S. pastorianus: From local obscurity to world domination

Microbial imperialism | The hybrid yeast S. pastorianus likely evolved spontaneously in the late Renaissance in the beer vats of Bavaria. Since then, it has replaced the once omnipresent S. cerevisiae in breweries throughout the world. This article traces this surprising development from its origins to the present and presents some tantalizing insights unearthed by the most recent genetic research.

Giants of brewing history: Rosa Merckx

The Grande Dame of Belgian Beer | For this installment of our article series, we travel to Belgium, a country with a passion for beer and where a number of distinctive styles have originated. Over several centuries, an extraordinary beer culture has developed in this small northwestern European country – both in its legendary monasteries and in the wealthy trading municipalities of its two main regions: Flanders and Wallonia. In this milieu, a figure arose whose influence on modern Belgian brewing history was substantial and who sadly passed away not long ago: the inimitable Rosa Merckx.

The consequences of a “Little Ice Age” and a summer brewing prohibition

The offspring wins | This is the third of a four-part article series about the historical evolution of our understanding of the nature and function of yeast in fermentation. It investigates the improbable conditions that made the unlikely hybridization of S. cerevisiae and S. eubayanus in late-Renaissance in Bavaria, as well as its subsequent survival, possible.

A mysterious eucaryotic rendezvous in Bavaria

When Eubayanus met cerevisiae | This is the second part of a series about our understanding throughout history of the nature and function of yeast in fermentation. The first part (BRAUWELT International 5, 2024) dealt with the puzzling discovery of two side-by-side fermentations, “cold” and “warm”, in the small town of Nabburg, in Bavaria’s Upper Palatinate region, in 1483. It also dealt with the 2011 discovery of the wild S. eubayanus yeast in the high Andes in Argentina. A subsequent genome sequencing proved that this wild yeast was the missing second parent of S. cerevisiae. The current installment examines a few theories, some speculative, about how this South American yeast or its spores might have reached Bavaria – a question that is still not resolved, and subject of vigorous investigations.

Giants of brewing history: Amund and Ellef Ringnes, Axel Heiberg

Everlasting renown | Who was actually responsible for naming all of the islands, mountains and glaciers of the world? And whom have they chosen to revere by doing so? – This installment of “Giants of Brewing History” exemplifies why three men have been honored in this way, men who not only founded a successful brewery but also ensured that their names were immortalized in the arctic: the brothers Amund and Ellef Ringnes and their companion Axel Heiberg.

From a cold “gyr” in Bavaria to a cold yeast in the Andes

Microbial discovery | The year was 2011 and the location was a patch of frigid forest, high up in the Andes, in Patagonia, along the border between Argentina and Chile, at the intersection of latitude 41 °S and longitude 71 °W. There, five researchers under the leadership of Diego Libkind, an Argentinian microbiologist, were on an unusual mission: to find new wild yeast species in hopes that one of them would turn out to be the as-yet-unknown ancestor of S. pastorianus, our lager yeast.

World beer culture in the middle of Mexico

Restaurant and brewery concept | In the middle of Mexico one private brewery is proving that sophisticated beer culture isn’t simply a matter of brewing high-quality beers. BRAUWELT author Sylvia Kopp visited Compañía Cervecera Hércules in Querétaro and discovered a great beer venue with an inviting beer garden and a company that understands brewing, beer culture and the restaurant trade.

Giants of brewing history: Louis Pasteur

Father of preservation | This series usually focuses on people who were directly involved in brewing; however, this new installment delves a bit more into the realm of general science. Almost everyone is familiar with the name Louis Pasteur in some context. Nevertheless, this eminent biologist, chemist and physicist contributed a great deal to one particular industry, that of beer production. His life and work were so rich and varied that it is virtually impossible to cover all of it within the scope of a single article.

Evolution of Mexico’s cultural beer identity

Growing variety | The number of new enterprises being founded in the Mexican brewing industry has risen considerably. Dominated by Grupo Modelo (AB InBev) and Heineken Mexico, the beer market is hard – but not without hope. Numerous microbreweries are now specifically helping to establish a cultural beer identity in their country – and are thus also contributing to the value chain. BRAUWELT author Sylvia Kopp travelled to Mexico to speak to the pioneers of the new beer scene – and discovered an exciting new world.

Diatomaceous earth filtration – a historical refresher

Success story | Filtration is actually an unnecessary process step, since unfiltered beer tastes just as good as filtered beer. In 19th century brewing literature, filtration is not mentioned at all. However, this would change after Lorenz A. Enzinger invented the universal filter. This article offers a review of the history of filtration, in particular the development of the diatomaceous earth filter and its further development after the Second World War by Albert Moll in Switzerland.

Giants of brewing history: Dr. Leopold Nathan

Curtailing the brewing process | Over the decades and centuries of the many advances in brewing technology, there have only been two primary objectives for any of the countless inventors, technicians and brewers: To improve quality and/or reduce costs. In the 18th installment of the Giants of Brewing History, Günther Thömmes introduces readers to a man whose work was characterized by significantly reducing the duration of the beer production process – in other words, he cut costs without sacrificing quality: Dr. Leopold Nathan.