Changes

'''Brettanomyces''', also referred to by brewers as "Brett" or "Bretta", is a yeast that was originally thought of as a spoilage yeast. The genus name ''Dekkera'' is used interchangeably with Brettanomyces, as it describes the teleomorph or spore forming form of the yeast <ref>[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brettanomyces Wikipedia. Brettanomyces. Retrieved 2/24/2015.]</ref>. Known for it's barnyard, fecal, horsey, metallic or Band-Aid flavors, ''Brettanomyces'' was unwelcome in most breweries. However, in some styles like Saison and Lambic these flavors add a layer of complexity to the beer. ''Brettanomyces'' can form a [[pellicle]]. See [[Lactobacillus]], [[Pediococcus]], [[Saccharomyces]], and [[Mixed Cultures]] charts for other commercially available cultures.

''Brettanomyces'' was first discovered by Hjelte Claussen in 1903. At the time of discovery, Claussen was aiming to recreate the flavor profile of traditional English ales by fermenting them with pure cultures of ''Saccharomyces'', and either pitching pure cultures of his newly discovered ''Brettanomyces'' yeast along with ''Saccharomyces'', or as he preferred, after the primary fermentation of ''Saccharomyces'' <ref>[https://www.facebook.com/download/448702618652516/GB190328184A.pdf "Improvements in and connected with the Manufacture of English Beers or Malt Liquors and in the Production of Pure Yeast Cultures for use therein." Patent application by Hjelte Claussen for ''Brettanomyces''. A.D. 1903.]</ref>. Although Claussen saw the character from ''Brettanomyces'' as a desirable character in ales and identified its character as a quality of traditional English ales, at some point ''Brettanomyces'' became identified as a contaminate in wineries and breweries due to some of the phenols that it sometimes produces. These have generally been described as barnyard, burnt plastic, wet animal, fecal, and horse sweat <ref name="Schifferdecker">[http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/yea.3023/pdf The wine and beer yeast Dekkera bruxellensis. Anna Judith Schifferdecker, Sofia Dashko, Olena P. Ishchuk, and Jure Piškur. 7 July 201.]</ref>. The general viewpoint of brewers (other than Lambic and Flanders red/brown brewers in Belgium) and vintners that ''Brettanomyces'' is primarily a spoilage organism held for many decades, and still holds in most cases. More recently the positive flavor components that have been identified in ''Brettanomyces'' beer such as pineapple, stone fruits, and to some degree acetic acid, have regained popularity with brewers outside of Belgium.