Don’t complain! Do something! Against this backdrop, the organization known as Interessengemeinschaft Qualitätshopfen Niederlauterbach (Niederlauterbach Interest Group for Quality Hops), or IGN for short, was founded almost 30 years ago. This group of 18 active hop growers came together to turn an idea into an institution, and it is now a vital part of the industry today. We met with Mario Scholz, Managing Director of IGN, in Niederlauterbach, Germany over a beer – with plenty of hops.

The craft beer wave has reached the shores of every continent – none have been left untouched. And whether a craft brewer or not, this has had a very pleasant side effect for breweries of any size. Beer is once again a topic of conversation. Beer drinkers are now interested in different beer styles, flavors and hop varieties. It has also become “chic” to sample different beers and be intrigued by their aromas and flavors. But how does one skillfully describe these flavors and aromas? The question is not a trivial one. Answers can be found, for example, at the Instituto Cerveja in São Paulo, Brazil. We spoke with Kathia Zanatta about the institute she helped found.

“When will the gushing puzzle finally be solved? Brewers who in the past have not been able to tame their wild beers have been waiting for an answer to this question for many years. Research has been going on for almost just as long in the hope of identifying the causes on the one hand and to come up with practical countermeasures on the other hand”. This was the introductory text of an article on current gushing research from 2008 (see BRAUWELT International no. 1, 2009, pp. 13-15). The conclusion of this introduction is still valid today: there is no simple solution to this problem.

The 37^th Brewing & Malting Seminar was held in Plzeň (Pilsen) from 23-24 October 2014. The organizers were Pilsner Urquell, whose parent company is SABMiller, the Research Institute for Brewing and Malting (RIBM) and the Prague Institute of Chemical Technology (ICT).

With brewers having re-invented themselves as mixologists, radlers and flavoured beers are popping up all over the world. While the process behind them seems straightforward enough, the technology isn’t. Currently, no standards for these types of beverages exist that deal with colour, turbidity and stability. The EBC Symposium on Sensory Aspects and Technology of Beer-Mix Beverages set out to change this. And about time too.

The BrauBeviale team used the year-long break to modify the concept for their trade fair, unveiling their changes with the launch of last year’s international event, which was held from November 11th to 13th 2014 in Nuremberg. The revamped concept included more flexible options for exhibitors and brought “creative beer culture” front and center.

Attending a meeting of “Young Scientists” is quite a challenge, getting updated about current activities, hearing about “fresh“ results from ongoing projects or getting insights on projects which are close to completion.

The Young Scientists Symposium (YSS) has been designed to bring young scientists together who work in the areas of brewing, malting and distilling science and provide them with an opportunity to present their own projects and discuss them with their peers, without having to demonstrate their capabilities on the daunting stage of an EBC or IBD congress. The fourth YSS took place in Ghent, Belgium at the end of October 2014.

The business of beer has long been international. Therefore, it is no wonder that even scientific institutions, such as the VLB Berlin, are active on an international level. For the fifth time, from September 17th to 19th 2014, VLB held the Ibero-American Symposium to share the latest findings from research and development as well as to facilitate the exchange of information in the Spanish-speaking brewing world. Almost 250 representatives from breweries based in Spain and in other countries as well as suppliers to the international brewing industry descended upon Madrid for the Symposium.

With around 10 250 visitors and 230 exhibitors in attendance – an increase of nearly 37 percent in the number of visitors and approximately 20 percent in the number of exhibitors – it is clear that drink technology India and International Packtech India are still on a successful course for sustained growth. Jointly organized for the third time by Messe München GmbH and Messe Düsseldorf GmbH, the Bombay Exhibition Centre in Mumbai opened its doors to an international audience from September 25th through 27th.