What is craft beer and craft brewery? - classification, history and ingredients
Craft beer, focus on the craft. When brewing, keep improving craft to get a good beer. The more craft something is, the less likely it is to be mass-produced, like a limited edition of a luxury item. Craft beer is so much better than industrial beer because of its flavor characteristics and a variety of different beer types.
On Wikipedia, craft beer is explained this way. "Craft brewing" is a broader term, which is used for the industry development after the micro-brewing movement at the end of the 20th century. This definition is not completely consistent, but it is usually applicable to relatively small and independently owned commercial breweries, which adopt traditional brewing methods and emphasize taste and quality. This term is usually used in breweries established since 1970s, but it can also be used in older breweries with similar emphasis. American Brewers Association is very interested in brand transparency, and the definition of craft brewery is "small, independent and traditional". This brewing process takes time and can be regarded as an art by master beermakers. In the UK, the "Guaranteed Independent British Craft Brewers" initiative was initiated by the Independent Brewers Association (SIBA), which ensures that any brewery with the logo of independent craft brewers is relatively small, independent and produces high-quality beer.
Craft beer definition
It's hard to say exactly what craft beer is, but IRI and Nielsen split it into two categories: "pure craft," which fits the BA definition, and "quasi-craft," which is a broader category that includes boutique beers that resemble craft beer.
BA defines craft breweries as: small, independent and traditional. Small: 6 million barrels or less per year (craft beer sales in the US account for about 3% of all beer sales in the US). Independence: the brewery itself must own, control or equal to at least 75% of the brewery's property rights, that is, as a brewery, it cannot be purchased, managed or controlled by more than 25% of the property rights of other non-brewery liquor enterprises. Tradition: Craft breweries use traditional or innovative ingredients and follow traditional or innovative brewing methods to achieve the taste of their beer.
Since the concept of craft beer was started by Americans, we quote the requirements of BA, the American Brewers Association, for craft brewers:
1. Small
With an annual output of less than 6 million barrels (953,880 tons), the beer produced is used for commercial transactions.
2. Autonomy
Non-craft brewers or corporate entities that cannot own more than 25% of the stock.
3. Traditional
Most of the flavor of beer brewed by brewers should be derived from traditional ingredients and fermentation processes.
Beer is not only an energy drink, it's also a social drink, a vehicle to express yourself and be accepted by society. If you can appreciate something in a small way, even in a masochistic way, you will get a different kind of satisfaction. That's why craft beers sell better the more bitter they are.
PlinytheYounger is Pliny's Indian ale, made by a small local brewery, Russian river. The 2009 batch sold out in a week. In 2010, the 40 barrels disappeared in eight hours, making it number one on BeerAdvocate, a website for craft beer lovers.
While big brands like Budweiser and Carlsberg are making their products lighter, the craft beer industry is rushing in the other direction. This hoppy, high alcohol and bitter beer is gaining popularity. This is true of traditional beer giants such as the U.S., THE U.K., and Germany, as well as Asian countries such as China and Japan.
Some people are born with strange tastes: stinky tofu, moldy cheese... These bizarre foods have fans all over the world. However, people love sweet and hate bitter in the same way. From an evolutionary point of view, this makes sense. Many bitter foods have no nutritional value and are just fine if they don't kill us, so this preference actually protects us. As soon as we put something bitter on the tongue, we can't help spitting it out or salivating a lot to dilute it. If injected directly into the stomach with something harmless and bitter, most people will immediately start to feel sick.
From this point of view, drinking bitter is a bit morbid, like drinking black coffee, lemon juice and chili peppers. No sane person would deliberately torture themselves. So why do we accept and even enjoy these unsavory tastes?
"The more your body sends out the danger signal, the more pleasure you get from being safe."
As for beer, its alcohol can make us High, which is pleasant. Bitter, strong beers, such as Pliny, have a higher alcohol content, which at 11% is comparable to red wine. The quest for rich foam may be due to its ability to soften those strong flavors. Similarly, the kick of caffeine is one of the reasons why tea and coffee appeal to us, just as people can tolerate the pungency of tobacco for the sake of nicotine.
Beer is also linked to another thing animals love: carbohydrates. Professor Percha, of the Monell Chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia, conducted an experiment in which rats were fed two different flavors, one of which was paired with carbohydrates, and they quickly took to it. Even if those carbs are injected directly into their intestines, not eaten with the scent. Percha and colleagues also found that people who had no interest in iced tea developed a liking for it when they took a pill that automatically released carbohydrates in their stomach.
