Today's Sunday Post had an interesting piece - an interview with Brian Eaton of Edinburgh's HeriotWatt Uni - home to the International Centre for Brewing & Distilling, this year celebrating their centenary. Some debatable stuff in there - (the *scientific advancement* of lager-brewing to just 2 weeks; the over-simplified explanation of clarity as key to quality; hangovers having nothing to do with alcohol; co2 now being *put* into beer t brewing?) but a rare intelligant article on beer/brewing in a tabloid sunday paper, compare it to the Observer & it's Food Mag, with, as far as I could see, yet again no mention of beer - just wine, cocktails, etc. cheers MikeMcG
from (piece by Iain Harrison, in Sunday Post 18/04/04, D.C.Thomson.) ________________________________________________________________________________ Heriot-Watt's 100 years of brewing expertise Suddenly Brian was up to his knees in beer AS IRAQ continues to dominate the news, it seems strange to be looking
5000 years back into its history. Yet legend says it was an inquisitive Iraqi in ancient times who first realised wet bread fermented into an inebriating pulp. The resultant mash, which was made into a drink, is recorded in scriptures as making those who sampled it feel exhilarated, wonderful and blissful.Brewing has since become a massive worldwide business and the science behind it has helped play a pivotal role in the evolution of humankind.
Brian Eaton is course director of the world-renowned International Centre for Brewing and Distilling at Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, where many of the world's leading brewing experts learned their trade. He took time out from celebrating the centre's 100th anniversary to tell Iain Harrison the Honest Truth about brewing. WHAT'S THE secret of a great beer? Good ingredients, good technique and, above all, good knowledge. It's important to know about temperatures and what's happening during the brewing process so decisions can be made on how to improve or change the product.
DOES SCOTLAND punch above its weight in brewing terms? Scotland was THE major exporter of beer, partly because of the quality of the product and the excellent sea links to the likes of Africa, India, America and Europe. Most popular export beers were McEwan's, Alloa, Younger's, Arrol's, Calder's and Aitken's. Although still important, export markets are not as big now as most countries have their own breweries.
HOW HAS brewing changed? The process of taking malt, hops and water to produce beer hasn't changed in 5000 years. Only difference now is we have the science to understand exactly how it works. When I first came into brewing a lager would take six weeks to make but with advancements in science and refrigeration it now takes just two.
WAS BEER better in the old days? Definitely not. It's much more consistent nowadays, the taste has improved and people rarely get a bad pint. Quality control in breweries and pubs has improved immeasurably. Publicans have a big responsibility in producing a good pint; refrigerated cellars, clean pipes and glasses are as essential as good brewing techniques.
ANY SPIN-OFFS from brewing technology? The concept of microbiology was developed by a Carlsberg scientist in Copenhagen. Refrigeration was also invented for brewing purposes. Louis Pasteur invented pasteurisation by heat-treating wine in France but as the French didn't have much time for him he moved to London to work for Whitbread Brewery and then McEwan's in Edinburgh. Early antibiotics were also made using brewing techniques. Many pharmaceutical companies have emerged out of brewers.
DO BREWERS still employ scientists? Advances in technology mean the number has dwindled but research is still done in breweries. But scientists at Heriot-Watt are looking at ways of applying brewing knowledge to the production of bioethanol; an, environmentally-friendly low-cost car fuel made from agricultural residues such as cereal straws, corn stalks and wood waste.
ANY SURPRISING findings during your research? Professors at this university developed the understanding of cereal biochemistry and how malt produces sugar, and brewery scientists still find new ways to improve beer. Thirty years ago no-one would have considered adding nitrogen to beer to give it a foamy head but we do it today in canned beers with widgets. And carbon dioxide is now put into beer when it's brewed rather than just before it's poured.
WHAT DO you drink? My favourite lager was Skol 2000 which was brewed by Alloa. These days, I like Czech lagers such as Budwar and cask-conditioned ales like Landlord by Timothy Taylor and Deuchars IPA. There are 35 micro-breweries in Scotland producing cask-conditioned ale. It's a product unique to the UK.
ANY FUNNY stories? When I was 22, I was responsible for running the Burton Brewery in Burton-upon-Trent between 5 pm and 6 am. Back then it was the biggest in the UK. One night I mistakenly mashed in three consecutive brews using coloured malt. I didn't realise what had happened until I saw the finished product; hundreds of gallons of lager looked like Guinness. It was a major c*ck-up and certainly wasn't funny at the time.
ANY DISASTERS? When I was at Alloa Brewery I heard a great bang. As I ran up the stairs to see what had happened beer started flowing towards me and it was soon up to my knees. The door of a tank had blown out and 100,000 pints were released within minutes. Thankfully, nobody was hurt and we even managed to get a refund on the excise duty we'd already paid to the taxman.
WHAT ONE thing would improve the industry? Duty reduction in harmony with Europe. If the Government reduced beer duty they would get much more revenue because it would reduce the amount of illicit alcohol brought in from abroad.
WHAT DOES the future hold for brewing? More mergers. The Belgian firm Interbrew recently bought Ambev, a huge South American company, and is now the biggest brewer in the world. In the UK there are now four major brewers; Interbrew, Coors, ScotCo and Carlsberg; and I can see that reducing to one or two. I also think beer, which has always been regarded as a working class drink in the UK, will soon be regarded as a quality product and people will go into restaurants and ask for a beer list.
HOW DO you tell if you've been served a good pint? The main thing is the clarity as well as the aroma and taste. Good clarity indicates there is no infection and the product is stable. The head can be important but doesn't necessarily tell you a beer is of good quality. When the head of a beer sticks to an empty glass it's called lacing, but it's a myth this indicates a good pint.
CAN HANGOVERS be down to a bad pint? Hangovers have nothing to do with alcohol. They are down to flavour compounds in beers and spirits which the body cannot metabolise easily. People blame hangovers on chemicals but it's another myth that there are more chemicals in British beer than in foreign counterparts.
WHY DOES home brew seldom taste as good as the commercial pint? It's very difficult to get good quality ingredients such as yeast. Also, people tend to put too much sugar in thinking it will improve quality but that's not always the case. But it's good fun and, even better, doesn't attract excise duty.
WHAT IMPACT have brewers made to society over the years? Throughout Europe, brewing companies have built major public buildings for art and culture. Liverpool's Walker Art Gallery was established by the owners of the Walker Brewery and the Usher Hall and McEwan's Hall in Edinburgh are two other examples. The first public health care department at Edinburgh University was also founded by a local brewing family. ________________________________________________________________________________