Obituary: In memoriam Joep van Waesberghe (29 August 1937 – 19 April 2014)
It is so unreal that we have lost Joep. The news came to us like a bolt from the blue. Joep was still so active during the recent 11th Trends in Brewing in Ghent. He was really happy to spend these days in the presence of brewers, maltsters and scientists.
Joep knew already for several years that he was a living time bomb. Every moment he risked to die from an aneurysm. On Saturday the 19th of April 2014, two days after the 11th Trends in Brewing, he left us. It looks like Trends was a fitting finale for a life dedicated to malting, brewing and in particular flavour stability.
With Joep, we lost a passionate man with an extensive knowledge, a dear friend. The last twenty years, he worked together with us, the laboratory of Enzyme, Fermentation and Brewing Technology of KAHO St.-Lieven in Ghent, today KU Leuven campus Ghent. He was the soul mate of the whole research group, fighting for his ultimate goal: extending the flavour stability of beer. He was happy to work with us on lipoxygenase (LOX), the so-called “Joepigenase”. One of his messages was: kilning malt is not inactivating LOX, so do your best at mashing-in to block, to inhibit this enzyme. The industrial production of No LOX malt brought happiness in his life. Joep was also the driving force behind Meura’s construction of our innovative brewing line, to prove that the heat load during malting and brewing has to be minimised, to learn that you cannot bring a living organism into the kiln without adverse effects, to learn that microbial management can increase the brewing quality of malt, …
Dear Joep
Along with many friends, I tell you that we will miss your smile and your commitment to beer flavour stability. And we will never forget you. ‘Together’ we will continue our research to increase the flavour quality and stability of our beers in the future, for which we count on the help of many maltsters and brewers.
With great affection
Guido Aerts
Head of EFBT and Centre of Bioengineering Technology, KU Leuven
Short CV of Joep van Waesberghe
Studies: Food Technology and Agricultural Development Economics at Wageningen University, Enology in Montpellier and Bordeaux.
Appointments: 1962-1963: Technical Management with Gelo Wine Company; 1963-1971: Research & Development and Technical Management with Three Horses Breweries and Allied Breweries (Holland); 1971-1975: Research & Development and Technical Management with W.R. Grace (Europe); 1975-2014: Consultant with IVEWE/van Waesberghe (malting and brewhouse technology)
