I Just Can’t Get Enough
The science of dry hop extraction rates and dry hop saturation points explored.
The Sweet Taste of Malt and Revealing its Pathogen’s secret
A Flame-Side chat about how international travel, collaboration and interaction led to new insights in pathogen biology inside (malted) grains
Nobody At The Vault But Yeast
A Flame-Side chat with Dr Anna Fijarczyk about her research on old yeast strains.
Your Spent Hops and Grains, a Valuable Resource For Our Food Chain?
Spent grains and hops contain significant levels of nutrients that are of significant benefit to human health
Fun-guys: The Problem With Mycotoxins in Malted Grains
Fungi in a nutshell (or grain husk) Dear brew enthusiasts, In this weeks episode, we will step into the world of plant pathology. We will look at a paper by the groups of Robert Brueggeman and Paul Schwarz, who have devised a new method to visualize pathogenic fungi in grains. Their work is important since …
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Genomics Can Teach Us About The History Of Beer Making
The use of Yeast in Brewing beer has a long history. Here, we will delve into the history of beer making and look at how genomics can be used to study archeology.
Smashing It on the Bench By Going Micro
A flame-side chat with Ben Schulz, leading author of a paper entitled: “Benchtop micro-mashing: high-throughput, robust, experimental beer brewing”.
Barking Up the Yeast Tree
A Flame-Side Chat with Prof Matt Bochman about sours, wild yeasts, adoption and commercialisation.
Primary Souring to Brew Sour Beers
The isolation and characterisation of lactic acid producing yeast isolates now means that you can sour your beer in the primary fermentation stage.
No Ifs or Bots. How Alcohol, 48,000 plates, and Stressed Forks Served Up Increased Mutation Rates
A Flame-Side Chat, with Dr Karin Voordeckers Recently, I described an article published by the group of Prof Kevin Verstrepen. Their work sought to investigate the molecular events that lead to enhanced mutation rates in the presence of Alcohol. I am pleased to report on a Flame-Side Chat with Karin Voordeckers, one of the team members who led …
Brewing Beer In the Age of Infertility
It’s time to move past yeast’s fertility problems. Last week, an article by teams at the Manchester Institute of Biotechnology, the Department of Genetics & Genome Biology at the University of Leicester, and the Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology at the University of Cambridge, was submitted to bioRxiv. This submission (which probably will be peer-reviewed soon) deals with the genetics of yeast. Subscribe now …
Forking out for Alcohol
How Alcohol exposure can lead to higher mutation rates in yeast. Edgar Huitema is a Scientist, Brewer & Scientific Consultant here at ExtrAnalytics Subscribe to my free newsletter to get the latest advances in science. Better yet, become a paid subscriber to fully enjoy the benefits The Beerologist has on offer. Contact us if you wish to …
Repeated Yeast Domestication Ups Beer Brewing Another Level
A Flame-Side Chat, with Dr Francisco Cubillos Riffo Last week, I wrote about an article by Dr Francisco Cubillos Riffo. Francisco is an Associate Researcher at The Millennium Institute for Integrative Biology (iBio). You can learn more about his research here by visiting the Molecular Genetics Lab Website. In short, his group investigates the diversity and genetics of yeasts in brewing. His …
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Yeast Domestication 2.0
Repeated growth and selection of genetically diverse populations re-domesticates brew yeast Growth, selection, growth and more selection. This virtuous cycle of trait-guided promotion of elite plants, animals or microbes underpins the domesticated landscape that surrounds us all. We all know that when it comes to brewing yeasts, repeated use and selection of best isolates, have …
Craft Brewers’ Commercial Yeast Choice May Affect Beer Diversity
Pushing past yeast convention could boost craft beer flavour and adoption In this instalment of The Beerologist, I will describe a scientific paper by Prof. Dr Diego Bonatto that I recently found on bioRxiv (https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.07.17.209171v2). The manuscript has been peer-reviewed and is now published here. The average price of a six-pack of (US) craft beer …
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Genetics of malting quality: The end of the road for crop improvement?
‘Au contraire’ my friends! In this instalment of the Beerologist, we will look into some of the latest research on Malts or Barley to be more precise. In the last episode of my newsletter, I stated how breeders need to breed malting barley varieties that have to fulfil strict criteria. To breed crop cultivars, geneticists …
Genetics of malting quality: The end of the road for crop improvement? Read More »
Let’s do Some Microbiology Work: 101 Style
In previous articles, I argued about the isolation and use of wild yeasts. Based on the responses received from all corners of the internet (and the world) and the commentary received on my yeast isolation experiment, I thought I’d revisit this topic from a more technical perspective. In all fairness, the use of wild yeasts …
Micro-Mashing: A New Technology that Will Accelerate Beer Recipe Design
Micro-scale mashing to dissect beer biochemistry aided by statistical power Brewing beer is an exercise in experimentation. You (brewers) tinker with recipes more often than not, try new ingredients and combinations to create the best wort. Mashing is an integral part of the design process. In a nutshell, mashing describes the process in which grains …
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