermentation and Maturation
* Beer Education: Module Eight: Filtration and Packaging
* Beer Education: Module Nine: Beer Quality and Stability
* Beer Education: Module Ten: Beer Assessment and Tasting
* Beer Education: Series Overview

Like every module, this one also starts with an introduction video. This one is 2:11 and talks about this being the final module, about beer tasting, assessing the qualities of a beer, and how people will rate and enjoy the beer.

Our first page of the module is a text page about chromatography, and its the first of the segment about ‘methods to analyze chemical composition of beers’. “Chromatography is a method for separating, identifying and quantifying molecules present in a mixture, in our specific case, in beer. Separation of different molecules occurs by allowing the mixture to run through a thin tube, called a column. This column contains a specific filling, also referred to as the stationary phase, that interacts differently with different molecules, depending on their exact chemical or physical properties. These interactions affect the rate at which these molecules pass through the column and separate the different molecules from each other – causing each of the molecules to exit the column at a different time, the so-called retention time. As the molecules exit the column, they are detected and identified. The output is a chromatogram.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Ten.)

The page then has a picture of a sample chromatogram. It then discusses the columns; how they are made – from a large variety of materials; two general columns are packed columns and capillary columns. In packed columns the phase known as stationary is packed into the cavity of the columns. In the capillary columns that same stationary phase is coated on the inner surface of the columns. This text page then has two tab pull-downs at the bottom for: gas chromatography and high performance liquid chromatography. Give yourself plenty of time, because each of these tab pull-downs could have been a page unto themselves.

Next up is spectrophotometry. “A spectrophotometer uses different wavelengths of light to determine the concentration of a compound in a sample. Specific wavelengths are absorbed by certain compounds and hence the amount of light that is absorbed can be used to determine the concentration of the absorbing compounds.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Ten.)

Some beer properties that can be measured spectrophotometrically:

• Color
• Bitterness
• Other beer characteristics
  * glucose
  * free amino nitrogen (FAN)
  * fructose
  

There is others as well, but these are the primary ones to be concerned with and to note here.

The next page is a quick knowledge check (ie. test). The first question is a two-part drop-drag (multiple choice) question. The second question is a multiple check-box, where you will need to pick all of the ones that apply and are correct.

Moving along, we come to the next segment of this module: sensory analysis of beer. Our first page for this segment of the module is a typical introduction text page. “The methods discussed in the previous section allow you to quantify the different compounds present in beer. However, it is the interaction between all these compounds that determines how the beer is actually perceived by us. It is still very hard to predict a beer’s taste and aroma solely on the measurements of the individual aroma compounds. Different flavor compounds can interact with each other, with some compounds masking or enhancing the perception of other compounds. Each compound also has a specific flavor threshold, below which it will not be perceived. And of course, this flavor threshold also depends on what other flavors are present in the beer (and hence on the ‘matrix’ in which it is present: the flavor threshold of a compound will be different in water than in a beer…).” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Ten.)

Aspects of sensory analysis are:

• visual aspects
• aroma
• taste
• mouthfeel
• body

Clicking next, we come to a text page about ‘testing panel’ and training a testing panel. Two big reasons for having a tasting panel is to ensure beers are true to brand and to evaluate the consistency of the beers. (How often have you read or heard about batch 1 vs batch 2 from a craft brewery or the lack of consistency between batches; I can think of the recent hullabaloo with Funk Brewing and a batch not having the consistency of a previous batch; this is why its so important to keep consistency between batches the same.)

“More specifically, do the beers contain all the typical flavor compounds they need to contain? Does it taste how this specific beer should taste, according to customer’s expectations? Is the beer conform the specific style or brand?” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Ten.)

Testing panels are people hand-picked by breweries to sample, test, and preview recipes, beers, ingredients, new procedures in brewing, new vessels, etc. They are usually a group or assortment of knowledgeable people with an extensive background in beer and alcoholic beverages; cicerones, BJCP judges, former brewers, restaurateurs, malsters, hop growers, etc, etc. (People with expert knowledge in the field.)

The first step to the testing panel, is to train the participants. As with everything, definitions and vocabulary is essential, so you will want everyone on the same page, using the same language, describing beer in the same terms, etc. This is why there are groups like the BJCP Judges, who have a uniformal way of judging beer. So this is a two step process; step one: development of vocabulary, and then step two: standardization of vocabulary.

Development of Vocabulary – “People are exposed to different flavors and are asked to write down the words they associate with a specific flavor. This can be done by using beers that have very specific flavors, or, more commonly, by using commercially available flavor standards (packaged flavor molecules that can be readily added to liquid and consumed).” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Ten.)

Standardization of Vocabulary – “Here, panel members discuss different words associated with a specific flavor. In the end, people agree to use some of these words as specific descriptors for a specific taste. In this way, everybody will use the same word to, for example, describe specific hop aromas. Based on the vocabulary developed during these steps, a tasting sheet can be developed that can be used  as a tool during the actual tastings. Of course, you don’t necessarily need to establish your own vocabulary from scratch. You can also use the terms from, for example, the Beer Flavor Wheel that will be discussed later in this module. In a next step, the panel is trained in specific attributes. This is usually done by spiking known quantities of flavor-active standards into beer and asking the panel to describe what they smell or taste (without them actually knowing what they should be smelling/tasting). This allows to determine the threshold of different compounds.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Ten.)

The next page moves on to discuss tasting sheets and the tasting wheel. For anyone who has done any kind of beer judging at events, or training for BJCP or cicerone, this is all common knowledge. People who also grow hops for a living have similar sheets for how their hops should smell, feel, etc after harvest.

Most breweries have a beer evaluation sheet or a tasting sheet. They are typically broken down per style, so you would have a page for Lagers, a page for IPAs, a page for Stouts, a page for Sours, etc. (And some can be further broken down from there, but thats typically marked and noted on the main style sheet.) [For verified track members, there is a beer evaluation sheet / tasting sheet you can download.]

“Another commonly used tool is the Beer Flavor Wheel. The Beer Flavor Wheel was developed by Morton Meilgaard, a flavor chemist at a brewery in Detroit, in an attempt to standardize the language used in beer evaluation. The beer flavor wheel was jointly adopted in the 1970s by the European Brewery Convention (EBC), the American Society of Brewing Chemists (ASBC), and the Master Brewers Association of the Americas (MBAA). The wheel  (see figure below) gives a specific descriptive name to a wide range of distinct beer flavors. These are first divided based on if they are perceived by taste or smell (odour). Next, they are grouped into 14 categories, each with specific descriptors. For example, one of the categories is ‘aromatic and fragrant’. This is then broken down into specific descriptors, namely alcoholic, solvent-like, estery, fruity, acetaldehyde, floral, and hoppy, which can then be further subdivided into second-tier terms (not shown on the wheel itself).  Many of the main descriptors are also assigned distinct compounds responsible for the flavor, referred to as the ‘reference standard’. ” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Ten.) Following this, on the page is an example beer flavor wheel. In 1993, Susan Langstaff updated the most commonly used beer flavor wheel to include mouthfeel descriptors.

Clicking NEXT, we come to the experiment page. Its a ‘do it yourself’ beer tasting. The page tells you what you’ll need to do a beer tasting, what ingredients, what equipment, etc. It also has a 9 minute video describing how to ‘professionally’ drink a beer. An interesting it discusses is a ‘black glass’, that way you are not persuaded or biased by the coloring of the beer. Its a very informative long clip, with the three main instructors giving you sage advice on how to properly, professionally, and smartly drink a beer.

The next page is a discussion on the tasting from the experiment. Here is my post in the discussion (a slight cop-out since I didn’t re-do the experiment, but I think it holds enough weight):

“I recently did a canning for SOCIAL DISTANCING – a collaboration beer between Tattered Flag, Abomination Brewing, and Pilger Ruh Brewing. Since I had several cans of it from the canning, I did that as my beer tasting. I also wrote up a review on it for my blog:

https://thebeerthrillers.home.blog/2020/05/25/beer-review-social-distancing-tattered-flag-abomination-brewing-and-pilger-ruh-brewing/

I really enjoyed it and thought it was a wonderful IPA to taste. I got lots of floral, citrus, hop notes, especially since it was dry hopped. My aroma segment from the article actually says:

“Canning day the whole brewery smelled delicious, like walking into a hop filled bakery. And cracking this beer just three days later retained that same smell. Strong juicy New England style hoppy deliciousness as soon as the tab cracked and the can opened. Very strong, citrus, floral and fruity notes, hint of peach and mango especially out of the fruit.” And not much changed doing the taster a day later either.

Cheers!
Enjoy!

-B. Kline
The Beer Thrillers
https://thebeerthrillers.home.blog/ “

I stand by the aroma, even a few days later, so I think I nailed their question. (The question for the discussion was about the aroma.)

The next page is an expert clip, its by Dr. Veerle Daems, a sensory analysis for Haystack. The clip is six minutes and fifty-seven seconds long. Haystack is a full service research agency.

After this, is a quick knowledge check (test). The first question is a check-box select all that apply question, the second is a drop and drag question, and then a feedback question.

The next page begins our next segment of the module – Belgian Beer Styles. As per usual, the first page is an introduction text page. “Every beer is unique: beers are extremely diverse in style, taste and aroma. Interestingly, most beers belonging to the same beer style do share some characteristics. In the first module of this MOOC, we used these shared characteristics to delineate 8 different beer profiles that were used in the beer profile quiz you took at that time.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Ten.)

The eight beer profiles that they use are:

• easy going – lagers, amber ales, pale ales
• the dark side – brown ales, stouts, and porters
• funky flavor – sours, geuze, and brett beers
• high hops – IPAs
• fruity – fruit beers
• spicy specials – witbiers, wheat bears, spicy blondes
• triple trouble – Belgian tripels, strong blondes
• no-low alcohol – NAB-LAB

The first page after the introduction is dedicated to the easy going beers, the lagers, amber ales, and pale ales. “Lager, amber and pale ale were grouped together to form the ‘Easy-going‘ category in the beer profile quiz you took at the start of this MOOC. We have grouped them together since most of the beers within these styles are light, easy to drink, refreshing and have a low to medium ABV.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Ten.)

From there, the next page is the dark side; the brown ales, stouts, and porters. “Brown, stout and porter were grouped together to form The Dark Side category from the beer profile quiz you took at the start of this MOOC. These three beer styles were grouped together in this category since they often are dark, creamy and sweet, with a caramel or coffee-like aroma and taste.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Ten.)

After this is the funky flavors, the sours, geuzes, and brett beers. “Lambic, gueuze and Brett beers were grouped together to form the Funky Flavour category from the beer profile quiz you took at the start of this MOOC. These three different beer styles were grouped together since they are often complex in taste (tart, barnyard, sour, acidic).” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Ten.)

Then, we got the IPA. A familiar and favorite across the American craft beer scene, especially in recent years, and in all kinds of variations. From West Coast hoppy IPAs to New England smooth and juicy IPAs, or even ‘milkshake IPAs’ with lactose, and other variants in between (and even further apart!). “As you have seen in the first Module in this MOOC, the term India Pale Ale (IPA) refers to a British beer style that originated in the 1700s. British brewers realized that beers brewed using large amounts of hops would preserve better during the long journey to India compared to other beers. After a while, this IPA style was also brewed for the domestic market. IPAs were one of the first styles brewed by American craft breweries in the 1970s. Nowadays, different takes on the ‘traditional’ IPA exist, including for example New England IPAs, which are characterized by an intense tropical hop-derived aroma.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Ten.)

Fruit beer is a pretty simple category. Fruit. In. Beer. Pretty simple, right? …Right. Don’t worry, there’s no M. Night Shamalyan style twist to this one. “Fruit beers formed the Fruity category from the beer profile quiz you took at the start of this MOOC. Different fruit beers exist, using different beers as a base to add fruits. The typical sourness of Lambic beers makes them ideal to be blended with fruits. These fruits not only add fruity and sweet aromas, but also provide a sugar sources during refermentation. Historically, Lambic brewers have used locally grown fruits to add flavours to their beers: sour cherries (used for Kriek beers) and raspberries (used for Framboises). Nowadays, other beers apart from Lambic beers are used as a base as well to make other fruitbeers, which are often sweeter than Kriek beers or Framboises.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Ten.)

