Scientific Publications
A listing of peer reviewed scientific publications and non-peer reviewed scientific studies that focus on subject material that is relevant to sour brewing. Some good journals to keep an eye on for new publications about sour and funky beers include Cerevisia, The Journal of the Institute of Brewing, The International Journal of Food Microbiology, and Applied and Environmental Microbiology.
Some of the papers are freely accessible and others require journal subscriptions for access.
Brettanomyces
Much of the scientific research done to date on Brettanomyces approaches the yeast from the view point of wine production and treating the yeast as a spoilage organism. These papers can still be useful to brewers interested in using Brett while recognizing the possible preconceptions, motivations, and biases that this viewpoint might contribute. Other groups, notably those led by a couple of Belgian researchers as well as Chad Yakobson's masters work, have studied Brett from the viewpoint of a desired component in certain beer fermentations.
Other Yeast/Bacteria
| Title | Authors | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Traditional Norwegian Kveik Are a Genetically Distinct Group of Domesticated Saccharomyces cerevisiae Brewing Yeasts | Richard Preiss, Caroline Tyrawa, Kristoffer Krogerus, Lars Marius Garshol, and George van der Merwe | 2018 | Open access. A paper about the family tree of Kveik. |
| Two Novel Strains of Torulaspora delbrueckii Isolated from the Honey Bee Microbiome and Their Use in Honey Fermentation | Joseph P. Barry, Mindy S. Metz, Justin Hughey, Adam Quirk, and Matthew L. Bochman | 2018 | Open access. See also the associated MTF thread. |
| The Impact of Simple Phenolic Compounds on Beer Aroma and Flavor | Michael Lentz | 2018 | Open access. See also MTF thread. |
| Traditional Norwegian Kveik Yeasts: Underexplored Domesticated Saccharomyces cerevisiae Yeasts | Richard Preiss, Caroline Tyrawa, George van der Merwe | 2017 | Open access. |
| Distinct Domestication Trajectories in Top-Fermenting Beer Yeasts and Wine Yeasts. | Margarida Gonçalves, Ana Pontes, Pedro Almeida, Raquel Barbosa, Marta Serra, Diego Libkind, Mathias Hutzler, Paula Gonçalves, José Paulo Sampaio5,'Correspondence information about the author José Paulo Sampaio | 2016 | Open access. See also history of yeast domestication. |
| Domestication and Divergence of Saccharomyces cerevisiae Beer Yeasts | Brigida Gallone, Jan Steensels, Troels Prahl, Leah Soriaga, Veerle Saels, Beatriz Herrera-Malaver, Adriaan Merlevede, Miguel Roncoroni, Karin Voordeckers, Loren Miraglia, Clotilde Teiling, Brian Steffy, Maryann Taylor, Ariel Schwartz, Toby Richardson, Christopher White, Guy Baele, Steven Maere, Kevin J. Verstrepen | 2016 | Open access. See also history of yeast domestication. |
| Characterization of genotype and beer fermentation properties of Norwegian Farmhouse Ale Yeasts | Rasmussen, Truls C. | 2016 | Master thesis on Kveik yeast identification. |
| Independent Origins of Yeast Associated with Coffee and Cacao Fermentation | Catherine L. Ludlow, Gareth A. Cromie, Cecilia Garmendia-Torres, Amy Sirr, Michelle Hays, Colburn Field, Eric W. Jeffery, Justin C. Fay, Aimée M. Dudley | 2016 | Studied isolating wild S. cerevisiae from coffee beans. Open access. |
| Screening for new brewing yeasts in the non-Saccharomyces sector with Torulaspora delbrueckii as model | Maximilian Michel, Jana Kopecká, Tim Meier-Dörnberg, Martin Zarnkow, Fritz Jacob and Mathias Hutzler | 2016 | Not open access. |
| Torulaspora delbrueckii in the brewing process: A new approach to enhance bioflavour and to reduce ethanol content | Laura Canonico, Alice Agarbati, Francesca Comitini, Maurizio Ciani | 2016 | Not open access. |
| Terminal acidic shock inhibits sour beer bottle conditioning by Saccharomyces cerevisiae | Cody M. Rogers, Devon Veatch, Adam Covey, Caleb Staton, Matthew L. Bochman | 2016 | Describes a method to "train" S. cerevisiae to be more pH tolerant. Not open access. |
