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Introduction to Beer Analysis Top Beer Analyses

In many philosophies, the classical four elements are earth, countries on 6 continents. In the average brewery, the brewing chemist needs to Beyond these required analyses, there is great interest in other
water, air, and fire. Analogous to this history is beer, which is Some of the larger organizations with specific testing for beer understand and address many quality assurance standards. beer analytics. The regional water quality is known to greatly
made with four classical “elements”: water, barley malt, yeast, include the American Society of Brewing Chemists (ABSC) and Some of the major concerns are color, IBU (International affect the flavor profile of beer, and when brews that were
and hops. Many varieties of beer are made using these the European Brewing Convention (EBC). The four “elements” Bittering Units), and alcohol content. The alcohol content on once consistent become troublesome, examination of the water
ingredients, with barley malt or other grain sources are used in in beer should be tested for characteristics, quality, and the label is required by legal organizations such as the USA’s can be enlightening. In this section, equipment for examining
the brewing process. For flavoring, hops and other additives contamination to ensure the final product meets expectations. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TBB). At some these factors affecting beer quality and production will be
enhance the taste. Brewer’s yeast, typically Saccharomyces (from Beer brewing may appear simple with only four “elements” but point, calorie and carbohydrates content may also be required detailed. For more information about any of these products,
the Greek as sugar fungus) ferments the sugars, extracted from the chemistry is quite complex, requiring many types of on alcohol labels. please contact your Shimadzu representative.
the grain, into ethanol and carbon dioxide. analytical instruments to obtain the desired appearance, aroma,
Brewing of beer dates back more than 5,000 years. There is even flavor, mouthfeel, and overall impression.
an ancient goddess of beer named Ninkasi. The Sumerians This brochure contains a partial list of measureable parameters.
developed a hymn to her such that the recipe for beer could be Should you require additional testing parameters please feel
passed down for generations. Today, “International Beer Day” is free to contact Shimadzu.
the first Friday in August and is celebrated in 207 cities in 50
Color, IBU, & Alcohol Content

Shimadzu UV
-1800 for
Shimadzu UV-1800 for
measurement of beer IBU and color
measurement of beer IBU and color

One of the most useful pieces of equipment for a brewery’s Convention (EBC). The strength of a beer is measured by volume
laboratory is the spectrophotometer. American Society of and expressed as a percentage of alcohol (the number of
Brewing Chemists (ASBC) methods indicate at least 12 milliliters of pure alcohol in 100 ml of beer). Bitterness and color
measurements, including beer bitterness (Beer-23) and beer can be performed on a UV-Visible spectrophotometer with
color (Beer-10), that can be achieved using a single piece of built-in calculations. Alcohol is performed with a gas
equipment. For the purpose of a novice brewery lab, the most chromatograph (GC).
important measurements are IBU, color, and alcohol content. Examples of other beer and wort characteristics that can be
IBU or international bittering units is a measure of the measured by UV-Vis spectrophotometers include carbohydrates
bitterness of beer, derived from the alpha acids in hops. The (Beer-41), copper (Beer-19), diacetyl (Beer-25 D), FAN or Free
color of beer ranges from pale to very dark and can be detected Amino Nitrogen (Wort-12 and Beer-31), iron (Beer-18A, C),
by the naked eye. However, a scale has been developed – oxygen (Beer-34), protein (Beer-11), total polyphenols
degrees Lovibond – to define color intensity. There are (Beer-35), sulfur dioxide (Beer-21), wort color (Wort-9), and
conversion factors when switching between Lovibond, ASBC’s Thiobarbituric Acid Index (TBI by Wort-21).
Standard Reference Method (SRM), and the European Brewery

Note: typical laboratory equipment such as chemicals, glassware, pipettes, shaker, centrifuges, etc. is not included.

Shimadzu’s Total Support for Beer Analysis
4 Analytical and Testing Instruments for Beer 5