After this we have witbeer or witbiers. “Wheat beers and spicy blondes were grouped together to form the Spicy Specials category from the beer profile quiz you took at the start of this MOOC. Wheat beers, also called Witbier (not to be confused with German Weissbier), is one of the most unique beer styles of Begium. The name Witbier likely refers to the old Dutch word for wheat (‘weit’), since wheat is blended in with the malted barley. Historically, the wort was spontaneously fermented. This resulted in a cloudy beer with a sour taste. To balance out this sour taste, gruit was added. Nowadays, a mix of hops, coriander seeds and orange peel is used instead of the gruit.  Nowadays, witbier is no longer produced via spontaneous fermentations. Instead, yeast strains are used that produce a characteristic, clove-like, pepper and spicy aroma. Witbiers are usually bottle conditioned with fresh yeast.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Ten.)

The next category (and page) is the ‘triple trouble’ or tripels and strong blondes. “While many publications differentiate between Tripels and other strong blond ales, sensory and chemical analysis of different beers from these categories indicate that there in fact is a large overlap between these categories (with some notable exceptions of course!). Bottle refermentation is common for both styles, resulting in strong carbonation.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Ten.)

And the final category, the NAB-LABs. The non-alcoholic beverages or near non-alcoholic. (Think O’Douls.) “NABLABs were the final category in the beer profile quiz. NABLAB stands for No Alcohol Beers (<0.5% ABV) and Low Alcohol Beers (<3.5% ABV). The alcohol levels is the only criteria to place a beer in the NABLAB category and hence different beer styles, including pilsner, amber, IPA and wit, are present in this category. Health concerns as well as responsible drinking behavior are the two main reasons listed by consumers as to why they drink NABLABs.  Not long ago, NABLABs were less popular: brewers arrested fermentation before all fermentable sugars were converted into alcohol (resulting in a very sweet beverage) or used a distillation process that not only stripped the beer of ethanol, but also of much of the volatile aroma compounds. Additionally, many LABLABs tend to lack some body, and are considered less ‘full’ than other beers. Recent advances in brewing technology now make it possible for brewers to produce NABLABs without much compromise in flavor.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Ten.)

The next page is a verified track learner page. A page for only those getting the certificate and paying the extra money for the course. (So we’ll be skipping this page, like I said in the previous articles, I’m not doing the certificate program, so I won’t have access to the verified learner track pages.)

Looks like we’ve reached the end, the next page is the ‘overview and check’ page, where you check the boxes saying you’ve learned everything in this module. The page after that is the assessment page – another page for verified track learners only. Clicking next we come to the feedback and questions page, a discussion page at the end of each module, where you can leave a note, or ask a question. The professors regularly check in, and like to help here especially. Following this page is the text page – End of Module Ten. They breakdown the different between the verified track and the audit track (the audit track is the non-certificate / free / non-paying program that I did, the verified track is the 99.99$ certificate track). At the end of this page, unlike other end of module pages, there is another discussion portion, but this time for the entire MOOC, so you can leave any feedback you have about the entirety of the MOOC, as well, or give a thanks, or shout-out, or what have you. I left a final note on the last MOOC overview discussion page:

“Thanks so much! This has been so much fun, and I’ve done it through my blog, which helped keep me on task, and I know my readers have really enjoyed it as well. Thank you for offering this, and doing it for either free or for certificate is so awesome. Was a great and fantastic (and productive) way of killing the lockdown time.

To see the start of my series on this you can check it out here: https://thebeerthrillers.home.blog/2020/03/26/beer-education-series/

To check out my blog:
https://thebeerthrillers.home.blog/

Thank you so much for all the valuable information, and for giving me something to do and write about.

Cheers!

-B. Kline
The Beer Thrillers
https://thebeerthrillers.home.blog/ “

Clicking the next page, it takes you to a page discussion the final assessment and a heads up on its grading system, for the verified track learners. They have until May 31st (2020) to complete the final exam. It accounts for 45% of their final grade of this MOOC. They will be graded, and if successful, certificates will be sent out June 2nd (2020).

As for us, we are all done now. Module Ten is done. The entire MOOC is done. I hope you feel as accomplished as I am. This was a fun MOOC, a fun course, a very informative course, and I know I learned quite a bit. If you did it with the verified track and get your certificate, congrats even more. Hopefully that will help to land a job at a brewery or craft beer bar or bottle shop as that is definitely something to hang your hat on. For those looking to further their beer, or brewing, or brewery education, I recommend the Brewer’s Association safety courses. I had taken them a few years ago (two and three years ago now). Each course in that comes with a certificate, and it has all aspects of the brewery covered. From silo and grains to bottling to kegging to sanitizing, to chemicals, to everything. There is a lot there, and they give you free certificates, and its all very well done as well. So I highly recommend that if you are looking to further your education. You can find them at: https://www.brewersassociation.org/educational-publications/free-online-brewery-safety-training/ – Brewer’s Association Safety Training.

I will do a follow-up wrap-up post in the next day or two, that will basically just be saying how everything is done, and just put a coda and a cap to this beer education series on the blog. I will also go back through, and edit the previous module and series installments here on the blog to include a full linked syllabus and series overview at the bottom of each post, that way you can get to any module or part of the ‘Beer Education Series’ you want to from any other module post. So that should make things simpler. (You can also click on the Category or Tag – Beer Education and that will provide a list of the links as well.)

I would love to hear in the comments from anyone else who has completed this journey along with me. Or if anyone else knows of any other beer education series online. Also love furthering my education (shouldn’t we all?). Especially at this time of rest due to the lock-down, which is starting to lift – at least here in Pennsylvania. We’ll see how that goes. June 5th the whole state moves to Yellow Phase, and soon after that several counties will enter Green Phase for the first time. Fingers crossed for humanity on this one.

Alright everyone, thanks for joining me on this module and the MOOC, and congratulations on completing it! I’m off to have a beer to celebrate!

Cheers!

-B. Kline

The Beer Education Series:
** EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing
* Beer Education: Series
* Beer Education: Syllabus
* Beer Education: Introduction
* Beer Education: Module One: The History of Beer Brewing
* Beer Education: Module Two: Barley and Malting
* Beer Education: Module Three: Water
* Beer Education: Module Four: Hops and Spices
* Beer Education: Module Five: Yeast
* Beer Education: Module Six: The Steps of the Brewing Process
* Beer Education: Module Seven: Fermentation and Maturation
* Beer Education: Module Eight: Filtration and Packaging
* Beer Education: Module Nine: Beer Quality and Stability
* Beer Education: Module Ten: Beer Assessment and Tasting
* Beer Education: Series Overview

Clicking next, our first page of the module is a text page overview of the module. Beer stability can be divided into six different types:

• Colloidal stability
• Microbiological stability
• Flavor stability
• Foam stability
• Light stability
• Gushing

Up next is a “do-it-yourself” experiment about beer aging. The page walks you through doing the experiment, what ingredients you need, what to do, how to do it, etc. The next page after this is the discussion page for the experiment where you can discuss your results, thoughts, questions, etc.

After this we have a rather long page of definition and types for colloidal stability.

• Clarity – it is an important characteristic for beer, especially lagers; like pilsners.
• Turbidity – (caused by haze) you can observe this when particles are deflected by the light in or through beer. Lower transparency. “This is measured using nephelometers, specialised instruments for measuring the concentration of suspended particulates using light scattering. Turbidity is mostly expressed in EBC-units. For a freshly filtered beer, this value should be close to or lower than 0.8 units although beer color can interfere with the measurement (darker beers have a higher baseline).” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Nine.)
• Colloidal haze – is often formed during conditioning and cold fermentation. It is typically (and hopefully) removed during clarification and filtration.

“The most commonly found beer compounds in haze are proteins/polypeptides (smaller proteins, mostly degradation products) and polyphenols but also polysaccharides, metal ions, hop resins, and melanoidins have been found as constituents of haze.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Nine.)

There is three types of (bad) haze: chill haze, permanent haze, and starch haze.

Our next page (still under colloidal stability) is all about haze formation. “Haze is the result of (weak) reversible (for chill haze) and irreversible (for permanent haze) interactions between proteins/polypeptides and polyphenols. For chill haze, these reversible interactions can be ionic and hydrophobic interactions or hydrogen bonding. In permanent haze, a covalent attachment between polymerized polyphenols and phenolic residues of amino acids in the polypeptides are the basis for haze formation.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Nine.) This page is full of diagrams of the various polyphenols and other compounds that make a beer hazy. The figures are both black and white and grey-scaled and show the molecular breakdown.

The following page is a text page titled – Factors influencing haze formation (still under colloidal stability). This page describes the ‘possible’ factors that induce haze in colloidal stability, with the final possibility being the most ‘agreed upon’ by scientists. “…existing polyphenols first need to be activated by oxidation before they can react and develop haze. Due the detrimental role that oxygen plays in colloidal stability, mechanism 2 for the initiation for haze formation is nowadays most plausible and accepted by scientists.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Nine.)

The rest of the page is a large chart broken into two categories: factors and how / roles. Listing the different factors of haze and how they appear. There is eight factors: light, storage temperature above 4 degrees (C), pasteurization, movement of the beer, pH, oxidation in presence of O2, metal ions (copper, iron, etc.), and carbohydrates.

Following this page, is another lengthy text page – colloidal stabilization. “Given that the primary cause of colloidal beer haze is the formation of protein-polyphenol complexes, several procedures to retard and/or prevent haze formation during beer storage have been developed and implemented.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Nine.) There are some measures to reduce this. Use of raw materials (malt and hops) low in proline-rich proteins and polyphenols, low protein grain, use of hop extracts, forced formation of protein-polyphenol complexes during mashing and retention of these complexes during mash filtration, mashing in at low pH (5.2), low sparge rates, acidified sparging water, coagulation of haze-sensitive proteins and the formation of protein-polyphenols complexes during wort boiling.

“The most important measure for haze prevention of course is to avoid the presence of small particles in the final beer. These particles are responsible for invisible pseudo-haze but are also nucleation sites for further haze formation. This is why it is important to minimise the load on the filter by proper brewing operation (as highlighted above) and to apply a proper filtration regime (see module 8). Specifically for colloidal stability, it is important to focus on lowest possible temperature, minimum oxygen pick-up and correct filter aid during filtration.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Nine.)

After this page is a ‘quick knowledge check’. The first question is a drop-and-drag question, the second is a multiple choice (choose as many as apply), and the final question is a true or false.

We now move onto microbiological stability. The first page of this segment is ‘factors influencing microbiological stability’. Some yeasts and bacteria are able to contaminate beer, able to grow in beer, and through this it can destabilize beer. Beer is considered a microbiological stable beverage. The parameters for this stability are:

• ethanol content – up to 10%
• carbon dioxide content – 0.5% w/v
• low pH – 3.8pH – 4.7pH
• iso-alpha acids – 15-100 ppm
• reduced availability of nutrients
• low oxygen content – below 0.1 ppm

Some things to prevent microbiological instability are:

• wort boil / heat treatment in the final container (pasteurization / sterile filtration)
• aggressive sanitation procedures
• no spontaneous fermentation or open fermentation vessels

The next page is ‘spoilage microorganisms’. “All raw materials such as malt, hops, water and adjuncts carry their own specific microorganisms. If these microorganisms can proliferate during one of the brewing steps, they can produce metabolites causing off-flavors. In case these microorganisms survive all the steps in the brewing process (including pasteurisation when applied), they might end up in the final packaged beer as contaminants and potential spoilage microorganisms. The yeast used for fermentation can also be source of contamination since it has been observed that pitching yeast can be contaminated with low levels of bacteria and wild yeasts. Proper yeast handling in the brewery is necessary to avoid any contamination (check out module 7 again for more details on yeast handling in the brewery, including acid washing of cropped yeast). Another important source for contaminations is the brewhouse equipment (vessels, piping) if they are not properly cleaned and maintained. Until the package is closed or sealed, the final steps of the brewing process (after fermentation) can also be prone to contamination from airborne microorganisms or microorganisms on the filling equipment (microbial growth due to high humidity).” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Nine.) Following this introduction paragraph is a figure that lists some of the most common spoilage microorganisms at a brewery or in a beer. Contaminating bacteria in beer are typically lactic acid but occasionally also anaerobic bacteria. After this is a pull-down chart to learn more about the common microorganisms. (Lactic acid bacteria, fungi, wild yeast, etc.)