| Social wasps are a Saccharomyces mating nest | Irene Stefaninia, Leonardo Dapporto, Luisa Berná, Mario Polsinelli, Stefano Turillazzid, and Duccio Cavalieria | 2015 | Found that S. cerevisiae not only breeds inside the guts of wasps that eat grapes, but also breeds with other species of yeast to create hybrids that survive better in the guts of the wasps. |
| Saccharomyces cerevisiae: a nomadic yeast with no niche? | Matthew R. Goddard, and Duncan Greig | 2015 | Proposes new hypothesis that S. cerevisiae is a generalized and nomadic microbe rather than a fruit-loving microbe based on the "neutral theory of ecology". Open access. |
| Regional microbial signatures positively correlate with differential wine phenotypes: evidence for a microbial aspect to terroir | Knight, Sarah and Klaere, Steffen and Fedrizzi, Bruno and Goddard, Matthew | 2015 | Open access. This is the first quantitative demonstration of a microbial component of terroir. |
| Alcohol-brewing properties of acid- and bile-tolerant yeasts co-cultured with lactic acid bacteria isolated from traditional handmade domestic dairy products from Inner Mongolia | Takashi Kuda Sarengaole, Hajime Takahashi, Bon Kimura | 2015 | Not open access. |
| Pyrosequencing reveals regional differences in fruit-associated fungal communities | Michael W. Taylor, Peter Tsai, Nicole Anfang, Howard A. Ross, and Matthew R. Goddard | 2015 | Open access. Showed that yeast diversity on wine grapes differs by region; Saccharomyces made up only 0.00005% of the total readings. |
| Genetic and physiological characterization of yeast isolated from ripe fruit and analysis of fermentation and brewing potential | Michael Lentz, Travis Putzke, Rick Hessler, and Eric Luman | 2014 | Open access. |
| Microbial biogeography of wine grapes is conditioned by cultivar, vintage, and climate | Bokulich NA, Thorngate JH, Richardson PM, Mills DA. | 2014 | Suggests link between microbial terroir and vineyard environmental conditions. |
| Monitoring Seasonal Changes in Winery-Resident Microbiota | Nicholas A. Bokulich, Moe Ohta, Paul M. Richardson, David A. Mills | 2013 | |
| Geographic delineations of yeast communities and populations associated with vines and wines in New Zealand | Velimir Gayevskiy and Matthew R Goddard | 2012 | Study leading up to the 2015 Goddard study above focusing on regional genetic differences in S. cerevisae. |
| Biotechnological potential of non-Saccharomyces yeasts isolated during spontaneous fermentations of Malvar (Vitis vinifera cv. L.) | Cordero-Bueso, Esteve Zarzoso, Cabellos, Gil-Díaz | 2012 | Open access. Records secondary metabolites produced by various wild yeasts in mono-culture fermentations of wine must. |
| Studies on growth and metabolism of Oenococcus oeni on sugars and sugar mixtures | D.-S. Zhang and R.W. Lovitt | 2005 | |
| A history of research on yeasts 9: regulation of sugar metabolism | James A. Barnett and Karl-Dieter Entian | 2005 | Covers Pasteur effect, Custers effect, glucose repression, etc. |
| Evidence for Domesticated and Wild Populations of Saccharomyces cerevisiae | Justin C Fay, Joseph A Benavides | 2005 | Open access. |
Lactic Acid Bacteria
Lambic, Spontaneous Fermentation, and other Mixed Fermentation beers
| Title | Authors | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Acid and Volatiles of Commercially-Available Lambic Beers | Katherine Thompson Witrick, Susan E. Duncan, Ken E. Hurley, and Sean F. O’Keefe | 2017 | Open access. Many errors regarding the brewing process and other aspects of lambic that are not the focus of the paper, however the analytical data is useful. See this MTF thread. |
| Sour Brewing: Impact of Lactobacillus amylovorus FST2.11 on Technological and Quality Attributes of Acid Beers | Lorenzo C. Peyer, Martin Zarnkow, Fritz Jacob, David P. Schutter, Elke K. Arendt | 2017 | Not open access (see citations on MTF wiki and summary on MTF). |
| Effect of mixed cultures on microbiological development in Berliner Weisse (master thesis) | Thomas Hübbe | 2016 | Available on MTF |
| The microbial diversity of an industrially produced lambic beer shares members of a traditionally produced one and reveals a core microbiota for lambic beer fermentation | Spitaels, Wieme, Janssens, Aerts, Van Landschoot, De Vuyst, Vandamme | 2015, August | Not open access |
