Have you ever considered how your favorite beer always tastes the same, even though different bottles come from batches brewed months or even years apart? One of the most important characteristics of a good beer is consistency, and consistency is a key element in quality. Breweries achieve consistency through work done in the lab.
Laboratories serve a vital role in quality assurance (QA) and beer production. They check product quality, perform routine analyses on various stages of the production line, and eliminate health hazards. Labs also evaluate beer for consistency and trueness to specific requirements laid out by the brewery. Large breweries use their labs for research experiments to discover new technologies, methods, and ways to improve production. A lab with a proper quality program can prevent product recalls and even keep a brewery from going out of business.
In The Brewing Science Laboratory, authors Sean E. Johnson and Michael D. Mosher provide a solid foundation of scientific information plus the practical knowledge needed to create and operate a successful brewery laboratory. Utilizing an easy-to-understand format and a conversational tone, the authors introduce the fundamentals of chemistry, microbiology, and sensory. This approach is not only ideal for brewing science students and novice brewers, who may not be familiar with these topics, but also for more experienced readers, who will appreciate reviewing the basics.
Johnson and Mosher also explain the steps in implementing a QA program and present both the associated costs and the science behind the analysis. In addition, the authors address how to work within an established laboratory, how to perform proper laboratory techniques, and what instruments and equipment are needed to provide accurate and precise measurements. Readers will also learn about data management, laboratory safety, and laboratory capabilities. And throughout the discussion, the authors offer practical advice to brewers—for example, when to buy which instruments when following a tight budget.
The authors also introduce ASBC tools such as the Beer Flavor Wheel, the fishbone diagrams, and the ASBC Methods of Analysis to familiarize readers with the resources available to maintain quality, consistency, and safety. Chapter 15 contains streamlined versions of 30 ASBC methods that provide concise directions for preparing reagents, step-by-step instructions on conducting analyses, and reproducible worksheets on which to record data. Throughout the book, key terms are highlighted in the text and defined in the adjacent margin, and all the terms are compiled in a glossary.
The Brewing Science Laboratory was written for students interested in entering the brewing industry as quality control technicians. However, the information it provides will be valuable to small brewery owners and even more advanced brewers interested in increasing their laboratories’ output. As both a textbook and a reference manual, The Brewing Science Laboratory is an ideal resource for brewers of all experience levels.