Bitter and strong beers usually contain more malt, which releases a lot of sugar. Moreover, if we are exposed to something frequently, we tend to like it more, which psychologists call "mereexposure." In addition, hops not only cause bitterness, but also trigger some pleasant aromas: floral, pine, citrus. Some people even say bitter has an aroma of cannabis -- and for good reason, hops themselves belong to the cannabis family.
But Professor Rozin, of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, believes there is something deeper going on. He points out that evolutionary history has encouraged us to expose ourselves to more new senses, even as we mix curiosity and fear. An unknown berry could be a new source of food, or it could kill you. If we eat something suspiciously bitter and get away with it, it means we've made a discovery, and excitement replaces fear.Prof Rozin calls this "benignmasochism". "It's like bungee jumping," he said. "The more danger signals your body sends out, the more pleasure you get from being safe." And as far as we know, humans are the only species that does this for pleasure.
Berridge, a neuroscientist at the University of Michigan, also provides evidence. When humans experience an unpleasant sensation, even if the sensation comes from the tongue, the brain secretly releases an opiate-like chemical in the same way that the brain responds to pleasure. In other words, "there is an overlap between the pleasure system and the pain system in humans, and once the repetition is stimulated, it becomes more and more active. And bitterness is a stimulus." Berridge explained.
So, all those young people coming up early in the morning to line up for drinks, just to satisfy some primitive human impulse? Perhaps, but there must be something more pressing about bitter's popularity in such a short time.
Mr. Hilruzzo, the owner of Russia's River brewery, was undoubtedly the first witness of this trend. In the 1990s, he had started brewing a double Indian ale that few people were interested in. "I can safely tell you that we drank most of that beer ourselves." He recalled. Today, double Ale is one of the fastest growing beers. For beer connoisseurs, what was once considered too bitter to taste is now just an entry-level drink.
When it comes to "connoisseurs" and "laymen," there's another issue: beer isn't just an energy drink, it's also a social drink, a vehicle that allows you to express yourself and be socially accepted.
Another reason is that bitter beer is more expensive. In a 2007 study, Professor Plassman of the California Institute of Technology found that people actually believed that the same beer tasted better when poured from a $90 bottle than when it was poured from a $10 bottle. This was true not only of the subjects' subjective ratings, but also of their brain activity as measured by fMRI scans. "It also conveys a sense of superiority and taste when they drink the expensive beer instead of the regular beer." "Plasman said.
Craft beer classification
Beer can be divided into ale (up-fermented) and lager (down-fermented) beers according to the type of yeast. According to the raw materials, it can be divided into whole malt beer and auxiliary beer. According to the original wort concentration into high, medium and low concentration beer; According to the mode of production is divided into fresh beer (without high temperature sterilization and filtration, containing yeast wine), beer on draft (after high temperature sterilization storage in a closed stainless steel tanks, use of refrigerants for sale), cooked beer (via high temperature sterilization of bottled, canned beer), pure raw (not through high temperature sterilizing but after aseptic membrane filtration of beer). It can be divided into light beer, dark beer and black beer by color. According to the packaging container is divided into bottles, cans, barrels of beer; According to the alcohol, it can be divided into low alcohol beer and no alcohol beer......
Lager (Lager)
Lager originated in Germany, where the word "lager" is derived from the German "lagern" (to store) and is made with yeast that has settled to ferment beneath the liquid. Most industrial beers are lagers, represented by brands such as Heneiken of the Netherlands, Budweiser of the United States and Tsingtao beer of China.
Ale
Native to the United Kingdom, it is usually made with up-fermenting yeast, which ferments faster than down-fermenting yeast. The typical fermentation temperature is between 15 and 24 degrees Celsius. At this temperature, the yeast produces a large number of esters and other special smells, in some cases producing beer with fruit flavors such as apple, pear, pineapple, banana, plum and plum. Newcastle and Bass in the UK represent this type of beer.
Stout
A top-fermented dark brown beer made from roasted malted barley, it has a strong, burnt taste but has a soft foam and a mellow finish. It is a favorite of some conflers, and is represented by a Brand called Guinness. A species of Stout.
Draught Beer
Also known as fresh beer, unpasteurized beer, only filtered microorganisms, yeast easily spoiled. Draft beer, which is common in pubs, is a draft beer.
IPA (Indian Ale)
Short for India Pale Ale. A hoppy Ale, produced in England and originally supplied to the British colonies in India, it was fortified and added hops to improve the beer's ability to resist spoilage during long sea voyages.
