Conclusion

After having given presentations of a number of American breweries in volumes 16 to 20 of this publication over the span of the current year, the only thing that remains is to see to what use my observations from America serve for European conditions. As I have already suggested in series II of my report, it pertains to these questions:

1. Which are the most prominent specific aspects of American brewing?

2. What progress has the American brewing industry made in the span of the last 15 years?

3. What can we learn from the Americans?, that is to say, to which extent do the achievements of the Americans allow themselves to be exploited by European breweries?

It is not so simple, as one thinks, to pinpoint the specific aspects of the American brewing operation, since on the one hand the European brewing industry in the course of the last decade has adopted a whole bunch of operational principles, constructions and work methods which prior to the transatlantic sister-industry would have been considered curious. And on the other hand, which I believe I have sufficiently demonstrated already in the previous chapter, the American breweries do not conform to one, if one may say so, "American template", while at the same time distinguishing themselves from the European system without exception in respect to organization and operations. What is ultimately typical for the entirety of the American breweries? One is inclined to answer this question with "the use of adjuncts!". This is only partly accurate however, since just as alot of American breweries beside adjunct beers also produce pure malt beers, yes some breweries even produce only the latter, breweries in certain European countries, for example England and Denmark, use adjuncts on a large scale, yes even malt-surrogates in the true sense of the word. In Austria our legislation does not prohibit the use of adjuncts, and even in Germany the laws concerning top fermented brewing allows for adjuncts and the use of surrogates. The same applies to the infusion method. According to this method they work, just as in America, also in England, Denmark and other European countries. Conversely alot of times in America are not only pure malt beers, but also so called adjuncts beers, made according to the pure decoction system or produced through a combination of the latter with the infusion method. Furthermore it can be debated, whether the production of so called adjunct beers in America represents the typical work methods of a pure infusion process, since one can speak of a pure infusion only in those cases when no boiling of the mash, or parts of the mash, takes place and the mash out temperature is achieved through direct or indirect heating and cooling off (for example through an descending infusion), regardless of whether it's a malt or adjunct mash. By the American brewing method the separate adjunct mash is at the very least boiled, very often also steamed, that is to say dissolved under high pressure, this boiled or steamed part is added to the second separately handled part, the malt mash, and through this brought to the mashing off temperature. What is this other than decoction? Also when one looks at the beers in the main and secondary fermentation we find on the one hand methods of fermentation in America which for European conditions are decidedly revolutionary, and next to this, in the same market place work methods, which hardly differ from those which are typical for us. In general the three stages of the fermentation, ruh and chip cellar are typical for the fermentation and lagering treatment of the beers in America. However as could be seen by the reader in the previous chapter of my report there are several breweries, which work more or less according to European methods, as they pump the beer from the fermentation tuns straight into chip (lager) barrels or leave out also the latter and from the ruh vats bring the beer directly for sale after passing through the carbonator and filter.

As far as the bottled beer department is concerned we only need to enter a modernly constructed German - yes nowadays also Austrian- brewery to imagine ourselves being- at least 10 years ago- in an American brewery. Basically there remains only two aspects, which are absolutely typical for America and which lend to breweries there their own character, their specific mark. These are the form and composition of the most important raw materials, the barley, and the requirements placed on the end product by the American consumer. The largest percentage of barleys used for beer production in America - especially the different 4 and 6 rowed types - distinguish themselves from those, which are labeled as "brewing barley" by us, not only in their outer appearance and in particular, for the steeping and sprouting process important, physiological properties, but also through their chemical make up. As it pertains to the latter the considerably higher protein content of the multi-rowed American barleys can be noted. The latter, making up the main part of the brewing wares, are used on their own for producing nitrogen rich beers, which are associated with the thereby following disadvantages.

It thus pushes the American, aside from economical considerations, to use starch rich and thus protein poor materials which are available in the form of rice, grits and the different corn-products, due to the properties of the basic raw material. The adjunct is to some extent the means of diluting the high protein content of the basic raw material, the barley, in order to neutralize it. Of course one could also make the argument that "since the American began using adjuncts on a large scale in brewing, then a considerably higher protein content in the barley is not only not harmful, but in fact a necessity given the conditions. - The use of adjuncts is closely tied to the use of the infusion method, as can be seen by the fact that when pure malt beers are to be made, they generally return to the use of the decoction method.

And now for the second typical aspect, namely the flavor profile of the American. For him beer is - to borrow an expression from my esteemed colleague Bleisch- more of a refreshment than an enjoyment. To start with their only want to drink it ice cold, since they are already accustomed to this through their beloved ice water, or more accurately put, misled. Yet, that is despite the low temperature, the beer should remain crystal clear. This leads the American brewer to make every effort, to produce a product which can withstand the cold. How they achieve this goal we will go into further later. In any case the wide spread use of fining products in America, is thus understandable. We can however go one step further and say, that the American not only want a beer, which has lost all sensitivity to cold, but also wants a beverage which in respect to keeping quality and hardiness against outer elements meets the most extensive requirements, which, to express myself in a popular European manner, withstands any manner of mistreatment. I have often traced beers, which have spent hours at railroad stations or docks in the most glowing sunshine and then once again cooled down to the freezing point, without there being, particularly as far as the outer appearance is concerned, even the slightest change to the beer. No European beer would withstand such treatment, even when it is specially produced for Export, and, as experience tells us, least of all our delicate pale Austrian and especially Bohemian beers. Often have I - along with many of my European countrymen- have readily preferred the domestic American beers to the imported European ones, since the former was available in flawless condition, while the latter however, if not entirely spoiled, then at the very least was found "cold hazy" or "verschlagen". The American however not only requires, that the beer remains crystal clear at the lowest of temperatures, but also that its taste is piquant and sharp, not soft, full bodied or hearty and robust, like our beers, and above all is rich in carbonation and has good foam keeping abilities. These requirements can only be fulfilled, when the cask as well as the bottled beer contains high amounts of carbonation and at the same time have the most favorable conditions for binding the same. The brewer is thus forced to either "kräusen" as it is done by us-if at all- on an extensive scale, or to impregnate the beer directly with carbon dioxide, that is to "carbonate" the beer.

When we consider the general characteristics (although not absolute) aspects of the American brewing method, adjusted to the barleys there, consists of the considerably shorter (relative to our) malting process, the use of adjuncts, the use of the infusion method, the extensive use of the gravity system in the brewhouse and cellar buildings, the sealed fermentation, the repeated clarification and fining of the ruh beer, the strong cooling off when pumping and filling in casks, the kräusening and carbonating and finally the pasteurization of the bottled beer, then these phenomenon can be attributed to the two main aspects already mentioned, that is to say the form and condition of the raw material and the specific taste of the American beer drinker.

A different version of this section appeared in the October, 1911 edition of PURE PRODUCTS magazine.

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