A review of the analytical methods used for beer ingredient and finished product analysis and quality control

Hailee E Anderson; Ines C Santos; Zacariah L Hildenbrand; Kevin A Schug

doi:10.1016/j.aca.2019.07.061

A review of the analytical methods used for beer ingredient and finished product analysis and quality control

Anal Chim Acta. 2019 Nov 28:1085:1-20. doi: 10.1016/j.aca.2019.07.061. Epub 2019 Aug 1.

Authors

Hailee E Anderson¹, Ines C Santos², Zacariah L Hildenbrand³, Kevin A Schug⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, The University of Texas at Arlington, 700 Planetarium Place, Arlington, TX, 76019, USA.
² Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, The University of Texas at Arlington, 700 Planetarium Place, Arlington, TX, 76019, USA; Affiliate of Collaborative Laboratories for Environmental Analysis and Remediation, The University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX, 76019, USA.
³ Affiliate of Collaborative Laboratories for Environmental Analysis and Remediation, The University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX, 76019, USA; Inform Environmental, LLC, 6060 N. Central Expressway, Suite 500, Dallas, TX, 75206, USA.
⁴ Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, The University of Texas at Arlington, 700 Planetarium Place, Arlington, TX, 76019, USA; Affiliate of Collaborative Laboratories for Environmental Analysis and Remediation, The University of Texas at Arlington, Arlington, TX, 76019, USA. Electronic address: kschug@uta.edu.

PMID: 31522723
DOI: 10.1016/j.aca.2019.07.061

Abstract

Beer is an incredibly complex beverage containing more than 3000 different compounds, including carbohydrates, proteins, ions, microbes, organic acids, and polyphenols, among others. Beer becomes even more complex during storage, for over time it may undergo chemical changes that negatively affect the flavor, aroma, and appearance. Thus, it can be expected that maintaining the quality of beer throughout its lifetime is a difficult task. Since it is such a popular drink throughout the world, being familiar with proper analytical techniques for beer evaluation is useful for researchers and brewers. These techniques include, but are not limited to, gas chromatography, liquid chromatography, matrix assisted laser desorption/ionization, capillary electrophoresis, mass spectrometry, ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy, and flame ionization detection. This review aims to summarize the various ingredients and components of beer, discuss how they affect the finished product, and present some of the analytical methods used for quality control and understanding the formation of chemicals in beer during the brewing process.

Keywords: Bacteria; Beverage; Fermentation; Hops; Polyphenols; iso-α-acids.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Beer / analysis*
Chromatography, Gas
Chromatography, Liquid
Electrophoresis, Capillary
Mass Spectrometry
Quality Control
Spectrophotometry, Ultraviolet