The AI beer consultant – is this the future of the online beer shop?

Recommender systems | Conversational commerce is often considered to be the future of online retailing. One of the forms this assumes is the dialogue-based recommender system. In the course of a research project run by the DHBW in Stuttgart, a hybrid dialogue-based beer recommender system for online beer shops was developed and tested for the very first time.

The Super Bowl of beer ads: A lens into America’s beverage market

An American tradition | For decades, tens of millions of Americans have tuned into the National Football League’s (NFL) annual Super Bowl to see the best of the best fight it out on the field. Many of them watched simply to see the commercials, especially those by Anheuser-Busch InBev (AB-InBev) which has held exclusive beer advertising rights to the game since 1989. Over the years, AB has spent many millions of dollars to lock in the hearts and souls of the viewers with iconic, award-winning cinematic-quality ads – memorable, heart-rendering stories of American life, tear-inducing tales of the Budweiser Clydesdales, as well as funny animations with football-playing Bud Lite bottles, talking frogs, and Bud-worshipping crabs. Many of these ads had very little to do with beer, but watching them became a very American tradition. But this tradition ended in 2023 with Super Bowl LVII.

The fully automatic tower brewhouse

Small brewing plant | About six metres high, with an unusual tank design enclosed by a spiral staircase, the fully automatic Flecks Helix is a real eye-catcher. Who built the tower brewhouse? What was the idea behind it, and – first and foremost – what are its notable technical features?

Predicting the impact of malt composition on the beer aroma

A new analytical approach | The contribution of different malt types to the beer aroma is traditionally assessed by trial-and-error testing in pilot scale. In this article, we describe a new analytical method that shows promising results in predicting specific aroma properties of bottom-fermented beers based on the analysis of marker volatiles in the malt mixtures applied for brewing without the need for extensive brewing trials and beer sensory evaluation.

Creative beers | At its premiere at the European Beer Star competition held in 2021, the new specialty beer category “Free-Style Beer” immediately evoked an outpouring of excitement and enthusiasm. More than 60 breweries submitted their beery creations for consideration, which otherwise would not have fit into any other category. Along with beer quality, aspects such as the concept behind the beer and its story were part of the evaluation. But what is it exactly that makes this particular category of specialty beers so special? This article provides insights and background information to the new style category at the European Beer Star, in which storytelling plays a central role.

German hops: Well-known, but still the world’s best-kept secret

Trend spotting | In February 2022, Walter König, Managing Director of the Gesellschaft für Hopfenforschung e.V. (Society for Hop Research; GfH) in Hüll, Germany, visited the USA and spoke with BRAUWELT International author Horst Dornbusch about his trip, German hops and the U.S. craft beer market.
Welcome to Massachusetts, Walter, and thank you for agreeing to an interview. Let me jump straight into my questions: You are the General Manager of the Society for Hop Research (GfH) in Hüll. Why are you here; and why now, on this wintery February day?

Sustainable craft beer: Ethical solutions for premium products

Positive impact | As time goes on, the one issue that has not waned in the public conscience due to fads and headlines across industries is sustainability. According to Euromonitor’s Voice of the Consumer Lifestyles survey, in 2021, 65 % of consumers highlighted they are concerned about climate change’s impact on their life and 67 % of consumers reported trying to have a positive impact on the environment through their daily actions. This translates to their support of the diverse array of industries and products that they interact with on a daily basis. One that has not by the very least been left out of the fray is the alcoholic drinks industry.

Europe | In an ideal world, a marketer knows what her customers want even before they do. Beer marketers think they have got closer to this, thanks to the clever use of data. As they see it, the world contains an unimaginably vast amount of digital information. This makes it possible to do many things that previously could not be done: provide fresh insights, spot business trends, unlock sources of economic value.

Strategic marketing | Messe München South Africa, organisers of IFAT Africa, food & drink technology Africa and analytica Lab Africa, have moved to enhance the value adds and strategic marketing for their exhibitors.

USA | Heineken, AB-InBev, Molson Coors – all the world’s major brewers want to move beyond their traditional male, beer-drinking image and attract more female and younger drinkers. Fact is: beer has lost its oomph to other alcoholic beverages like wine, spirits and a host of beverages, which defy previous classifications.