Kiel Moore (1), Andrew Mola (1); (1) Ashland Inc., Bridgewater, NJ, U.S.A.

Finishing and Stability
Poster

Stabilization is an important stage in the production of beer, where an attractive appearance and flavor are considered key quality determinants. While current procedures usually concentrate on additions after fermentation, e.g., on transfer to maturation or at filtration, little has been reported on colloidal stabilization earlier in the brewing process. This presentation describes two novel composites for complete stabilization of beer by a single addition: one upstream in the kettle and the other downstream before filtration. Polyclar Brewbrite is a composite of kappa carrageenan and micronized PVPP. A procedure for stabilizing beer in the brewhouse is developed that can be adopted to simplify downstream processing and reduce cost. Elsewhere, it could provide an additional mechanism to chill-proof “difficult” beers in challenging environments. The benefits of this composite will be discussed. Polyclar Plus 730 is a composite of silica xerogel and micronized PVPP. Traditionally, beers are stabilized prior to filtration. Use of this composition enables combined stabilization of beer by simultaneous removal of both haze-active components in beer. Some of the advantages of this approach include a single addition of the stabilizer for complete stabilization of the beer, requiring no specialized dedicated equipment for dosing the stabilizer into the beer. Properties, advantages and plant trial results with Polyclar Plus 730 will be discussed.

Kiel Moore is a senior staff scientist at Ashland Inc. in Bridgewater, NJ, responsible for technical service and R&D beverage applications. Additionally, he provides support to the beverage industry with colloidal stabilization technologies through the Ashland Polyclar product line. Prior to Ashland, Kiel spent the previous nine years working as director of quality for Boulder Beer Company. Kiel is a member of both the MBAA and ASBC.

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