Enzymes in Beer, Wine and Spirits. Page 1

            Beer, wine and spirits have been around for several millennium of human history but recent discoveries in bio-processes have begun to change the process of their manufacture.  By understanding the complex work of naturally occurring enzymes in biological systems today’s beverages are made with a new level of control that has never before been possible.  The market for low calorie beer would not exist without modern process designs that use enzymes.  Wine makers can now use enzymes to boost production from the same acreage of vineyards.  In every fermentation process enzyme activity works to improve the growth of yeast cells.

            This is a very exciting area of bio-process engineering and life sciences to get in to.  Enzymes and their uses are still being discovered and have broad implications that go way beyond beer, wine and spirits.  This particular field of interest, adult beverages, is worth getting in to since these marketable consumer goods have shown, through several recessions, to be relatively unaffected by economic downturns.  As an industry it is a very stable business climate.  Beer is also something that not every person can successfully create and it is something worth taking pride in when others, in mass, enjoy and celebrate your product.  For these reasons I find the topic of using modern science and engineering to produce a better tasting beverage very interesting.

            From the beginning there was always biological processes happening in the production of beer, wine and spirits.  Beer has always been made by steeping grains in water and then fermenting the liquid.  During the early stages of soaking the grains, the grain seeds begin to germinate.  This process of germination does a few things that all vitally important to successful beer and one unfortunate side effect.  The germination of the grain seeds increases the water content of the grain, causes the grain seed to produce its own natural enzymes, and uses some of the starch stores in the grain to begin germination. 

            Of all the enzymes needed to make good beer only one, beta-amylases is present before germination.  The others: beta-glucanases, xylanases, alpha-amylases, proteases, carboxypeptidases, and lipoxygenases are all produced as a result of germination.