Our next page is dedicated to cleaning and sanitization. If you talk to any brewer, or home brewer, one of the things they repeat over and over and over and over is – clean, clean, clean, clean, clean. When asked what they do most as brewers, its often they’ll say something like “cleaning” in that sad, half-joking, not really joking kind of way, and they’ll look distant, mumble something and wander off. (Believe me, I’ve seen that look many times!)

A list of potential contaminations in beer:

• remainders of (old) beer
• microbiological contamination (bacteria, fungi, yeast)
• hop remnants
• calciumoxalate in fermentation and lagering tanks (beer stone, beer scale; can be removed using acids)
• lipids-proteins
• mineral deposits in water circuits

NOTE: Remember the difference between CLEANING AGENTS and DISINFECTING AGENTS. Cleaning agents remove product residues or deposits like lipids or proteins. Disinfecting agents kill off most microbiological contaminates.

Clicking next, we come to an expert clip by Professor Charlie Bamforth. It is 10 minutes and 10 seconds long. In Bamforth’s own words: “So, what I like to talk to you about is flavor stability, freshness,which is probably the biggest technological challenge facing the brewer today.” This is a great clip, he is funny, witter, and very intelligent, and speaks about the freshness, and discusses many topics. He does say that cans are greater than bottles. He gives a lot of information, but his biggest thing is keeping beer cold. (Talk to any good beer distributor, or bottle shop worker, like Breski’s Beverage, or The Fridge, etc, and they will all agree with that as well.) Under his clip is a chart of temperatures and shelf life. 10(c) = 9 months (expected shelf life). 20(c) = 100 days / 3 months. 30(c) = 1 month. 40(c) = 10 days. So that gives you some kind of idea about how important keeping beer cold is.

Moving on, our next page is the introduction page for the next segment – flavor stability. “

Flavor stability is one of the most challenging parameters to achieve. The flavor of a beer will always change over time and hence it is perhaps better  to speak of flavor instability instead of stability. Sometimes other terms are used to refer to flavor (in-)stability: in literature also beer ageing or staling are used to describe the changes in beer flavor that occur during (long-term) storage. Any change in aroma or taste compared to the fresh beer can be considered as flavor instability. Especially for exported beers, the time till consumption can be very long, increasing the changes for ageing. But why can’t an aged beer be preferred over a young beer, just like is now the case for most wines? Well, you literally got a taste of why this isn’t the case when you performed the Do-It-Yourself experiment at the start of this module! In beers, ageing results in the formation of undesirable (off-)flavors. The formation of these aged-dependent flavors varies from one beer style to another. Lager beers are for example very prone to flavor instability.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Nine.)

Some results of beer aging:

• decrease of bitterness
• decrease of fruity aromas
• increase in sweet taste
• increase in caramel, ribes (black currant), and toffee like aromas
• increase in cardboard like flavors

This is just a generalization, and certain complexities change differently. Craft breweries in America (and Europe, and elsewhere in the world in recent years) are starting to produce certain beers purposefully for aging, a lot of barrel aged beers already lend themselves to being bottle aged in a cellar.

The next page is a text page about important molecules. This is a rather long page full of chemical and molecule diagrams, as well as a large chart at the end of the page. A very science heavy page with the diagrams and figures and charts. But full of important information, so make sure to read over it. (It also does have an extensive paragraph of information as well.)

Another long page – reactions involved in beer instability, follows this. The page even begins with a warning describing how this is a very long unit and will require sufficient time reading over it all. “Carbonyls and mainly staling aldehydes, such as the key staling component E-2-nonenal, are important flavors that occur during beer ageing. Fresh beer contains rather low levels of these aldehydes (mostly below their flavor thresholds), but their concentrations increase during long-term beer storage. Some of these carbonyl compounds are directly responsible for the observed off-flavors as their concentration increases above the odor threshold (e.g. E-2-nonenal), while other carbonyl compounds might also increase in concentration during ageing but stay below their respective threshold for detection.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Nine.)

Factors influencing flavor stability:

• oxygen
• transition metals
• temperature
• sulfite
• heat load
• vibrations

After all this, we come up to another ‘quick knowledge check’. (I love the fancy name for ‘quiz’ or ‘test’.) It’s one drop-and-drag question, followed by four checkbox questions (multiple options, select all of the best that apply).

Moving on, we start the next segment of the module – foam stability. The first page of this segment is definition and formation.

Definition – “Foam is an important criterion for beer quality since the consumer will judge a beer also with his/her eyes. Foam is differently evaluated in for example Germany and most European countries in comparison to England/UK:  British consumers don’t like a beer head (expect for Guinness); in fact the less head, the better while Germans like a thick layer of foam. The foam potential of a beer is determined both by the raw materials and brewing process and is a complex interaction between different beer constituents. Foam quality is a evaluation of two parameters: foamability (volume) and stability. Another important visual effect from the foam is the adherence to the side of the glass called cling or lacing.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Nine.)

Foam Formation – “Beer is a colloidal mixture of supersaturated CO₂ in the liquid beer matrix. As gas is hydrophobic, it rather sticks together than be fully dissolved in the liquid. These areas with high gas concentrations are bubbles. When beer is opened and poured in a glass, foam is formed as a result of the release of CO₂ bubbles due to pressure reduction. CO₂ bubbles occur at condensation or nucleation sites (e.g. impurities, cracks in the glass material or small particles). As they rise, they will attract surface-active molecules, with low surface tension but high hydrophobicity (e.g. proteins or iso-alpha acids). As such these molecules will form a layer around the gas bubble and will stabilise the bubble in the liquid beer matrix. The amount of dissolved CO₂ determines the amount of foam formation, while the surface-active molecules determine the foam stability. In sparkling water, the dissolved CO₂ content is also high but due to the lack of surface-active molecules, bubbles will rise but they will not form foam at the liquid surface as the bubbles will immediately collapse due to the surface tension.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Nine.)

Foam Stability – “After bubble formation, drainage of beer from the foam by gravity will occur and the bubbles start to shrink and collapse. The rate of drainage can be reduced by creating a small bubble size (gentle pouring to create a creamy head) and the amount of hydrophobic interactions (determined by the amount and type of surface-active molecules). Beer foam will slowly decay due to the collapse of bubbles mainly due to an effect called disproportionation. Disproportionation is the moving of a gas from a small bubble to a larger bubble. This causes the small bubble to collapse and the larger bubble to increase in size. Too large bubbles in the foam are undesirable. These large bubbles also burst more quickly due to an even higher surface tension, causing the surface-active molecules to flow back into the liquid. As a result foam becomes more solidified especially in the upper layer (due to CO₂ diffusion to the air at a reasonable rate).” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Nine.)

Clicking next, the following page again comes with the ‘time warning’ letting you know its going to be a long unit. (Seems to be a trend with this module, several pages now have had this warning; lots of charts with pull-down tabs and lots more ‘hidden’ information.) This page is titled ‘molecules positively affecting beer foam’. Some molecules that contribute to beer foam are: CO2, proteins / polypeptides, hop bitter acids, carbohydrates, mailiard reaction products, and metal ions. There is a pull-down chart for you to click on each of these headings and read more. (I recommend doing so because this is typically where the quiz questions come from.)

Next page is the opposite of the last; its ‘molecules negatively affecting beer foam’. There are two big factors – alcohol and lipids. Alcohol: “The presence of ethanol should positively influence foam stability due to the increased viscosity of water by the presence of ethanol. However, experimental evidence points towards an opposite effect: foam stability decreases with increasing ethanol concentration, probably due to an ethanol-induced reduction of the rigidity of the surface-active molecule layer. Higher alcohols are also negative for foam stability: the chain length of the alcohol is direct proportional with the degree of impact on the foam.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Nine.) Lipids: “Lipids also destabilise beer foam (see figure below) and the negative effect increases with length of the hydrophobic chain. Also detergents have a detrimental effect on beer foam stability. Both components are mostly remainders of inadequately cleaned glasses.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Nine.) This is followed by a chart. There is a smaller, third factor: Protenaise A. “Proteinase A of yeast is an enzyme that degrades proteins. Therefore it is a negative factor for foam stability as it also degrades hydrophobic proteins and polypeptides that are the major constituents of foam and contributors for foam stability. The amount of proteinase A secreted by the yeast highly depends on the yeast health: stressed yeast (e.g. old yeast or poor yeast handling) will produce more proteinase A. Therefore, high gravity fermentations are more prone to poor foam stability: both the decrease in hydrophobic proteins due to dilution and the stress on yeast during fermentation will negatively affect foam formation and stability.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Nine.)

Moving onwards, we come to ‘factors in the brewing process affecting foam | foam stability’. These factors are: barley, malting, wort production, hop acid utilization, fermentation and maturation, and pasteurization.

Shocking – after this segment, we have a closing quiz, err – I mean – quick knowledge check. (Just like all the past segments of this module.) This time its three check-box questions (multiple picks, pick all that apply).

The next segment is light stability. And we start off with formation of lightstruck off-flavor. Beer is extremely sensitive to light; which is primarily why bottles are brown-glass rather than the light green-glass you see for Heineken or clear-class like Corona or Landshark. (Also shows why they sometimes get ‘skunked’, and also shows the quality of these beers in general.) This page has chemical diagrams showing how the light affects the beer.

There are measures to minimize light and how it affects beer. Some of them are:

• brown / amber glass bottles
• glass thickness
• a coating or sleeve on the outside of green-glass bottles
• reduced iso-alpha acids
• elimination of riboflavin

Time for the next segment – this one sounds like a doozy – ‘gushing’. As with the other segments, our first page is a definitions and terms (or types) text page.

Gushing – “Gushing is generally defined as uncontrolled, often intense over-foaming of a bottle upon opening, without previous shaking or any other agitation. This over-foaming can cause losses of up to 30% of the beer in a bottle. For breweries, apart from the obvious economic loss, beer gushing also causes reputational damage – nobody wants to be soaked in their favorite beer when opening a bottle! Just have a look at the video below to get an idea about how bad this gushing can sometimes be.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Nine.)

There are two types of gushing – primary gushing and secondary gushing. Primary gushing is caused by the presence of small fungal surface-active proteins. Secondary gushing is caused by CO2 oversaturation, the presence of suspended particles, and course inner surface bottle texture. There is a small clip of a bottle being opened and gushing up; something I’m sure most of us craft beer fans have encountered before. Most likely due to ‘secondary fermenting’ from a sour. The Black & Blue Tastee I had from The Veil Brewing Co was a ‘gusher’. (I’ve had numerous others over the year, just using this particular one as an example here; primarily because I have done a review on it before.)

Next page is factors affecting primary gushing. The page discusses the fungal causes to primary gushing. The most common fungal cause is Fusarium fungi. The page goes on to discuss detection of gushing potential and reduction of primary gushing.

After this is a text page on secondary gushing. Changing of temperatures, refermenting, continuing fermentation, and outright overheated of bottles / cans / beer can result in a secondary gushing. Too much active sugars usually causes the refermentation and continual fermentation that results in certain fruited beers gushing.

The next page is for verified track learners only. Its tips on improving stability. The next page after this is a materials collection page, telling you what to collect for the do-it-yourself project (experiment) upcoming in Module Ten. After this is the typical ‘overview and checks’ end of the module page. Then we have an assessment page for verified track learners. (These are larger, counted and graded tests for those getting a certificate. Unlike myself, who is not, if you are paying the 99.99$ for the certificate, you can do these tests and other pages.)

The last two pages of the module are a feedback and questions (ending discussion page), and then the ‘end of module nine’ page. Congratulations we have finished another module! If you hit the next button it will take you to the Intro page for Module Ten, and that is where we will pick up next time! Can’t wait to see you then!

Cheers everyone, and I really hope you are all enjoying this ‘beer education’ series. Please let me know!

(PS: Today is my daughter’s birthday; Lily turns 11.)

Also, tomorrow is a double-canning day at Tattered Flag. Look to read about that afterwards! Cheers everyone!