| Microbiota and metabolites of aged bottled gueuze beers converge to the same composition | Spitaels, Van Kerrebroeck, Wieme, Snauwaert, Aerts, Van Landschoot, De Vuyst, Vandamme | 2015, May | Not open access |
| Cross-Kingdom Chemical Communication Drives a Heritable, Mutually Beneficial Prion-Based Transformation of Metabolism | Daniel F. Jarosz, Jessica C.S. Brown, Gordon A. Walker, Manoshi S. Datta, W. Lloyd Ung, Alex K. Lancaster, Assaf Rotem, Amelia Chang, Gregory A. Newby,David A. Weitz, Linda F. Bisson, and Susan Lindquist. | 2014, August | Open access. See Pediococcus. |
| An Evolutionarily Conserved Prion-like Element Converts Wild Fungi from Metabolic Specialists to Generalists | Daniel F. Jarosz, Alex K. Lancaster, Jessica C.S. Brown, Susan Lindquist. | 2014, 28 August | Not open access. See Pediococcus. |
| The Microbial Diversity of Traditional Spontaneously Fermented Lambic Beer | Spitaels, Wieme, Janssens, Aerts, Daniel, Van Landschoot, De Vuyst, Vandamme | 2014, April 18 | Open access |
| BELGIAN ACIDIC BEERS Daily Reminiscences of the Past | Verachtert and Denderlinckx | 2014 | Not open access. |
| Taming Wild Yeast: Potential of Conventional and Nonconventional Yeasts in Industrial Fermentations | Steensels and Verstrepen | 2014 | Not open access |
| Brewhouse-Resident Microbiota Are Responsible for Multi-Stage Fermentation of American Coolship Ale | Bokulich, Bamforth, Mills | 2012, April 18 | Open access. |
| Characterization of aroma and flavor compounds present in lambic (gueuze) beer | Katherine Witrick | 2012 | PhD Thesis. Open access. |
| Occurrence of sotolon, abhexon and theaspirane-derived molecules in Gueuze beers. Chemical similarities with ‘yellow wines’ | Scholtes, Nizet, Colin | 2012 | Open access. |
| Fermentation Studies on the Traditional Russian Drink “Sourish Shchi” | Dankovtsev, Vostrikov, Markina | 2002 | Open access. |
| Microbiological Aspects of a Mixed Yeast—Bacterial Fermentation in the Production of a Special Belgian Acidic Ale | Martens, Iserentant, Verachtert | 1997 | Open access. |
| Properties of Belgian acid beers and their microflora. Part I. The production of gueuze and related refreshing acid beers | Verachtert H, Iserentant D | 1995 | |
| Synthesis of Aroma Compounds By Wort Enterobacteria During the First Stage of Lambic Fermentation | Martens, Dawoud, Verachtert | 1992 | Open access. |
| Wort Enterobacteria and Other Microbial Populations Involved During the First Month of Lambic Fermentation | Martens, Dawoud, Verachtert | 1991 | Open access. |
| Identification of Lambic Superattenuating Micro-Organisms By the Use of Selective Antibiotics | Shantha Kumara and Verachtert | 1991 | Open access. |
| Fatty Acids and Esters Produced During the Spontaneous Fermentation of Lambic and Gueuze | Spaepen, Van Oevelen, Verachtert | 1978 | Open access. |
| Microbiological Aspects of Spontaneous Wort Fermentation in the Production of Lambic and Gueuze | Van Oevelen, Spaepen, Timmermans, Verachtert | 1977 | The source of the data used to create the Apte chart of which microbes are active at a given time in Lambic Fermentation as presented in his 2004 slideshow and in Wild Brews. Open access. |
| Synthesis of Aroma Components During the Spontaneous Fermentation of Lambic and Gueuze | Van Oevelen, De L'Escaille Verachtert | 1976 | Open access. |
| Mapping microbial ecosystems and spoilage-gene flow in breweries highlights patterns of contamination and resistance | Nicholas A Bokulich, Jordyn Bergsveinson, Barry Ziola, David A Mills | 2015, March 9 | Open access; measures LAB and yeast populations throughout a brewery with a coolship, controlled sour beer production, and traditional clean beer production. Also contains info about hop resistance levels of different LAB species. |
| Microbial diversity and metabolite composition of Belgian red-brown acidic ales | Snauwaert, Roels, Van Nieuwerberg, Van Landschoot, De Vuyst, Vandamme | 2016, March | Not open access |
Historical
These studies focus on historical beer analysis.