Alcohol
Alcohol is a by-product of yeast metabolism, which destroys the activity of yeast to a certain extent. Brewing yeast cannot normally survive at levels above 12% alcohol. The alcohol content of beer is usually less than 3% to about 14%. In recent years, the alcohol content of beer has been increasing, and the highest has been more than 40% by freezing distillation. Famous is the 2009 "Nuclear War Penguin" (32 percent).
Malt concentration P°
Refers to the sugar content of the wort in the raw material at the beginning of fermentation. The higher the maltiness, the higher the alcohol. Domestic industrial beers generally have a malt concentration of 8-11p °, and some Belgian Abbey beers have a malt concentration of more than 20P°.
Craft beer production related ingredients
The raw materials of craft beer can be added with many accessories and additives. It is not necessary to follow the Purity law of German beer, as long as the purpose of adding raw materials is not to reduce the cost, but to improve the senses. (Like the common wheat beer with coriander)
One. Malt
Malt is the main ingredient in brewing beer, because when the grain sprouts, it is rich in enzymes that produce sugars and amino acids for yeast to live on. For malt storage, the appropriate environment should be temperature < 22℃ and relative humidity < 35%.
(1) Barley malt
Barley can be used as food or feed, but has been used as the raw material of beer since ancient times, generally can be used as the main raw material of beer brewing after the wheat making process, in China's newly revised GBT 7416-2008 beer barley, specifically added the definition of beer brewing barley (including quality requirements).
This section introduces the varieties and contents of barley.
(2) Wheat malt
Breweries rarely use wheat directly as an auxiliary ingredient, but more often make wheat sprouts as an auxiliary ingredient to enrich the foam of beer or brew special wheat beers.
(3) Special malt
Dark malts are often used to give beer a special flavor and color, or acidic malts are used to reduce the pH of saccharification. These are special malts.
Two. Unmalted barley
Ungerminated barley can also be used as auxiliary raw materials (generally due to the flavor requirements of characteristic beer, using roasted barley), it contains very low enzyme activity, contains more β -glucan, inclusion dissolution and decomposition is very poor, saccharification is more difficult, so the general dosage is not more than 15%~20%. Before saccharification, barley should be soaked in alkali solution to remove harmful substances such as anthocyanins, pigments and silicates, and washed with clear water until neutral before use. If the amount of ungerminated barley (or other ungerminated grains with low enzyme activity) is large, separate gelatinization treatment can be adopted, and then combined with the mash to improve utilization rate. This section also introduces some simple ways to prepare your own roasted barley/malt.
Three. Oats
Using oats helps to make the beer smoother and fuller, and can reduce some of the odors, as well as making the beer more stable and better for yeast growth.
Four. Water
Water is the most important raw material in beer brewing and also the most used raw material in beer brewing. Before the discovery of hydrochemistry, the characteristic water quality determined the characteristic flavor of beer. As the blood of beer, water runs through the whole beer brewing process, and the quality of water quality also directly affects the quality of finished beer. The production water of beer includes the brewing water directly into the finished beer, as well as the water for cleaning and sterilization, cooling water and other water.
Five. hops
Hops give beer a refreshing bitterness and pleasant aroma; Increase the anti-corrosion and antibacterial ability of beer; Foam beneficial to beer; It is beneficial to the abiotic stability of beer. Improve the light stability of beer; Give beer its characteristic flavor. This chapter introduces the composition and nature of hop, hop evaluation, hop varieties, hop products and other knowledge.
Hop is the dried flower of the female hop plant and hop products made from it containing only hop components. Different herbal blends have long been used as flavorings for beer, but it wasn't until around the 8th century that The Germans settled on hops as a brewing ingredient, giving beer its unique flavor. Hops must be grown in special areas that meet the necessary conditions for their growth. After receiving hops, they need to be dried and processed to avoid a decrease in their use value.
Six. Beer yeast
After the wort is fermented by beer yeast, it is brewed into beer. Yeast is also known as the soul of beer. It is very important to understand the structure and composition, metabolism, reproduction and growth of yeast and its classification. Different yeast species have a range of different properties. This chapter introduces the physiological characteristics of saccharomyces cerevisiae, the relationship between saccharomyces cerevisiae and beer fermentation, the examination methods of saccharomyces cerevisiae and some experimental methods.
Seven. Additive
With the reform and innovation of beer production technology, more and more kinds of food additives are used in beer, and the use and management of additives in beer production are inconsistent in different countries and regions. Food additives are not all for the purpose of saving costs. When making craft beer, it is not necessary to think that additives should not be used at the sight of additives. There are many additives for the purpose of improving efficiency and flavor and quality of beer.
Eight. The classification of the sugar
The classification of sugars from monosaccharides to polysaccharides is more and more difficult for yeast to use. Sugars that can be metabolized by yeast provide carbon dioxide and alcohol for the beer, while sugars that can't be used by yeast remain in the beer to give it its distinctive taste and flavor.
