Since 2007, BarthHaas Nuremberg has provided grants for innovative product development with regard to hops in the brewing industry. In 2020, the focus was on researching options for simplifying the production of hop-forward beers using the technique of dry hopping without causing undesirable changes in the hop aroma or the hop flavor of the finished beer.
Two research projects in this area were selected for grants:
Grant recipient Dr. Nils Rettberg from the Research Institute for Beer and Beverage Analysis (FIBGA) at the Versuchs- und Lehranstalt für Brauerei in Berlin (VLB) e.V. investigated the quality of beers dry-hopped on the cold side of the brewing process through sensory analysis together with various gas and liquid chromatographic analyses. The aim of the study was to determine whether the concentration of certain hop constituents can be increased in beer through the application of enriched hop pellets or hop extracts. The findings can serve to aid in the more economical production of hop-forward beers, such as, by reducing beer losses.
The grant recipients Gutsch, Bahnke and Kohles conducted their research under the supervision of Dr. Martin Zarnkow and Prof. Fritz Jacob at the Research Center Weihenstephan for Brewing and Food Quality of the TU Munich. They developed a new method of dry hopping as an alternative to the conventional, dynamic dry hopping procedure. In this case as well, the work revolved around sensory analysis and determination of the primary constituents through laboratory analysis.
MEBAK sincerely congratulates the researchers from Berlin and Weihenstephan on their awards.