-B. Kline

The Beer Education Series:
** EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing
* Beer Education: Series
* Beer Education: Syllabus
* Beer Education: Introduction
* Beer Education: Module One: The History of Beer Brewing
* Beer Education: Module Two: Barley and Malting
* Beer Education: Module Three: Water
* Beer Education: Module Four: Hops and Spices
* Beer Education: Module Five: Yeast
* Beer Education: Module Six: The Steps of the Brewing Process
* Beer Education: Module Seven: Fermentation and Maturation
* Beer Education: Module Eight: Filtration and Packaging
* Beer Education: Module Nine: Beer Quality and Stability
* Beer Education: Module Ten: Beer Assessment and Tasting
* Beer Education: Series Overview

The next page is a text page titled “What is Filtration?”. “During filtration, a turbid liquid (in this case: unfiltered beer) is mechanically separated by a filter medium into a clear filtrate and a residue. The beer is forced through this filter by applying pressure, so that there is a pressure difference between the inlet (where the unfiltered beer enters) and outlet (where the filtered beer exits) of the filter.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Eight.)

The main goal of filtration is to remove yeast cells, as well as things that could result in a hazy beer (obviously, notwithstanding purposeful hazy beers like New England IPAs and pale ales). This also results in better beer stability. Filtration is also a way to remove some bacteria, further helping with the sterilization of the beer and protecting the drinker (customer).

Beer is usually filtrated after lagering. (After fermentation but before bottling.) The speed of filtration depends on the number of yeast cells and the fermentation equipment used.

Next is a page of text and diagrams discussing the different filtration mechanisms. There is several ways, but the big three are: surface filtration, depth filtration (mechanical retention), and adsorption filtration. (The page provides a diagram for each of these mechanisms.)

Clicking next we come to another text page – introduction to filter types.

• Sheet Filters – This filter consists of filter sheets between plates.
• Membrane Filters – The beer is passed through membranes with very fine pores.
• Filter-aid Filters – Filters coated with specific filter-aid. Kieselguhr is most commonly used in the beer industry

Filter aids come in two main varieties: Kieselguhr and perlite. “Kieselguhr is also called diatomaceous earth. It is the fossilized remains of diatoms, single-celled micro-algae with a hard but porous cell wall composed mainly out of silica – SiO₂. These skeletal remains were deposited on ocean bottoms millions of years ago. Kieselguhr has a high porosity, causing substances to be filtered out from the beer due to mechanical retention. Kieselguhr only has limited adsorption capacities, implying that it does not significantly alter flavor and color of the filtered beer.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Eight.) “Perlite is a material of volcanic origin. It is volcanic glass formed by the hydration of obsidian- a rock formed by the rapid cooling of lava. By heating perlite to 800°C, the water inside will expand and ultimately cause the perlite to burst. The resulting glassy structures are then milled to yield perlite powder, a very light, loose powder. Perlite consists of aluminium silicate. Because of the grounding, perlite does not possess a fine, internal structure and filtration mainly happens due to the cavities and channels between the perlite particles.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Eight.)

Moving onto the specific filter types, first up – sheet filters. Sheet filters are fiber sheets that are hung between plates. The sheets are mostly cellulose but also use Kieselguhr (typically). The unfiltered beer flows from one plate to the next via the filters. In breweries, sheet filters are used for the finest filtration – also called polishing. There is some disadvantages to sheet filters; they are: occupy a large amount of space, need to be cleaned manually – so time consuming and hands on, filtering of turbid beers can be a very slow process, and high operating costs due to water usage and time factors.

Filter aid filters are the next type we take a look at. Filters are pre-coated with a filter-aid. The particles of filter-aid are smaller than the pores of filter support that they are coated on. To prevent this from getting into the beer the filter-aid is applied in three layers:

• Precoat Layer
• Safety Layer
• Continuous Dosing

The most commonly used filter set-up using filter-aid filters is a set-up using kieselguhr-PVPP, with PVPP standing for polyvinylpolypyrrolidone.

Membrane filters have extremely very fine pores, like a giant mesh. This mesh or membrane filter catches the most and has quickly become the more popular way of filtration for many breweries in America. A big disadvantage to the membrane filter though – is when the pores get coated in with the impurities of the unfiltered beer, building a wall to them that lets nothing past. To prevent this, beer can be pre-clarified before ran through the membrane filters.

The next page is a 4:45 minute expert clip by Dr. David De Schutter, who works for AB InBev Europe. AB InBev has over 250 breweries, with countless amount of filtration systems throughout these breweries. AB InBev has its own interbrew filtration system.

Following the expert clip is a ‘quick knowledge check’. It is two questions, a drop and drag question, and a ‘check all that apply’ question.

We now move onto the next subject – beer packaging. The first page is ‘types of beer packaging’. Any consumer of beer should be pretty familiar with the various types of beer packaging. There are three main types of material styled products:

• Glass or PET (polyethylene terephtalate) bottles
• Cans (aluminum)
• kegs

The types used by breweries vary for purposes of the beer and how it is sold, as well as region. In Europe, glass beer bottles are preferred and favored; where as in America consumers prefer aluminum cans, especially for the larger macro produced beers (Budweiser, Miller Lite, Coors Lite, etc.)

The next page is about glass beer bottles. Some of the important features of a glass beer bottle are: neutral to taste, impermeable to gas, and heat resistant. However; glass is heavier, and prone to breaking when transporting. The preferred color of a bottle is brown glass or brown-sugar class; primarily to prevent ‘skunking’. “This is because brown colored bottles offer the best protection against the formation of something that is called a lightstruck flavor – a pungent smell that is often described as ‘skunky’. This skunky flavor is caused by photo-oxidation of isohumulones (iso-alpha acids), important compounds derived from hops. This photo-oxidized product can react with thiols present in the beer and this results in the formation of 3-methyl-2-butene-thiol, also known as MBT. It is MBT that is responsible for the pungent, lightstruck smell in beers. MBT also has a very low flavor threshold: only a few ng per L (ppb) are sufficient for people to pick up the smell.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Eight.) This is followed by a diagram showing how MBT forms.

For green bottles, the brewers use special hop extracts containing hydrogenated or reduced iso-alpha acids. Green glass bottles can also be coated with a lightblocking layer as well to prevent the MBT formation.

Up next is a 2 minute video about the bottling line. The next page is a text and diagram page about filling bottles with the beer. Home brewers and commercial brewers use similar equipment, but just on much different size and scope.

Following this is a page on carbonation. Carbonation is the process of dissolving carbon dioxide in a liquid; in this case in the beer. The degree (amount) of carbonation in a beer is a big factor in many ways for different types of beer. It can also potentially be too much, causing ‘gushers’ or ‘geysers’ when opened. It adds body and mouthfeel to a beer, foam formation, foam stability, and also can affect the hop aroma.

Carbonation can be performed before or after packaging. Beer can be carbonated one of two ways – natural carbonation or forced carbonation. Natural carbonation comes during the fermentation process (usually near the very end). Forced carbonation is after the beer is fully fermented, carbon dioxide is pumped into a sealed beer container, this allows the carbon dioxide to be absorbed into the beer.

Next up is a nearly seven minute expert clip from Dr. David De Schutter. In it he discusses beer packaging, especially how to minimize beer oxidation. At this point, oxygen is the ultimate evil for beer. Another aspect is making sure the beer is drinkable and microquality is ensured. Using either flash pasteurization or sterile filtration. Once again, following the video clip is another ‘quick knowledge check’. It is one question and is ‘check all that apply’ question.

We now move onto the next portion of this module – microbiological stability of beer. The first page is an intro to this segment of the module. We start off with pasteurization. “Pasteurization is a process used to increase shelf-life of food products and beverages, including beer. It is named after the French scientist Louis Pasteur. Remember him from the timeline in Module 1? Not only did Pasteur discover that yeast is responsible for the fermentation process, he also discovered that thermal processing of beer and wine would prevent them from souring. This is because the increased temperature destroys or inactivates micro-organisms that could otherwise lead to beer spoilage, or that, in the case of pathogenic microbes, even be harmful to humans. For example, if microbes such as lactic acid bacteria would still be present in the packaged beer, they would lead to sour beer by producing lactic acid. Presence of Pediococcus species in the packaged beer would lead to butter-like off-flavors because of diacetyl production. By pasteurizing the beers, these microbes are inactivated and hence cannot produce these compounds anymore. In other words, pasteurization increases microbiological stability of the beer.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Eight.)

Beer pasteurization can be performed before or after packaging of the beer. There are two main types of pasteurization, namely flash pasteurization and tunnel pasteurization.

Flash pasteurization: “The term flash pasteurization refers to short-time pasteurization (15-30 sec) at high temperatures (71-74°C), with temperatures used in flash pasteurization being higher than those used in tunnel pasteurization.  Flash pasteurization is most often used for beer that will be filled in kegs, and is most often done using plate heat exchangers. ” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Eight.)

The steps for flash pasteurization:

• cold beer is warmed up
• beer is brought to the pasteurization temperature (and maintained there for a short while)
• the beer is cooled down again
• the beer then needs to be packaged

Tunnel pasteurization – “Tunnel pasteurization is often incorporated in the beer filling process. Tunnel pasteurization is performed on packaged beer (in cans or bottles). Bottled or canned beers slowly pass through a long, narrow chamber (a tunnel, hence the name tunnel pasteurization) and are warmed up by spraying them with warm water for a fixed time before cooling. The beer is held at a pasteurization temperature of 60°C for a set time, usually around 30 min. The exact time of pasteurization also depends on the type of beer that needs to be pasteurized. In contrast to flash pasteurization, the beer inside a bottle does not all heat up in the same way in tunnel pasteurization – resulting in a temperature gradient inside the bottle.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Eight.)

Cold sterile filling is also a method, and is actually gaining traction because the above procedures can age a beer quicker (due to the rising temperatures).

Beers in glass or aluminum cans have labels. Just like food at your grocery store, beer also requires labels. It lets you know key information about the beer, at the worst, it allows you to know the name of the beer so you at least know what the heck you’re drinking. Different regions, countries, and states require different information to be presented on the beer labels for the sake of the consumers as well as for those shipping the beers. The EdX course gives the example of Belgium which requires the following information:

• Product Type
• List of Ingredients
• Net quantity in metric units
• Date of minimum durability
• Special conditions for keeping or use
• Name or name of business, address, manufacturer, packager, and importer
• Country of origin or provenance
• Alcohol content for beverages that contain more than 1.2% ABV (alcohol by volume)
• Lot identification

The page then has a discussion page where it is asking people to show their favorite beer labels. I presented the label from Fourscore Beer Co’s “This is Nut the Fluff You’re Looking For“. (Which if you click the link you can see my review of.)

My post: “

I chose this label because I’m a huge Star Wars fan, and I love how it both imparts what the beer is, as well as a fun pun, and uses the Star Wars theme. I think its done very well and is a nice clean, crisp, American craft brewery beer label.

https://thebeerthrillers.home.blog/2020/03/24/beer-review-this-is-nut-the-fluff-youre-looking-for-fourscore-beer-co/

-B. Kline
The Beer Thrillers
https://thebeerthrillers.home.blog/ – “

The next page we move onto the next module. The first page is a list of materials to collect for the ‘do it yourself’ experiment in Module Nine. After this is a page for verified track learners about priming sugars and carbonation. Next page is on the different priming sugars for carbonation. There are three main sugars for priming: corn sugar, table sugar, and dry malt extract (DME).

The next page (still listed on verified track learner; although it is letting me, a non-verified track learner see and read it) is about the carbonation levels of different beer types. It has a chart of recommended levels of carbonation per beer styles, for ex. Belgian Ales – 3.8 to 4.8 (g/l).

Now we come to the ‘end’ of the module. With the overview and check page. Followed by the assessment for verified track only. (Which this did not let me view.) After this is the feedback and questions page as is typical for the end of each module. I posted under the topic “Can vs. Bottle”:

“I find it in interesting in America that especially in the last few years there has been a greater move to go from bottle to can. Likewise from growler to crowler. I actually tend to prefer bottles for the 12oz and 16oz varieties, but prefer crowler (32oz) over the growler (32oz). Can’t exactly place why, perhaps because of a taste difference. Though I’m told by many there is no taste difference, and The Alchemist brewery even says to drink their IPAs from the can rather than from the glass. (I do typically pour into glasses from either can or glass; unless busy grilling or mowing or whatever, then I drink straight from the can or glass.)

Curious what other’s thoughts are on the glass bottle vs. can debate.

Cheers!”

So I’ll posit this to you dear readers as well, what do you think, do you have a preference between cans or bottles? If so – why? Also, do you pour into a glass typically when drinking? Does that affect your decision?

