A multi-million dollar investment has been made into a research project for measuring and sensing flavors and aromas in beer, with Carlsberg and Microsoft among the team behind the project.
The development of the sensor platform holds ‘enormous potential’ for broader research and to facilitate new start-ups, according to Carlsberg Research Laboratory.
The Beer Fingerprinting Project – which uses artificial intelligence to reduce time and cost in developing new types of beer – is run in conjunction with Microsoft, The Technical University of Denmark and Aarhus University.
The technology will help distinguish between all the flavors developed daily in the Carlsberg laboratory.
No such rapid technology for discrimination of complex flavor mixtures currently exists, says Carlsberg: and researchers believe the technology could be expanded in the future to other industries such as the wider food industry and pharmaceuticals.
Application in craft, specialty and zero alcohol beers
“No rapid assays exist today for the determination of flavor compounds in beverages but it is crucial that we can do this to ensure that the laboratory continues to develop beer of the highest possible quality and provide a model for brewing in Denmark and the rest of the world,” said Jochen Förster, Director and Professor Yeast Fermentation, Carlsberg Research Laboratory, who came up with the idea for The Beer Fingerprinting Project.
“We are excited to push the boundaries in sensor technology for flavor determination. This will enable us to select and develop novel brewer’s yeast for application in craft, specialty, core and alcohol-free beers at much higher speed and even better quality.”
Developing methods for fast and reliable assessment of flavors in complex mixtures – such as beer or other alcoholic and alcohol-free beverages – are of interest for product development, quality control and safety.
As part of the project, iNano at Aarhus University has already developed a solution to use novel sensors and proof-of-principle to differentiate between four Carlsberg beers: Carlsberg Pilsner, Tuborg Pilsner, Wiibroe and Nordic.
Source: Food Production Daily