| Title | Authors | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestication and Divergence of Saccharomyces cerevisiae Beer Yeasts | Brigida Gallone1, Jan Steensels1, Troels Prahl, Leah Soriaga, Veerle Saels, Beatriz Herrera-Malaver, Adriaan Merlevede, Miguel Roncoroni, Karin Voordeckers, Loren Miraglia, Clotilde Teiling, Brian Steffy, Maryann Taylor, Ariel Schwartz, Toby Richardson, Christopher White, Guy Baele, Steven Maere, Kevin J. Verstrepen. | 2016-09 | Open Access. See also Popular Mechanics overview. |
| Brettanomyces – hero or villain? | Ron Pattenson, Shut Up About Barclay Perkins | 2015-05 | Ron's analysis of a study on Brettanomyces beers in the Journal of the Institute of Brewing, Volume 67, Issue 3, May-June 1961. |
| Analysis of Beers from an 1840s’ Shipwreck | John Londesborough, Michael Dresel, Brian Gibson, Riikka Juvonen, Ulla Holopainen, Atte Mikkelson, Tuulikki Seppänen-Laakso, Kaarina Viljanen, Hannele Virtanen, Arvi Wilpola, Thomas Hofmann, and Annika Wilhelmson | 2015-02 | Chemical analysis of historical beers found to have bacteria in them. Press conference that says 4 live species of Lactobacillus were found. Open access. |
Misc Topics
| Title | Authors | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Journal of Ethnic Foods | NA | NA | Open access. |
| The Microbiology of Malting and Brewing | Nicholas A. Bokulicha and Charles W. Bamforth | 2013, June | Open access. |
| Use of beta-glucosidase activity for flavour enhancement in specialty beers | Luk Daenen | 2012 (presentation) | Open access. |
| Effects of pH Adjustment and Sodium Ions on Sour Taste Intensity of Organic Acids | E.R.D. Neta, S.D. Johanningsmeier, M.A.Drake | 2009 | Open access. |
| Release of hydroxycinnamic acids and formation of flavour-active volatile phenols during the beer production process | Nele Vanbeneden | 2007 | PhD thesis. Open access. Study on 4VG/4VP, ferulic acid, p-coumaric acid, etc. English sections available. |
| Ferulic acid release and 4-vinylguaiacol formation during brewing and fermentation: indications for feruloyl esterase activity in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. | Coghe S, Benoot K, Delvaux F, Vanderhaegen B, Delvaux FR. | 2004 | Not open access. Studied production of ferulic acid and 4VG production in barley and wheat based beers, fermented with S. cerevisiae. |
| Organic Acids and Glycerol in Beer. | Klopper, Angelino, Tuning, and Vermeire | 1986 | |
| Changes in resin Composition and Brewing Behaviour of Hops During Storage. | A. L. Whitear | 1965 |
Other resources
These studies, presentations, or discussions aren't peer reviewed but they do contain useful info for brewing sour and funky beers. Also a list of database resources.
| Title | Authors | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| National Collect of Yeast Cultures | Yeast bank. | ||
| ATCC | Yeast bank. | ||
| Straininfo | Database of strains. | ||
| Mycobank | Database of classified species. | ||
| Measurement of Oxygen Transfer Rates for Carboy Closures and Air Locks | Gibbs | 2011, November 10 | Study performed by Better Bottle. Open access. |
| How to Make Sour Ale: an inquiry | Apte | 2004 | contains Apte's charts for oxygen permeability and other notable references. Open access. |
| Pickled beer: Concepts of Sour Ale | Raj Apte | 2004 | A presentation about sour beer. Open access. |
| Lactic Acid Beverages: sour beer, (milk), & soda | Raj Apte | A presentation about sour beer and other lactic fermentations. | |
| Horse of a Different Color | Nate Sampson, Michael Tonsmeire, Steve Gale, Tomme Arthur, Al Buck, Cisco ?, Sean Paxton | Round table tasting and discussion of brett primary beers. The author of the transcript is not listed. Open access. | |
| Methods of Creating and Maintaining 'Wild' House Cultures | Kyle Kohlmorgan | 2013 | Presentation at NHC 2013. Notes available here. Audio available from the AHA website past presentations section (must be an AHA member for access). |
| The Mystery of Lambic Beer | Jacques De Keersmaecker | 1996 | Article in Scientific American. Open access. |
| Microbiology and Biochemistry of Lambic Beer Overattenuation | H. M. Chandana Shantha Kumara | 1990 | Dissertation; not open access. See also Hors Categorie blog. |