And last but not least, hitting next, brings us to the “End of Module 8” page. Congratulations! Another module done and in the books. Time to grab (another?) beer, and prepare for Module Nine!

I’ll see you there guys, and in the mean time – Cheers!

-B. Kline

The Beer Education Series:
** EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing
* Beer Education: Series
* Beer Education: Syllabus
* Beer Education: Introduction
* Beer Education: Module One: The History of Beer Brewing
* Beer Education: Module Two: Barley and Malting
* Beer Education: Module Three: Water
* Beer Education: Module Four: Hops and Spices
* Beer Education: Module Five: Yeast
* Beer Education: Module Six: The Steps of the Brewing Process
* Beer Education: Module Seven: Fermentation and Maturation
* Beer Education: Module Eight: Filtration and Packaging
* Beer Education: Module Nine: Beer Quality and Stability
* Beer Education: Module Ten: Beer Assessment and Tasting
* Beer Education: Series Overview

As per usual, the first page is an introduction video for the module. This one is a minute and twenty-eight seconds, and she discusses the module, fermentation, maturation, and that they have the head brewer of Orval as one of the guests for this module.

Our next page is a text overview page. It has a list of terms and definitions.

• Fermentation – The process by which yeast cells convert sugars present in wort into ethanol, carbon dioxide and flavor compounds.
• Green Beer – Immature beer. After fermentation but before maturation.
• Maturation – Can also be called conditioning or secondary fermentation (most notably in the US). (There is also WARM CONDITIONING and COLD CONDITIONING.)
• Bottle refermentation – Commonly called bottle conditioning. How most home brewers finish carbonation of their beers.

After the list of vocab words there’s a diagram explaining the steps. Starting with cooled wort and propagated yeast, to pitching, pitched wort, fermentation, green beer, maturation, beer, and finally ending at ‘possible bottle refermentation’.

Moving on, our next page is propagation. “To obtain good fermentation results, both quantity and quality of yeast cells is important. This can be achieved during propagation. To ensure a sufficient quantity of yeast cells for fermentation, all yeast propagation regimes consist of different steps where yeast cultures are grown in progressively increasing volumes.” (Edx: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Seven.)

The steps of propagation are usually as follows: isolation of desired yeast cells, propagation in the lab, and propagation in the brewery.

The next page is a discussion page about yeast propagation. Their question: “Thinking back about what you have learned about yeast in Module 5 of this MOOC, why do you think these factors are important? You can discuss with your fellow students on the discussion forum!”

My post: Yeast is one of the biggest driving force behind flavor in a beer. You need the right requirements and factors to keep the yeast well and good for brewing. Sufficient temperature is always a big issue. Keeping the yeast right insures flocculation and FLO and makes sure you get no off flavors in your beer. (A common one being a ripe banana taste.)

Moving forward, we come to: “Dried Yeast – a Special Case”. Most home brewers (in the US especially) will be familiar with dry yeast. A lot of home brew shops sell dry and wet yeast packets from a variety of companies. This text page details how dry yeast is produced, and how you rehydrate it.

Clicking next, we have another text page about pitching yeast. This is when yeast is added to wort. The number of yeast cells added to a wort (at a specific volume) is called the pitch rate or pitching rate. The higher the pitching rate (the more yeast cells) the less fermentation time. The page then has a chart about different pitching methods. Such as: pitching freshly propagated yeast, pitching active dry yeast, re-pitching from a previous fermentation, and drauflassen.

The next page is about fermentation. “During fermentation, yeast converts fermentable sugars, present in wort, into CO₂ and ethanol. At the same time, hundreds of secondary metabolites that influence the aroma and taste of beer are produced. Variation in these metabolites across different yeast strains is what allows yeast to so uniquely influence beer flavor.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing). (See also: Module Five: Yeast.) This is then followed by a very large diagram.

Fermentation can be done in an open or closed vessel. Most home brewers and craft breweries in the US ferment with closed vessels. Throughout the fermentation process, brewers can keep track of the fermentation progress by taking samples, they then analyze its wort gravity. (Similar to that of original gravity and final gravity.)

Moving on, we get to conditioning. Not altogether unlike an athlete, conditioning is final fermentation (or secondary fermentation). Where fermentation is the heavy lifting, conditioning is the cardio and toning. This is when green beer matures (primarily in flavor) and can be carbonated more. Two (of several) types of conditioning are warm and cold conditioning.

“Warm conditioning is sometimes also called diacetyl rest or VDK stand. This is a period where the green beer is stored at warm temperatures for final flavor and colloidal stability. During warm conditioning, yeast cells can take up the diacetyl from the green beer and convert it into acetoin and subsequently 2,3-butanediol.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Seven.)

“Cold conditioning is sometimes also called lagering. When fermentation is finished, and often after a period of warm conditioning, the green beer is cooled (either in the fermentation tank or in a separate lagering tank) and stored at low temperatures (-1 to 5°C) for several days (ale beers) or up to several weeks (lager beers). These low temperatures cause yeast cells to further sediment and also cause precipitation of proteins (a so-called chill haze, due to the formation of protein-polyphenol complexes). Together, this results in clarification of the beer. Lagering also allows for flavor maturation of the green beer – acetaldehyde levels (green apple, solventy) and sulphur compound levels (rotten egg, garlic) drop, amongst others due to CO₂ gas stripping. For lager beers, this ultimately results in their characteristic clean, crisp taste.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Seven.)

“Conditioning of beers in wooden barrels deserves a special mentioning here. After fermentation, the beer is further matured in wooden barrels. These wooden barrels are often made of oak and are often re-purposed from bourbon, whisky, wine, brandy, sherry or port production. The toasting of the oak affects the type of flavors that are imparted by the wood to the beer. Toasting is a process whereby the wood is brought to a specific temperature (often between 150-240°C) for a certain time. This heat causes complex thermal degradation reactions of for example polysaccharides present in the wood to take place – resulting in the production of aroma-active volatile compounds. Lightly toasted oak will impart a spicy flavor, whereas more heavier toasted oak can result in smoky and coffee-like flavors (Doesn’t this remind you of what is happening during the kilning of malt? In fact, toasting also creates furfural and HMF!). Vanilla and caramel are two other wood-derived flavors. The beer will also absorb the flavors of whatever was stored in the barrel before, such as wine or bourbon. Additionally, the microbes present on the wood can also contribute additional flavor compounds to the beer. These barrels can be re-used for several maturation rounds. Conditioning in wooden barrels can take several months. To give these wood-derived flavors to their beers, some brewers work with wood chips instead of full wooden barrels.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Seven.)

Up next is a text page on bottle refermentation. Priming sugar and yeast cells are added to the bottle when the wort (now beer) – beer is transferred from the fermenting vessel to the bottle. (Home brewers will add just the priming sugar.)

Next is an expert clip from Anne-Francoise Pypaert, head brewmaster for Orval; it is a 7:14 minute video. In the clip, she talks about yeast, fermentation, conditioning, and how they do all of that at the Orval Brewery.

This is followed by a quick three-question quiz. (Drag and drop, and two multiple checkboxes.)

The next two pages are about fermentation vessels. The first page about what you can use. The second page about different types of vessels. Starting with open vessels and discussing coolships (used for lambics). Then discussing closed vessels. Fermentation vessels can be horizontal or cylindroconical. Cylindroconicals (or conicals) have a few advantages: easy to clean and sanitize, possibility to recover CO2 produced during fermentation, possibility to recover and easily remove (and thus reuse) [yeast] cells at end of fermentation, and possibility to install and use specific fermentation temperature devices and techniques.

After this is a three and a half minute video about the changes during the fermentation process. Notable changes in pH and Nitrogen. There is also changes in beer color, beer flavor, and acids. Due to the drop in pH the precipitation of polyhenols begins.

There is some factors affecting fermentation. They are:

• Extract content
• Ethanol levels
• Trace elements and other nutrients
• Oxygen
• Temperature
• Pressure

Moving on in the module, we come to a text page about the intro to yeast handling after fermentation. “In almost all breweries, yeast cells are used for a number of cycles, or in other words, a number of fermentations. Hence, yeast is collected at the end of a fermentation round so that it can be used in a subsequent fermentation. This process of inoculating a new batch of fermentations with yeast cells from the previous fermentation batch is also called repitching or backslopping and this practice has been used by brewers for centuries. ” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Seven.)

Yeast recycling passes through two phases:

• Yeast Cropping
• Yeast Purification

First up is yeast cropping. This is when yeast cells are collected from the fermentation vessel. Most conicals allow for easy retrieval from the bottom of the vessel, before the beer is even removed. For top-fermentation systems, the yeast will be on the top and you just skim them off the surface / top.

You can also do yeast centrifugation. “At the end of primary fermentation, the entire yeast crop can also be removed by centrifugation. A second, more frequently used option, is to first remove the main yeast crop by skimming or plug removal and then centrifuge the green beer to remove any remaining yeast cells. ” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Seven.)

After cropping the yeast cells (and prior to repitching) you must purify the yeast. This can be done either by sieving or acid wash.

Sieving – As you have seen in the previous part on yeast cropping, collecting yeast from the correct layer of your fermentation will already reduce contamination of the yeast crop with trub particles.

Acid Wash – This is done using phosphoric, sulphuric or citric acid. The yeast crop is chilled before washing and this yeast slurry is gently stirred while the acid is being added.

The next page is about yeast storage. The most common ways of storing yeast are ‘yeast cakes’ and ‘yeast slurry’. (Neither sounds too appetizing.) Kveik yeast strains get stored differently. (Kveik is Norwegian for yeast.) “Farmhouse brewers would only brew a couple of times a year, implying that the yeast they used needed to be stored in-between these brews. This was traditionally done using a so-called kveik ring or kveikstokker – a wooden structure in the shape of a ring or log. This structure was dragged through the fermentation, in this way collecting yeast cells from the fermentation. Next, the ring or log was put up to dry. When it was time to start the next brew, this ring was simply dipped in the wort (that was often still very warm: 30-40°C – this also explains perhaps why Kveik yeasts do so well at higher temperatures). In this way, Norwegian farmhouse brewers were backslopping their yeasts from one fermentation to the next!” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing. Module Seven.)

The following page is a ‘do it yourself’ about other food fermentations and page discussion. The next page is a verified track content page (practical tips for brewers). We’ve now come to the overview and end-of-module checklist, as well as the assessment for verified track learners. As usual, this is followed up with the feedback and questions page, and then the end of module page. So another module done! Clicking next will take you to the intro age for module eight, which is where we will pick up next time.

Another long module worked through and done. I hope you all are learning as much as I am and enjoying this as much as I am.

Cheers!

-B.Kline

The Beer Education Series:
** EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing
* Beer Education: Series
* Beer Education: Syllabus
* Beer Education: Introduction
* Beer Education: Module One: The History of Beer Brewing
* Beer Education: Module Two: Barley and Malting
* Beer Education: Module Three: Water
* Beer Education: Module Four: Hops and Spices
* Beer Education: Module Five: Yeast
* Beer Education: Module Six: The Steps of the Brewing Process
* Beer Education: Module Seven: Fermentation and Maturation
* Beer Education: Module Eight: Filtration and Packaging
* Beer Education: Module Nine: Beer Quality and Stability
* Beer Education: Module Ten: Beer Assessment and Tasting
* Beer Education: Series Overview

The intro video is a short 3:57 long video describing what the module (the steps of beer brewing) is about. The six steps are: milling, mashing, filtration, boiling, whirlpool, and cooling and aeration. The video demonstrates (briefly and quickly) the six steps using their pilot batch brewing system, while giving little bits of information setting up the module.

Clicking next we come to a text introduction page. This page discusses the following six steps:

• Malt milling
• Mashing 
• Lautering (wort filtration)
• Wort boiling
• Wort clarification
• Wort cooling & aeration

There is a clickable diagram about the six processes and steps and clicking on them gives you a description, tells you what equipment is needed, how it is used, and how you proceed to the next step / process of the brewing. The diagram is full of information on the process, when hops are bittered, or grains added, when to cool the wort, etc.

Our next page is a terms and definitions page. Like the old vocabulary pages from when you were in elementary school (…hopefully you’re not still in elementary school and reading this). The terms are: attenuation, break, brewhouse efficiency, cast wort, extract, grain bill, gravity, and trub. On the course page, you click on the word and it drops down for the definition. Not going to steal the thunder of the course by providing them all here for you, but as an example – cast wort: The wort obtained after the boiling process including the hot trub.

