Scientists discover a craft beer should be chilled and consumed as soon as possible

A craft beer drinkers essential guide: Trendy beverage should be chilled and consumed as soon as possible because it loses its unique aroma when stored for too long

  • A chemical known as 4-mercapto-4-methylpentan-2-one gives it a distinct smell 
  • This dwindles when stored for too long or not kept at a suitable temperature  
  • After three months the blackcurrant smelling compound reduced by 30 per cent

Craft beer should be stored in a chilled place and consumed as soon as possible to ensure the best taste, scientists have found. 

The advice comes from a scientific study which looked into how the unique aromas of the alcoholic drink dwindle over time. 

After just three months in cold storage the hop odorant – which resembles the scent of blackcurrants – had decreased by more than a third. 

This chemical, known formally as 4-mercapto-4-methylpentan-2-one, serves to distinguish the beers, and its avid sect of drinkers, from the average ale or lager. 

 

After just three months in cold storage old the hop odorant – which resembles the scent of blackcurrants – had decreased by more than a third. This chemical, known formally as 4-mercapto-4-methylpentan-2-one, serves to distinguish the beers,  from the average ale (stock)

Just a few nanograms (ng) of the chemical are added to brewing in the late stages to help boost its flavour and scent. 

This process is called ‘dry-hopping’ and has become more popular in recent times. 

A specially developed analysis was developed to quantify how much of the odorant was present at any one time. 

At the beginning of the investigation, the filtered beer contained 22 ng/kg of the compound whereas it was less in the unfiltered beer at only 15 ng/kg. 

After three months at 5°C (41°F) the amount of the key chemical decreased to 59 and 67 percent of the original content, respectively. 

If the beer was left to stand at room temperature of 20°C (68°F), the losses were significantly larger. 

The concentrations even decreased to 30 and 40 percent in this case. 

After a total of six months in storage the concentrations plummeted to as low as 2 ng/kg.

Just a few nanograms (ng) of the chemical are added to brewing in the late stages to help boost its flavour and scent. This process is called 'dry-hopping' and has become more popular in recent times (stock)

Just a few nanograms (ng) of the chemical are added to brewing in the late stages to help boost its flavour and scent. This process is called ‘dry-hopping’ and has become more popular in recent times (stock)

‘Anyone who prefers a beer with a strong hop aroma should not store craft beer for long,’ says Klaas Reglitz, who studied Brewing and Beverage Technology in Weihenstephan. 

‘We have always had craft beers in Bavaria. They are brewed according to the German Purity Law,’ says Martin Steinhaus. the principal investigator of this study.

‘This means that the brewer must not use anything other than malt, hops, water and yeast.’

The full findings of the study were published in the journal BrewingScience.  



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