Dr.-Ing. Philip Wietstock has been unanimously elected to become a full member of the Central European Commission for Brewing Analysis (MEBAK). His official acceptance as a member was announced on March 22nd 2019 during the 93rd plenary session held in Berlin, Germany.
Born in Viernheim, Germany, Philip Wietstock completed his general qualification for university study (allgemeine Hochschulreife in the German education system) in the year 2000. He went on to study biotechnology with an emphasis on brewing science at the Technische Universität in Berlin. For his thesis, Mr. Wietstock utilized electron spin resonance (ESR) spectroscopy to investigate the antioxidative function of various hop compounds and the effects of hop additions on the oxidative stability of beer.
After finishing his university studies in 2009, Philip Wietstock spent a year in the USA, working at Oregon State University in Corvallis, Oregon. There, he joined the working group lead by Tom Shellhammer. He applied inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy techniques to investigate the bitter acids in hop, for example, with regard to their capacity to form complexes with transition metal ions. Moreover, together with Tom Shellhammer, he developed a method to measure the iso-α acids in beer by means of solid phase extraction and UV/Vis spectroscopy. Mr. Wietstock also serves as chair of the corresponding subcommittee in the American Society of Brewing Chemists.
Since January 2011, Philip Wietstock has worked at the Technische Unversität in Berlin. As a research associate, Mr. Wietstock has aided in the implementation of instruction and teaches the class chemical-technical analysis, among others. Furthermore, Mr. Wietstock participates in launching and administering various research projects with a focus on brewing technology. Since 2012, Mr. Wietstock has been an active member of the working group Hopfenanalyse (AHA), which primarily deals with the development and verification of analysis methods relevant for hops.
Mr. Wiestock completed his doctorate in February of 2017, graduating with honors (summa cum laude). For his dissertation, he employed various analysis techniques, including Solvent Assisted Flavor Evaporation (SAFE)-GC/MS, to study the reactions occuring in beer as it ages. He also optimized the hop addition procedure to improve the oxidative stability of packaged beer. He received the Ludwig Narziß Award for Brewing Science in 2017 for his publication “Influence of Hopping Technology on Oxidative Stability and Staling-Related Carbonyls in Pale Lager Beer”.
The members of MEBAK are pleased to welcome Dr. Wietstock into their circle of experts.