Getting into the course module proper now, we start with MILLING. “The main objective of malt and cereal milling is to convert the kernels into finely ground and milled particles.” (Edx: The Science of Beer Brewing: Module Six). This page gives you information on DRY and WET milling, with picture diagrams.

Moving on, the next page is MASHING. “Mashing is the most important step in the brewing process. During mashing, grist and water are mixed, leading to the solubilization of malt constituents and the action of malt-derived enzymes on the resulting mash, generating the extract. The term extract refers to the total amount of dissolved solids in the brewing water.” (Edx: The Science of Beer Brewing: Module Six). Two main types of mashing are infusion and decoction mashing. Infusion is when the mash is kept together and heated in one (singular) vessel. This can also be called ‘step mashing’ due to the changes in temperatures. This is what most home brewers do. In decoction mashing, you withdraw some mash and boil it and then pump it back in. The decoction method is better for protein breakdown, increased formation of melanoidins, increased removal of DMS, and reduced active amount of enzymes.

There is then a pull-down chart of different reactions during mashing. They are: β-glucan degradation, protein breakdown, starch degradation, and lipid conversion. Clicking on each of these would pop up more information on the topics.

The next topic is LAUTERING. “Lautering is a filtration process where the soluble part of the mash (liquid, also called wort) is separated from the insoluble part (consisting of husks and other materials).” (Edx: The Science of Beer Brewing: Module Six). This is when it starts to become ‘wort’. The page then has a chart of factors, and what a lauter tun vs. a thinbed filter does with that factor. The page then discusses how temperature and milling also affect the filtration and lautering process.

Next up is WORT BOILING. “After lautering, the wort is boiled. Wort boiling was originally done in copper or steel vessels, now more modern equipment is being used, most often made from stainless steel. Steam heating is the most commonly used way to increase wort temperature.” (Edx: The Science of Beer Brewing: Module Six). Its during the boiling process when you add the hops, spices, and similar ingredients. As we learned in the hops module, the hops and spices control the bitterness and aroma of the beer.

Once again there is a pull-tab / pull-down chart with different terms and their definitions. They are: wort sanitation, extraction and transformation of hop components, precipitation of protein-polyphenol complexes, enzyme inactivation, color increase, pH decrease, and evaporation of unwanted hop aroma compounds.

Scrolling down the page we come to the boiling equipment segment. “A boiling kettle needs to be equipped with a powerful heating system. In the past, direct heating by coal or gas was used but these types of kettles are now only rarely in use. Nowadays, steam is used for kettle heating. By boiling water, steam is produced at the same temperature as the boiling water.” (Edx: The Science of Beer Brewing: Module Six). The page then ends with a diagram of a boiling kettle with internal boiler.

Clicking next we come to Whirlpool, cooling, and aeration which leads off with an experiment before getting into the information. The page has pull-down tabs for: whirlpool, stripping, cooling, and aeration.

Next up is an expert clip by Gert De Rouck. It is a seven and a half minute clip. He discusses the brewing process. The page following this is a discussion page. The discussion page is about the disadvantages of green malt. I wrote:

“The biggest problem for any brewery is shelf life when it comes to this. And this has a very limited shelf life which is unfortunate, especially for a craft brewery where all the issues are already compounded. Local sourcing is another issue. Cost and quality is the last issue as well, especially for smaller US craft breweries.”

The next page is titled: “A Special Case – High Gravity Brewing”. “High gravity brewing  (HGB) involves using wort at higher than normal gravity, usually 15-20°P original gravity. This wort is subsequently fermented by yeast. The resulting HGB beer is diluted to desired gravity by adding CO₂ impregnated water (blend water); this process is referred to as blending. This water is added immediately before, or after filtration of the beer.” (Edx: The Science of Beer Brewing: Module Six). Some of the effects of high gravity brewing are: increased stress conditions of yeast cells, head retention in final beer, potential change in beer flavor, and pH change.

After this is a super easy quiz; just two drop-and-drag questions. The next page is a discussion page where they ask everyone to post pictures of their homebrew setups. Next up is a page for verified track learners only. The pages for verified track learners are grain bill calculations, homebrewing tips, and a few other things (three pages in all).

Looks like we’re at the end of the module. We got the overview page, and then an assessment. The assessment is for verified track learners. The next page is a feedback and questions discussion page. The following page is the end of the module and the congratulations page.

Whew another module done. Thanks for stopping out and going through the module with me.

Cheers everyone!

-B. Kline

The Beer Education Series:
** EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing
* Beer Education: Series
* Beer Education: Syllabus
* Beer Education: Introduction
* Beer Education: Module One: The History of Beer Brewing
* Beer Education: Module Two: Barley and Malting
* Beer Education: Module Three: Water
* Beer Education: Module Four: Hops and Spices
* Beer Education: Module Five: Yeast
* Beer Education: Module Six: The Steps of the Brewing Process
* Beer Education: Module Seven: Fermentation and Maturation
* Beer Education: Module Eight: Filtration and Packaging
* Beer Education: Module Nine: Beer Quality and Stability
* Beer Education: Module Ten: Beer Assessment and Tasting
* Beer Education: Series Overview

As per typical, our first page of the module is an intro video. Please be aware, above the video is a note saying that this module will take longer than the last two modules, so to provide yourself with enough time for it (and here I thought the hops and spices module was pretty long!). This looks to be a very informative module as they will cover yeast very in-depth (just like they did with the malts, grains, hops, and spices). The intro video discusses the various parts of the upcoming modules, what you will learn, and the two expert clips (one about brewing yeast strains and one about open fermentation). So lets click next and dive into this.

Clicking next we come to the page “what is yeast?” which has another video. But first, they give you a definition and description of yeast:

Yeast is the workhorse in the beer making process. Different yeast species are used to make beer. All yeast species are microbes:  they are microscopically small – although not as small as bacteria, and also very different !

EdX:The Science of Beer Brewing (Module Five)

The video is 5 minutes. Their first topic is about the two main types of yeast strains used for beer brewing: Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Saccharomyces pastorianus. Saccharomyces cerevisiae is used for making ale beers and Saccharomyces pastorianus are used for making lager beers. She moves on to discuss open fermentation and how many yeast strains might become used for that, and showcases one particular Belgian strain – Brettanomyces bruxellensis. After this she moves back to Saccharomyces cerevisiae and focuses on this particular strain. She breaks down the science of WHAT is the Saccharomyces cerevisiae, how its a micro-organism, single cell, and eukaryotic. She then goes on to describe the various parts of it, how it buds and reproduces asexually and expands and grows. This is all very important for the beer brewing process. She ends the video discusses briefly flocculation, but don’t worry we will discuss that in much further detail.

For example, on the very next page. Once you click next after that video you are brought to the next page, which is another video, this time fully about flocculation. Flocculation is the aggregation or the sticking together of yeast cells into a clump of cells which is also called a floc. This is an in-depth look at flocculation and is a 6:30 long video. Typically and historically yeast strains have been divided into two categories based on flocculation: top fermenting and bottom fermenting. The importance of flocculation in brewing: collect yeast cells (top fermenting: skim off; bottom fermenting: cropping) and the timing of the flocculation. Other important topics in the video are FLO Genes and Sugars.

Bonus points: If you make it through the video without even breaking a smile every time she says flocculation.

Our next page is about ale and lager yeast strains. First we revisit the Bavarian Beer Purity Law of 1516. It was primarily instituted to prevent bacterial contamination. There is a chart that offers information on both Saccharomyces cerevisiae and Saccharomyces pastorianus.

Clicking next we come to an expert clip by Professor Kevin Verstrepen. He is the author of ‘250 Belgian Beers: Tested and Tasted’. The clip is 8:51. He discusses the various ways they breed and make hybrid yeast strains for particular purposes. About the last two minutes of the video is very interesting, where he discusses AI and how the artificial intelligence works with yeast. And how the AI can use sites like BeerAdvocate and others to rate stuff and figure out how people will rate a beer based on the yeast strain used.

Moving on we come to a text page about yeasts in spontaneous fermentation. “Beers such as Lambic and Gueuze (sometimes also spelled Geuze) are NOT made by brewers inoculating the wort with specific yeast strains – instead, these beers are typically made through a process of spontaneous fermentation.” (EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing – Module 5.)

Spontaneous fermentations usually involve a mix of different yeast (and bacterial) species that appear sequentially over time. The exact composition of the microbial population in spontaneous fermentations depends mostly on the beer type and fermentation conditions. Brettanomyces yeast species are for example commonly present during the (later stages of) Lambic fermentation. Lambic beer is a typical spontaneously fermented Belgian beer. Brettanomycescan also be found in fermentations of American coolship ales.

Two of the best known Brettanomyces species in beer brewing are Brettanomyces bruxellensis and Brettanomyces lambicus.

EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing – Module Five – Yeast

If you’ve been following our blog here, you’ll remember back in January J. Doncevic and myself visited Mellow Mink and got to meet – Dr. Sour – brewer Matt Miller himself, and he showed us around the brewery. We discussed lambics, geuzes, sours, and all things relevant therein, particularly the yeasts. For more information on that, check out the two articles: Mellow Mink Brewery Visit and Scarlet Sunrise (Mellow Mink).

Trivia: Did you know – Brettanomyces was originally isolated and described at the Carlsberg Laboratories in 1904; where it was isolated from English beer. Hence the name of the yeast species: Brett – British; Myces – fungus. Interestingly, this isolation resulted in the first patented microorganism in history (UK patent GB190328184). (Part of) the patent reads as follows: “the employment in the manufacture of English beers such as ale, stout and porter, of cultures of the new species of micro-organisms called Brettanomyces in order to produce the flavour and condition peculiar to such beers”.

Scrolling down this text page you’ll find pull tabs to learn more about topics: Hydrolysis of longer chain carbohydrates, Release of volatile aroma compounds by beta-glucosidases, and Typical Brett aromas. This is then followed up by a paragraph on scientists and how they work on hybrid yeast strains, particularly for lambics and Trappist beers.

The next page is an expert clip by Professor Bart Lievens on spontaneous fermentations, primarily dealing with the brewing process of lambics. It is a 5:50 minute clip. He discusses traditional Trappist brewing procedure for lambics, and the process and various yeasts that do the fermenting through the various months while in the casks.

We come to a quick knowledge check (quiz) next. It is five questions (two multiple choice, and three check-box questions).

The next page is a discussion page for homebrewers and craft brewers: “what yeast strains do you use?” My post: “I typically buy my yeast from my LHBS (local homebrew shop) – Scotzin Brothers. I usually get WhiteLab, and depending, but it is typically W34. For a five gallon homebrew batch, I’ve found this typically works best, especially for most styles.” (Succinct and to the point.)

The next page is the yeast experimentation page. This “do it yourself” experiment is all about yeast fermentation. It is a relatively simple and pretty straight forward experiment. The next page going along with it is a discussion page about the experiment.

We are now moving on to yeast handling in a brewery. This is a verified track learner content page. The next page after that is a text page: ‘essential nutrients’. This page begins the discussion of what exactly the yeast are doing.

Next we have a video on the growth on different carbon sources. This is a 10 minute video, and unfortunately the audio seems to be really low on this one, so its a bit hard to hear at times. This is a very informative video with lots of charts and graphs.

After this we have a page on fermentation vs. respiration. This is a heavy science text page with chemical structures and diagrams.

The next page says its “optional reading” about yeast lag phase. I highly recommend doing the reading, there’s also an interview and expert clip from Professor Verstrepen as well.

After this is another quiz, its four questions, multiple choice, check-box, and drop and drag. After the quiz we move onto “intro to yeast” which starts with yeast flavors. Then it moves on to aromas from the yeast as well.

Clicking next, we come to organic acids and (off) flavors produced by yeast. This text page is another chart and science page. (This module is probably the most science based module yet; so far; in this course.)

Next is aldehydes. They can be formed either by Ehrlich pathway or Carbohydrate metabolism. Aldehydes can also be formed by reaction – lipid oxidation or Strecker degradation of amino acids. Aldehydes are generally considered to have a grassy flavor (that most would consider unpleasant).

