Brewing and brewing research: past, present and future

Whilst remaining largely traditional in approach, malting and brewing have become highly efficient processes through a substantial understanding of their underpinning science. Technological change in the industry is driven by four criteria: cost reduction, quality enhancement, maintenance of safety and wholesomeness and opportunity for enhanced sales. Whilst there are some opportunities for cost reductions by savings on raw materials, the major cost components in brewing involve production and packaging. Hence the focus is on energy reduction, maximising vessel utilisation and use of automated control strategies. There is scope in the future for production of beer by novel approaches, involving downstream establishment of quality parameters, though this is likely to be resisted. Quality of beer embraces both package and product. The shift towards enhanced use of non‐returnable green or clear glass has focused attention on eliminating undesirable lightstruck characters from the product as well as the use of oxygen‐scavenging crown corks to minimise the development of stale characters due to carbonyl‐containing substances. There is an increased understanding of how to control the various species that primarily determine the flavour of fresh beer, including sulphur‐containing substances, esters, higher alcohols, vicinal diketones and the bitter resin and oil fractions from hops. The achievement of stable foam on beer is dependent on the presence of foam‐stabilising components, principally amphipathic polypeptides, but is determined by the physical behaviour of bubbles, notably the phenomenon of disproportionation. Malt and beer are at risk over a range of safety issues, but all can be avoided through attention to raw material selection and processing conditions. Moderate consumption of beer is now considered to be potentially beneficial. © 2000 Society of Chemical Industry