Preparation of beer

• US 3,875,303 A
• Filed: 11/29/1973
• Issued: 04/01/1975
• Est. Priority Date: 01/28/1965
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Josef Hieber
• Original Assignee: Josef Hieber
• Inventors: Hieber, Josef
• Primary Examiner(s): Naff, David M.
• Application Number:
  US05/420,165
• Time in Patent Office: 488 Days
• Field of Search: 426/11,16,28,29,64,519,349,223 99/276,277,277.1,277.2
• US Class Current: 426/16
• CPC Class Codes: C12C 11/003 Fermentation of beerwort
• CPC Class Codes: C12C 11/07 Continuous fermentation
• CPC Class Codes: C12C 5/002 Brewing water
• CPC Class Codes: C12C 7/175 by centrifuging
• CPC Class Codes: C12C 7/20 Boiling the beerwort brew kettles C12C13/02
• CPC Class Codes: C12C 7/205 Boiling with hops
• CPC Class Codes: C12C 7/26 Cooling beerwort; Clarifying beerwort during or after the cooling

Abstract

Beer is produced from a wort concentrate by a process involving sterilizing and desalting water, providing the sterilized and desalted water with a controlled salt content, dissolving a wort concentrate having at least 80% dry substance content in the water and fermenting with yeast to produce beer. The wort concentrate is dissolved in the water with a jet mixer and fermentation is carried out in a vessel containing a cooling chamber located above a centrifuge drum having therein plates for separating yeast and an impeller for circulating wort.

Claims

1. A PROCESS FOR THE PRODUCTION OF BEER BY DISSOLVING A BEER WORT CONECNTRATE IN WATER AND ATTENUATING THE SAME WITH BREWER'"'"''"'"'S YEAST, SAID PROCESS COMPRISING STERILIZING AND DESALTING WATER;

PROVIDING THE STERILIZED AND DESALTED WATER WITH A CONTROLLED SALT CONTENT;

DISSOLVING WORT CONCENTRATE HAVING AT LEAST 80% DRY SUBSTANCE IN SAID WATER IN THE ABSENCE OF EXTERNAL HEATING TO OBTAIN A FERMENTABLE WORT, SAID DISSOLVING OF THE WORT CONCENTRATE IN THE WATER INCLUDING THE STEPS OF PUMPING THE WATER AT A DETERMINED RATE AND PERSSURE IN THE FORM OF A JET, AND DRAWING THE WORT CONCENTRATE INTO THE JET OF WATER BY INJECTING FERMENTING SAID WORT OBTAINED FROM THE JET WITH YEAST AT LOW TEMPERATURE AND UNDER PRESSURE AND AGING AND RACKING THE RESULTING BEER, SAID FERMENTATING OF THE WORT BEING EFFECTED IN A CLOSED VESSEL CONTAINING A CYLINDRICAL COOLING CHAMBER LOCATED ABOVE A CENTRIFUGE DRUM HAVING PLATES THEREIN FOR SEPARATING YEAST AND HAVING AN IMPELLER THEREIN FOR CIRCULATING WORT, AND INCLUDING THE STEPS OF INTRODUCING DISSOLVED WORT INTO THE VESSEL AT THE BOTTTOM THEREOF AT LEAST TO PARTIALLY FILL SAID VESSEL, INTRODUCING THE YEAST INTO THE CENTRI FUGE DRUM IN THE VESSEL, MIXING THE YEAST AND WORT BY ROTATING SAID IMPELLER TO CIRCULATE THE WORT UPWARD THROUGHT THE INTERIORS OF THE CENTRIFUGE DRUM AND THE COOLING CHAMBER AND OVER THE UPPER EDGE OF THE COOLING CHAMBER AND DOWNWARDLY THROUGH AN OUTER SPACE BETWEEN THE INTERIOR VESSEL WALL AND THE OUTER WALLS OF THE CENTRIFUGE DRUM AND THE COOLING CHAMBER TO THE BOTTOM OF THE VESSEL WHERE THE WORT ENTERS THE BOTTOM OF THE CENTRIFUGE DRUM TO FLOW UPWARD THROUGH THE CENTRIFUGE DRUM AND THE COOLING CHAMBER, AND REMOVING YEAST AFTER FERMENTATION FROM SAID VESSEL BY CENTRIFUGATION IN SAID CENTRIFUGE DRUM BY ROTATION OF SAID PLATES.

2. A process according to claim 1 wherein the fermentable wort which has been added to the water is shortly heated to about 72*C., after which the wort is cooled to about 5*C. and the yeast is added.

3. A process according to claim 1 wherein the wort concentrate is obtained by mashing barley malt, subsequently adding hops or hop extract, filtering and concentrating same to at least 80% with exclusion of air, and racking same with exclusion of air.

4. A process according to claim 1 wherein for the production of the wort concentrate, the mash, after clarification, is mixed in a boiling state with hops and hop extract, boiled for an additional 60 to 90 minutes, cooled in a plate cooler, filtered with the addition of silicic acid and concentrated in vacuo.

5. A process according to claim 1 wherein the prepared fermentable wort is mixed with the yeast and subjected to an initial fermentation without pressure, and the partially attenuated wort is then fully attenuated.

6. A process according to claim 1 wherein the wort is fermented to about 50 to 60% of the extract after at least half of the required yeast has been added and the fermentation is then completed after addition of the remaining yeast.

7. A process according to claim 1 wherein, while the fermentation is taking place, yeast which has fermented is separated by centrifugation and is replaced with substitute yeast.

8. A process according to claim 1 wherein the separation of the yeast is begun while 10 to 20% of the extract is still unfermented, and the fermentation is completed during the separation of the yeast.

9. A process according to claim 1 wherein, after the yeast has been separated, the beer is cooled to -1.5* to -2.5*C. and is kept at said temperature for 1 to 2 days.

10. A process according to claim 1 wherein a separating agent is added to the beer to facilitate separation of the yeast and clarification of the beer.

11. A method as claimed in claim 1 wherein the steps are effected in succession to provide a continuous process for the preparation of the beer.

12. A process according to claim 1 comprising aerating the wort in the vessel by introducing air through nozzles in the bottom of the vessel.

13. A process according to claim 1 wherein said cooling chamber is provided with double walls with a space therebetween, and cooling of the chamber is effected by circulating a coolant through said space.