Higher alcohols, also termed fusel alcohols, are typically formed by the yeast cells from amino acids through the Ehrlich pathway (catabolic route). The figure below gives a schematic overview of the different steps from amino acid to higher alcohol in the Ehrlich pathway. The second figure gives a more detailed overview for specific amino acids and their respective higher alcohols. This page has a very big chemical structure chart.

Moving on, we come to esters. A term most craft beer drinkers know (and all brewers should definitely know). Esters are the biggest group of aroma-active compounds in beer. Esters are formed inside yeast cells via a reaction between acetyl- or acyl-CoA and an alcohol. The first class of esters, formed through condensation of acetyl-CoA and an alcohol, are called acetate esters. The second class of esters, formed through condensation of acyl-CoA and ethanol, are termed fatty acid ethyl esters. Acetate esters diffuse more readily across the plasma membrane and in this way have a bigger impact on the final beer aroma. Following the information is more chemical structure charts and diagrams.

Another term most people know is diacetyl. There is various types of diacetyl. Vicinal diketones is the most common and is most often what people refer to when they speak of diacetyl in general. These are the cause for the unpleasant flavors.

The following page covers sulfur compounds. As the name suggests, this is sulfuric and gives off bad sulfur aroma and flavors… obviously not good for beer (or really anything for that matter). Sulfur compounds are important flavor determinants in beer. Most sulfur compounds derive directly from malt, yeast-produced sulfur compounds arise during the catabolism or anabolism of the sulfur-containing amino acids methionine and cysteine.

Up next is phenolic compounds.

Whew! That was a LONG module. But its not over yet if your a verified learner. If you are a verified learner, now is your mid-term that makes up 20% of the grade. If you are going that route – good luck! I’m moving on to Module Six!

Sorry this one took so long. It took me a while with the course, and I’m also fighting the ennui of this whole ordeal. I “should” be writing a blog post a day, but I find myself less and less motivated. And I’m not even working right now. I think some of it is a case of “the busy man gets more done” and some of it is the stress of the unknown of the situation.

I have been working behind the scenes on the blog, so look for some new writers, new styles, new beer reviews, new themes, and new content and channels. Lots of stuff coming in the near future, like a brewery look up for Hemaur Brewing’s Grand Opening On May 1st. So please follow us on here by subscribing, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Cheers everyone! Stay safe, stay home, stay drunk!

-B. Kline

The Beer Education Series:
** EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing
* Beer Education: Series
* Beer Education: Syllabus
* Beer Education: Introduction
* Beer Education: Module One: The History of Beer Brewing
* Beer Education: Module Two: Barley and Malting
* Beer Education: Module Three: Water
* Beer Education: Module Four: Hops and Spices
* Beer Education: Module Five: Yeast
* Beer Education: Module Six: The Steps of the Brewing Process
* Beer Education: Module Seven: Fermentation and Maturation
* Beer Education: Module Eight: Filtration and Packaging
* Beer Education: Module Nine: Beer Quality and Stability
* Beer Education: Module Ten: Beer Assessment and Tasting
* Beer Education: Series Overview

Module four starts off, just like the others, with an introduction video. The intro video is by Stijn and is only 1:31. The second page is a 4 minute video introducing hops. As most know, hops are used to bitter, add flavor, and to help stabilize beers. It was also quickly realized in the 11th century that hops also help add to the shelf-life of beer. So between this and the taxation of gruit in Germany, there was a lot more reason and emphasis for brewers to go from using gruit to using hops in brewing. In 1516 the purity laws in Germany reduced the usage of herbs and spices even more.

Hops scientific name is humulus lupulis. (The lupulis or lupulin is the power inside the hop cones.) Hops are primarily cultivated for brewing and beer production (but can also be used for tea, sleep aides, and soap). 75% of hop production and growth takes place in Germany and the United States (primarily in the Yakima Valley).

Only the female plants are used for beer brewing, as they grow the flowers and the cones. Its these cones that have the lupulin (resin) that contains the molecules of interest for brewing. For this reason male hop plants are not grown with the female to prevent pollination. (To learn more about hop growing, I will be posting an article shortly about my own hop growing from my own growing hops this spring. At my house I have Cascade, Centennial, Nugget, and Saaz, and looking at possibly getting more.)

After clicking NEXT, we come to a text page about the role of hops and hop compounds. Characteristics of beer that are altered by hops include: beer bitterness, beer flavor, mouthfeel, foam stability and lacing, improved shelf life, antibacterial properties of the hops, protein precipitation during wort clarification, and phenolic antioxidants.

There are four major hop molecule classes:
* alpha acids – hop bitter acids
* beta acids – not as important due to most being lost during the brewing process
* essential oils – important contributors to the beer’s flavor, bitterness, and aroma
* polyphenols – important for the beer stabilization (haze, foam, lacing)

The page continues with a large chart of the various compounds and their weight (when the hops are still wet). This is followed by a second chart showing what hop compounds are retained in beer (after the brewing process). There is an important note to remember; that beers with dry-hopping (particularly IPAs) the aroma is going to be higher and greater due to the dry-hopping.

Our next page is another text page – hop types and varieties. “The Latin name of the hop plant is Humulus lupus L., belonging to the plant family Cannabaceae (this plant family, for example, also contains the Cannabis plant species!). There are many different hop varieties and around 100 of these are commercially cultivated. New varieties are constantly being bred in order to obtain better growing and resistant plants and hop cones with superior qualities.” (EdX – The Science of Beer Brewing.) Hops are somewhat similar to most seed plants as far as naming, with the heirloom, for example, older hop varieties have a double naming pattern. The first name refers to the origin of the variety and the second name refers to the actual (modern / current) variety. So – example – Hallertau Magnum would be: Hallertau as the geographic origin, and the Magnum refers to the variety of the hop. Some heirloom fruit and vegetable seeds do this as well, or do something similar but naming its pedigree rather than geographic origin. Some more modern and newer hops, have just one name, like Cascade hops, which name comes from the Cascade mountains of Oregon.

The three different classes for hops are: bittering hops, aroma hops (including noble hops), and dual-purpose hops (which; just as the name implies – they contribute to both bittering and aroma). About 60% of hop production is aroma hops, primarily for IPAs and due to IPAs growth in the craft beer sphere.

Before moving on, at the bottom of this page is pull-down tabs for each of the classes, with information and some examples of hops of each type. The next page is a discussion page talking about home brewing and what hops you have used, I posted the following:

I grow my own hops, and love using the types I grow – Cascade, Chinook, Centennial, Nugget, and Saaz. I like making a wet-cone and dry hop IPA at harvest time using the Cascade and Centennial, as well as Chinook. I’ve also done a clone of Troegs’ Nugget Nectar as well.

I have pictures of my hops on my blog and the blog’s Facebook page.
https://thebeerthrillers.home.blog/

The following page is a three-question (true or false) quiz.

Moving on, we come to the alpha acids. And we’re starting to get into some ‘real science’ here. This page has the molecule diagrams, and discusses what acids and molecules are in the alpha acids and in the hops.

The five alpha acid molecules found in hop resin are cohumulone, humulone, adhumulone, prehumulone and posthumulone. These molecules differ only slightly from each other in their molecular structures depending on the side chain at the C2 position (see table). The most important alpha acids are cohumulone and humulone. Their content can be up to 50% of the total alpha acid fraction. Adhumulone is the third most important alpha acid representing around 10-15% of alpha acids across different varieties. Each of these molecules results in a different type or quality of bitterness. Cohumulone is for example believed to contribute to a rough and harsh bitterness. Therefore, the cohumulone content of bitter hops can be high, while a high fraction is not desired for aroma hops.

Alpha acids are commonly present in the range of 2 up to 20% (w/w) of the hop cone content. Importantly, these alpha acids themselves are not causing bitterness, they are the precursors. Only during boiling, the alpha acids are converted into iso-alpha acids (isomers of the respective alpha acids) via a thermal isomerization reaction (acyloin-type ring contraction). These iso-alpha acids are the principal source of bitterness in beer. In addition, iso-alpha acids are more soluble in water compared to the alpha acid precursors.

EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing – Alpa Acids

As you might have guessed, the next page is about the beta acids, and is similar, showing the chemical chains and discussing their molecular makeups. Both of these pages are fascinating with their diagrams of the chemical structures and the nuance knowledge it provides about these alpha and beta acids in hops.

The next page is ‘intermezzo on determining beer bitterness’ and is a text page. This page discusses determining beer bitterness and figuring out a beer’s IBU. An important note at the end of the page: “Importantly, IBU values do not necessarily match the bitterness as it is actually perceived when drinking the beer. Perceived bitterness can be influenced by for example, alcohol level, residual sugars and the use of roasted malts. ” (EDX – Science of Beer Brewing.)

Our next page is about essential oils – and no, its not that crap your wife’s friend Karen keeps trying to sell her; this is about hops essential oils. This is a very long page, with a large chart, followed by pull tabs of lots of information. This is followed up by a page on polyphenols. After this is a tough quiz, so you better have studied.

We next have an expert clip from Professor Thomas Shellhammer about dry hopping. After his informative 8 minute video is a 3 minute video by Stijn about hopping techniques. There is then a few pull tabs of information, and another video by Stijn – summary.

The next page is all about hop products. It discusses hop pellets, hop extracts, pre-isomerised hop products, reduced pre-isomerised hop products, and hop aroma products. The next page is another quiz.

The following page is a verified track learner page about ‘favorite hops’ and ‘popular hops’. After that is a discussion page on spices before we get into the spices segment of this module.

Spices have been used since beer was first brewed, but really used in medieval times. They were used for preserving the beer a bit longer, aroma, flavor, and to mask off-flavors. Some popular spices were: juniper, anise seeds, caraway and coriander seeds. Gruit was especially popular during this time (pre-hops). Some spices that would have been a part of gruit was: yarrow root, juniper berries, ginger, sage and rosemary. We still commonly use spices in Belgian beers, particularly witbiers, these spices are: coriander seeds, cinnamon, nutmeg, and orange peel. Regional and seasonal beers will often use seasonal spices and flavors (like yam / pumpkin beers and winter warmers).

There is a lengthy chart at the bottom of this page, detailing what spices can be used (or at least what are commonly used), how they are used, what part is used, the flavor they impart, beer examples, and some bonus comments.

Clicking NEXT we come to a page with the aroma compounds of spices. This page lists their chemical structures, aroma compounds, and where these compounds are found. After this, we have a 3 minute expert clip from Dr. Gert De Rouck about spices. This is followed by a 4 minute video for the ‘Do It Yourself’ experiment for this module.

Following the video is a discussion about the experiment; I wrote:

I took a pretty non-descript pale ale brewed by a friend homebrewer that didn’t have much more than just a “Mr Beer” flavor kit to it, so it was relatively bland (but fine and acceptable beer). I experimented using coca nibs and vanilla to try and give it a bit of a cookies and cream flavor to it (or at least a punch in that direction).

I was amazed at how it did certainly pick up those flavors. Though I don’t think taste-wise it turned out necessarily the best, but it did definitely pick up the flavors of the nibs and vanilla.

After this is a verified track learner page (spiced beers). Followed by a “quick knowledge check”. After the quiz is a page about what materials to collect for Module Five. Following this is the typical ‘overview and check’ page at the end of each module. Then there is an assessment page for verified track learners. After that is the feedback and questions page that ends each module. Once you click NEXT you will be brought to the “congratulations you finished Module Four”. Clicking NEXT again will bring you to the intro page for Module Five.

So follow with me next time when we move onto the next important ingredient in brewing: YEAST.

Cheers everyone!

-B. Kline

The Beer Education Series:
** EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing
* Beer Education: Series
* Beer Education: Syllabus
* Beer Education: Introduction
* Beer Education: Module One: The History of Beer Brewing
* Beer Education: Module Two: Barley and Malting
* Beer Education: Module Three: Water
* Beer Education: Module Four: Hops and Spices
* Beer Education: Module Five: Yeast
* Beer Education: Module Six: The Steps of the Brewing Process
* Beer Education: Module Seven: Fermentation and Maturation
* Beer Education: Module Eight: Filtration and Packaging
* Beer Education: Module Nine: Beer Quality and Stability
* Beer Education: Module Ten: Beer Assessment and Tasting
* Beer Education: Series Overview

The next page is another video – five minutes – about water quality and how it pertains for commercial brewing. Discussing water ions in particular. The first step is to analyze your water composition. The first thing to do is to get a mineral composition report. The report should minimally include the concentration of sodium, calcium, magnesium, sulfate, chloride bicarbonate as well as the alkalinity of your water supply. The video focuses on the major ions of calcium, magnesium, sodium, sulfate, and chloride. Good brewing water should be ‘moderately hard’. Each of these ions have different properties and affects on the brewing process at different steps and parts of the brewing process.

