Improving beer resistance to staling is crucial for maintaining quality over time. Recent research has confirmed that the staling potential of beer is mainly determined during the brewhouse phase, meaning early intervention in the brewing process is vital.

Key strategies to prevent staling focus on minimizing oxygen exposure and reducing the action of malt lipoxygenase, which can lead to the oxidation of unsaturated lipids, forming lipid peroxides. These peroxides can then oxidize proteins and act as precursors to off-flavor compounds like trans-2-nonenal, known for causing a cardboard-like taste. Managing oxidation during wort boiling is essential, as products like trans-2-nonenal can initially bind to sulfites, rendering them imperceptible in fresh beer. However, over time, these sulfites oxidize and release undesirable flavors as the beer ages.

To combat staling, brewers have adopted antioxidant and reducing agents during mashing. This agent significantly decreases lipoxygenase activity (by over 50%) by reducing its ferric core (Fe3+) to ferrous iron (Fe2+), inactivating the enzyme. Tannox-Brew also reduces protein oxidation, improving wort filtration rates. Classical antioxidants, such as ascorbic acid and sulfites, further support these anti-staling efforts during wort boiling.

Hop addition during wort boiling is another critical step. Hops can oxidize and contribute to off-flavors. One approach is to separate isomerization of concentrated hop extract solutions, where the natural reducing power of hops helps minimize oxidation. Isomerizing hop products at high concentrations enhances their anti-oxidative properties, reducing the risk of staling while maintaining hop flavor.

Additionally, controlling oxygen exposure during bottling remains essential, and adding antioxidants to finished beer is common practice. Despite these measures, beer naturally loses freshness over time. Research shows that certain hop compounds, like linalool, can mask off-flavors associated with staling. Custom blends of hop compounds can also be tailored to meet specific brewing needs.

By integrating these techniques, brewers can significantly improve the shelf life and sensory stability of their beers, maintaining quality and flavor for longer periods.

Our solutions, including antioxidants and hop products, help reduce oxidation, extend freshness, and mask off-flavors, preserving beer quality over time.

Raw materials such as barley, malt, wheat, oats, and rye contain not only starch but also various polysaccharides that significantly affect wort and beer viscosity, filtration rate, and colloidal stability. The most important of these polysaccharides in barley and malt are β-glucans, which make up more than 75% of cell walls, and pentosans, which are the main polysaccharides in wheat. Malt contains three times more soluble pentosans than barley, while wheat’s pentosan content is over twice that of malt. Insoluble pentosans, found mainly in spent grains, have the ability to absorb water equivalent to ten times their own weight, contributing to their sticky and spongy nature.

To tackle these challenges, exogenous β-glucanases and pentosanases are used during mashing to reduce wort and beer viscosity, thereby improving filtration rates and making spent grains easier to handle. The hydrolysis of β-glucans and pentosans also improves starch extraction and raw material extract yield, as these polysaccharides are the key components of endosperm cell walls.

Proteins can also cause filtration issues by forming gels. Adding proteases during brewing helps prevent protein gel formation, improving wort filtration. Proteases also aid in solubilizing β-glucans that are covalently bonded to cell wall proteins. A combination of β-glucanase and protease is required to fully hydrolyze these solubilized β-glucans, further improving extract yield.

Glucanylase, a specialized enzyme formulation, addresses three critical criteria: extract yield improvement, increased productivity, and enhanced beer quality. It contains a blend of β-glucanases, pentosanases, proteases, and thermostable α-glucanases. These enzymes solubilize endosperm cell walls, enhancing starch extraction and brewhouse yield. β-glucanases and pentosanases reduce wort and beer viscosity, improving filtration rates and increasing productivity. Proteases prevent protein gel formation during filtration. Finally, the thermostable α-glucanase aids in colloidal stability by breaking down residual α-glucans that could cause haze in the final beer.

Small starch granules, which gelatinize at higher temperatures, sometimes remain ungelatinized during brewing, reducing extract yield. These granules can be detected using an iodine coloration test, which turns blue in the presence of α-glucans. Thermostable α-glucanase ensures that these small granules are gelatinized and liquefied during mashing or wort boiling, preventing colloidal instability in the beer.

Filtration problems encountered during beer production often stem from brewing issues, particularly poor wort filtration. Although advanced filtration systems like mash filters or Nordon filters may temporarily mask poor wort filtration, unresolved polysaccharide issues (α-glucans, β-glucans, and pentosans) can affect final beer filtration and stability. Proper management of these polysaccharides during brewing is crucial for improving beer filterability and maintaining colloidal stability.

By employing targeted enzyme solutions and optimizing the brewing process, brewers can significantly improve extract yield, filtration efficiency, and the colloidal stability of the final beer.