History of craft brewing
Beer is one of the oldest drinks in the world. According to existing documents, beer's origins date back to 9,000 years ago, and it appeared in Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia. In addition, beer brewing technology and related regulations as early as the 18th century BC Ancient Babylonia "Hammurabi code" has been recorded. It is understood that a foreign scientific research team has carried out archaeological work on ancient Egypt and found that the construction of the pyramid and beer have a close relationship; According to historical records, beer consumption was large at that time, and it was Clebatelli, the daughter of the famous Egyptian astronomer Ptolemy, who first proposed the method of taxing beer and used it to build pyramids, thus creating the world's earliest beer tax. On the other hand, what are the most memorable moments in beer history? Surely the following nine events cannot be ignored!
Date of occurrence: 1516 AD
In 1516, Grand Duke Wilhelm IV of The Duchy of Bavaria issued the German Law on Pure Beer brewing, known in English as Reinheitsgebot; The original aim was to regulate beer prices so that bakeries could not compete with breweries on malt prices and that breweries could not adulterate their ingredients. In addition, the regulations at the time allowed only four ingredients -- malt, hops, water and yeast -- to be used in brewing beer, which is consistent with the modern concept of craft beer.
Date of occurrence: 1524
Elizabeth Tudor, the most famous queen in English history, turned a divided England into a world power and ushered in a "golden age" in British history. Remarkably, the Queen never had a husband, but preferred Ale. But the old Ale was just ale without hops. It was only in 1524 that hops were introduced to England from Holland. And it was "Ale" brewed with hops that Elizabeth loved.
Date of occurrence: 1664
In 1664, the Monastery of La Trappe in France relaxed the rules of monastic practice and allowed beer as a substitute for food on fast days, but the beer had to be made by the monks themselves and could not be bought from outside. As the rule spread across Europe, many monasteries followed La Trappe's example and started brewing their own beer. It didn't take long for Abbey's reputation to spread throughout Europe and the world.
Date of occurrence: 1839
In 1839, residents of the Bavarian town of Pilsen (now part of the Czech Republic) were fed up with the dull, cloudy and untaste of their beer, so they raised crowdfunding to create their own craft brewery, known as the Citizens' Craft Brewery. It is reported that the new brewery uses an advanced fermentation method originated in Bavaria, Germany, which has greatly improved the clarity, flavor and freshness of the beer.
Date of occurrence: 1842
The first pint of Pilsner was produced in 1842, and the beer, made by lager fermentation, was an instant sensation. With the advent of railways and industrialization, Pilsner and the Pilsner brewing method spread rapidly and widely throughout Central Europe. Lager beer, on the other hand, meets the requirements of industrial brewing. But this first "craft movement" is a denial of tradition.
Date of occurrence: 1971
As The Times have changed, people have grown weary of the same industrial lagers and nostalgic for the varied flavors and strong flavors of traditional Ale. The so-called European craft movement took up the nostalgia banner and founded CAMRA, the Campaign for Real Ale, in 1971 to promote unpasteurized, traditional, stress-free beer. This was the beginning of the second craft movement, and meant a full revival of traditional beer.
Date of occurrence: 1972
It only took 40 years for American hops to surpass European hops and form their own unique hop style, which can lead the development trend of hops in the world. In 1972, when the first American hop variety was introduced, the United States created its own unique hop style, especially the Cascade, the first American hop variety issued by the United States Department of Agriculture.
Date of occurrence: 1975
Around the same time as the Campaign for Real Ale in Europe started its own craft beer movement, the US has its own craft beer movement. In 1975, the founder of Anchor Brewing Co in San Francisco, California, stumbled upon a recipe for a strong Pale Ale after visiting Europe, but because there was a distinct difference in taste between American and continental malts, So the idea of brewing English beer was impossible on the American continent. That's why Anga Breweries knew how to do something different, and through their relentless efforts, they created the first truly American craft beer, Anchor Liberty Ale, which in some ways defined and shaped the craft beer movement in the US.
Date of occurrence: 1977
Liberty Ale, brewed by Anchor Brewing Co in San Francisco, California, has done most for the US craft beer scene by introducing the concept and technique of Dry Hops. This technique fully highlights the advantages of American hops. In 1977, famous beer master Michael. Michael Jackson, don't get me wrong! Not the King of Pop! Mentioned in his first Beer book The World Giude To Beer, Anchor Liberty Ale, Michael. Jackson called it the first modern beer in the United States, and it became the father of the American IPA.