Moving onto the next page we have a text based page about the various other ions found in water. Iron, zinc, copper, manganese, and nitrate. The following ions should NOT be found in water: arsenic, barium, bromate, cadmium, chromium, cyanide, lead, and mercury. As well as herbicides, insecticides, and other similar solvents and organic killers.

Our next page is another text page; this time based on water hardness. Calcium and magnesium are the primary ions that determine a water’s hardness. If you like formulas and science (and math), this page is chock full of all that goodness for you. It discusses temporary hardness, permanent hardness, and total hardness of the water (complete with formulas for figuring each out).

Next up we have water alkalinity and mash pH. The minerals in your brewing water will have more effect on the mashing process than the water pH. The most important buffer (in your brewing water) is the alkalinity (resulting from the carbonate content). This page contains more formulas and charts and content. The bottom of the page discusses how important mash pH is to your brewing process. The mash pH affects: activity of enzymes, yeast cells, hop extraction rate during boiling, proper protein precipitation, and extraction of tannins.

The next page is a ‘summary’ and contains a massive chart. This is then followed by a quick knowledge check. After this we move (from water ions) to water treatment and the first page is an introduction page.

Different water treatment technologies exist and depending on the source water and final purpose, the following treatment steps might be necessary:

• Removal of suspended solids
• Removal of dissolved substances
• Reduction of residual alkalinity
• Removal of dissolved solids
• Removal of organic contaminants
• Removal of dissolved gasses
• Removal of microorganisms

Moving onto the next unit, we have suspended solids – filtration. This is the process of removing fine particles in the water; filtrating and extracting them out of the water to keep it pure for brewing. Next up is dissolved substances – oxidation / precipitation. Iron and manganese are not only bad for beer flavors (giving you off flavors and off colors), it can also damage brewing equipment. You can remove them through aeration (oxidation) or by binding them to phosphates. The next page is about residual alkalinity – ion exchange and is a smaller page but with two pull-down tabs.

Continuing on we come to dissolved solids – reverse osmosis. Then we get organic contaminants – activated carbon. This is followed up by dissolved gasses – deaeration / degasification. Moving on to more topics in this group we have microorganisms – disinfection. And to finish out this group of pages we come to the summary. Which of course followed up by a small knowledge quiz.

We now come to a video, an expert clip by Master brewer Hedwig Neven on water usage and waste water treatment. This is a very informative 7:41 minute clip. (I’ve loved the expert clips, they have all been greatly informative.) The next page is a text page – materials to collect – which tells you what to collect for the experiment. This is followed up by a page for verified track members only (calculations for brewing water); luckily these calculations can be found all over the internet or through various homebrewing apps. As usual, this is followed by an overview page. In lieu of doing an assessment for this module, it is instead an experiment.

The experiment is about finding out about your local water, by comparing parameters, and then discussing it on the discussion page. My discussion post:

Harrisburg PA Area
— Via Suez: (4.10.20)

The level of the most important parameters related to brewing water: • Alkalinity: 102 • Effective Hardness: 167 ppm • Calcium: 55 ppm • Chloride: 3 ppm • Magnesium: 6 ppm • Sodium: 3 ppm • Sulfate: 20 ppm • pH: 7.3

The parameters that are out-of-range for brewing water: High pH; calcium on the low side and alkalinity slightly above desired threshold.

Treatment steps: Permanganate to remove chlorine Acid to reduce alkalinity (need to drop to 100). pH is also high, need to reduce based on Braun sheets.

After this, (where the experiment took the place of the assessment) as per usual, its followed up by a feedback and questions page. Clicking next we go to our typical “congratulations” page where it tells us we completed Module Three and that the next module will be done by Stijn S and will be about spices. So join us (and me) as we dive into that next! So stay tuned for Module Four as we continue our beer education series!

Cheers and happy (safe) learning!

-B. Kline

The Beer Education Series:
** EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing
* Beer Education: Series
* Beer Education: Syllabus
* Beer Education: Introduction
* Beer Education: Module One: The History of Beer Brewing
* Beer Education: Module Two: Barley and Malting
* Beer Education: Module Three: Water
* Beer Education: Module Four: Hops and Spices
* Beer Education: Module Five: Yeast
* Beer Education: Module Six: The Steps of the Brewing Process
* Beer Education: Module Seven: Fermentation and Maturation
* Beer Education: Module Eight: Filtration and Packaging
* Beer Education: Module Nine: Beer Quality and Stability
* Beer Education: Module Ten: Beer Assessment and Tasting
* Beer Education: Series Overview

Also, I’ve found my energy to write is somewhat dissipated when a) I have all this time to do “REAL” work around the house, b) I almost have ‘too much’ time, and c) my keyboard is still acting up with certain keys. With a) I find myself doing yard work, helping my daughters with their new online schooling, taking the dog for more walks.With b) I think its the issue of “the busier you are the more you get done”. Its a surprising thing to note, that the days I worked, I got more blog stuff done, etc, I think because my time is / was so limited it forced me to work on it right away, instead of saying “I’ll do it later” …. later never comes. I keep pushing it back. With c) … well its just an annoyance factor, when you constantly use H or N or Y or U, it gets really frustrating trying to do work arounds or mashing your hand into the keyboard to get a button to press. Hopefully soon I will be getting a new laptop (not a priority during a pandemic where I got laid off and have a ton of other things on my plate), and when I do, I imagine my writing will ramp up. Also, as for the blog, it seems AJ and Josh aren’t as interested in writing as much anymore, so I’m the sole force and driver of the blog, which means I need to buckle down and write more, just need to find that energy and drive. The other issue with writing, is always the marketing afterwards. Getting the blog post seen, and doing all the work on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. It seems writing the blog takes 2-3 hours, and then another hour of self-promotion. And if I post it late (8PM or later lets say), the response from the community is far less than ideal (compared to posting at say noon).

Ok, enough rant and crap, lets finally kick off Module Two. Module two is about barley and malting and taking a key look at the first of the four major ingredients in beer (malt, water, hops, and yeast). The intro page talks about the course ramping up, and comes with an intro video by Stijn.

The second page is a discussion board where you can discuss what cereals (or malts) are used in your country. The question asked is: “In your country, what cereals are used?” and my response was:
“In the US craft beer scene there is pretty much an unlimited amount of grains and cereals at use, by all the different breweries. From roasted malt, to barley, to oats, to flaked oats, to ACTUAL cereals or even pastries (whoopie pies I’ve seen used, etc), and breads and things like graham crackers. Pretty much if it has starch or fermentable sugars, a craft brewer / craft brewery has used it in the USA.”

The next page is another video by Stijn – this time about barley. In the 3:16 minute video, he discusses why barley is pretty much the universal “go to” grain for brewing. Listing economical as well as brew-technical reasons for barley (as compared to the myriad of other choices). Economical reasons are: “grows on all continents, good grain yield, and strong disease resistance”, which means its produced the most (and most effectively) and means the cost for it is going to be lower compared to other options. Brew-technical reasons given are: “local availability, high starch content, sufficient yeast nutrients, sufficient enzyme formation, and adhering husks”.

Next we move onto the ‘barley structure’. Barley is primarily divided into two major types – winter barley and spring barley. From here, there can be many more sub-divisions and varieties like: two-row or six-row barley. Two-row barley is the preferred barley for most brewing. Kernels are more homogeneous, it has a more favorable endosperm over husk ratio, and it has lower protein levels.

Scrolling down on this page, you will find a chart and diagram where you can click different topics and names to read more about barley and the husks and other features of barley. The key parts are: the husk, pericarp and testa, aleurone layer, endosperm, embryo, and the scutellum and epithelium.

The next page is the chemical composition of barley. Here they break down the chemical and molecular levels of a barley kernel, detailing moisture content, carbohydrates, proteins, inorganic matters, lipids, and other smaller matters.

Moving onto the next page we start with the carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are roughly 70% of the dry matter of a kernel and can be broken into two categories: storage and structural. Storage – mainly starch. Structural – cellulose and hemicellulose. There is a drop down menu which breaks these all down for further reading and the molecular composition of each piece. After this is a 7 minute video by Professor Christophe Courtin, one of the experts for the program.

The next page is nitrogen compounds of barley kernels. The page breaks down the nitrogen percentages for the barley used for brewing versus animal feed, and then discusses the proteins in the kernels. After this we move on to polyphenols. Polyphenols contribute greatly to the stability and shelf life of beer. It contributes to the beer color, mouthfeel, and act as natural anti-oxidants.

The next page is a quick quiz to make sure we’re actually retaining all of this knowledge. After the two question quiz, there is a page about barley pests for verified track learners only (if you are paying for your certificate). The net two pages are video and discussion going back to the malting experiment.

This is followed by an expert video by Sofie Malfliet. She has a PHD in Malting Technologies. This is a 7 minute video, discussing her work at Albert Maltings. Following the video we get an overview of the malting process. There is five main steps: 1) cereal cleaning, sorting, and storage, 2) steeping, 3) germination, 4) drying and kilning, and 5) deculming.

From here, this five step process gets broken down. Starting with the cleaning and sorting of the barley. The second page is steeping. (Which is the process of periodically submerging graded barley to initiate germination.) The third page is germination. The fourth page is drying and kilning, and is loaded with charts and information. After this, the fifth and final page is about deculming. After kilning the malt is cooled and the culms are removed. These pages are followed up by a quiz, so hopefully you didn’t skim over it.

Following the quiz is a discussion page on green malt. The question posed is: “What are the advantages you think of using green malt in the brewing process? Are there any disadvantages you can think of? Please share your thoughts with us!” My answer:
“There is definitely advantages and disadvantages. Firstly, for disadvantages its primarily economical and logistical. So for smaller end malting plants this won’t be ideal (thinking of Deer Creek Malt in PA). As far as advantages go, its mainly environmental. Which is always a benefit on the long haul if we are able to do it. Problem is the ‘being able to do it’ part.”

Moving on, we come to the overview of different malts page (next page). It breaks down the barley malts by pilsner, pale ale, munich, aromatic, roasted, and caramel. The next page is another page for verified track learners only (different malt types).

The next page is adjuncts. Their definition of an adjunct is: “Adjuncts are defined as non-malted (mostly carbohydrate) materials used as complements or supplements to (barley) malt. These supplements are used in brewing for the following reasons – cost saving, enhancing brewhouse capacity, and influence on beer.” Different regions have rules, laws, and regulations about adjuncts. Germany still holds true to the purity laws. Some examples of adjuncts are: unmalted barley, corn (flakes), rice (flakes), sugar and sugar syrup.

And that pretty much wraps up Module Two. There is a feedback page, a small quiz page (one question), a larger assessment page (if you are a verified track learner), a discussion page, and an overview page. The final page is a “End of Module Two” page and if you click NEXT after that it brings you to the intro video for module three. So, join me next when we get to tackling module three!

Hopefully it’ll be sooner than later, possibly even tonight, or tomorrow. (Most likely tomorrow at the earliest.) I am going to try and really double-down and get these goings, with some possible beer reviews and other things to round out my articles. I have been working hard on my hops these last few days (beautiful weather), and taking lots of pictures, so there will probably be an article about that for all of you hop growers (or wanna-be hop growers).

Cheers, and stay safe and healthy everyone, looking forward to getting back out to breweries and having a pint with ya’ll! Cheers!

-B. Kline

The Beer Education Series:
** EdX: The Science of Beer Brewing
* Beer Education: Series
* Beer Education: Syllabus
* Beer Education: Introduction
* Beer Education: Module One: The History of Beer Brewing
* Beer Education: Module Two: Barley and Malting
* Beer Education: Module Three: Water
* Beer Education: Module Four: Hops and Spices
* Beer Education: Module Five: Yeast
* Beer Education: Module Six: The Steps of the Brewing Process
* Beer Education: Module Seven: Fermentation and Maturation
* Beer Education: Module Eight: Filtration and Packaging
* Beer Education: Module Nine: Beer Quality and Stability
* Beer Education: Module Ten: Beer Assessment and Tasting
* Beer Education: Series Overview