What is Non-alcoholic Beer?

First, the definition of non-alcoholic beer

Usually, the alcohol content of 3.5%-4% is called ordinary beer, the alcohol content of more than 0.5% and less than 2.5% is called low-alcohol beer, and the alcohol content of less than 0.5% is called non-alcohol beer. Alcohol-free beer is a carbon dioxide-containing wine brewed with barley as the main raw material, adding hops, saccharification, using special yeast in the fermentation process, and using a special process fermentation method to control the alcohol content in the brewing process. Below 0.5%, non-alcoholic beer is similar to beer in terms of product characteristics, raw materials used and production process. The alcohol content of non-alcoholic beer is only one-seventh to one-eighth of ordinary beer, so it is also called "non-drunk beer". Because it has both the flavor of beer and the advantages of drinking more and not getting drunk, it is in line with the consumption trend of today's consumers who pay more and more attention to physical health. Coupled with the love of women and men with alcohol allergies for low-alcohol beer, it has great market development prospects. .

Second, several major characteristics of non-alcoholic beer

1. Is still a beer

It is fermented from the four main raw materials (water, yeast, malt and hops), and it should also have the flavor and chemical composition that normal beer should have. However, some blended "beer-flavored beverages" cannot be called non-alcoholic beers.

2. Still has alcohol

It still has alcohol, but at a very low level, within 0.5%. Therefore, non-alcoholic beer still contains alcohol! Non-alcoholic beer still contains alcohol! Non-alcoholic beer still contains alcohol (important thing three times)! Considering that the actual alcohol content of a certain 9% (wort concentration) on the market is around 2.5-3%, 0.5% is also a lot of alcohol.

3. The flavor has a lot of room for expansion

Non-alcoholic beer uses very little material during fermentation and lacks the important dimension of alcohol, so drinking it directly is indeed very light. But this also opens another window. In order to increase the ease of drinking of non-alcohol beer, fruit beer with different styles can be made by enhancing the malt flavor or adding juice, etc., and it is easier to open up the market for women and other less drinkers.

4. Healthier

Alcohol is a class of carcinogens announced by the WHO. For alcoholics who are worried about their health, they can drink beer flavor and reduce alcohol intake. Non-alcoholic beer is undoubtedly a good choice.

Third, the production principle of alcohol-free beer

In a closed distillation column, control a certain degree of vacuum and temperature, heat the beer, and use the volatility coefficient of alcohol to be greater than that of water. The alcohol evaporates into the gas phase, and the alcohol content in the liquid phase gradually decreases; the longer the process time, the more thorough the dealcoholization will be. . After the vapor-liquid separation, the liquid phase is cooled to form alcohol-free beer, and after the vapor is condensed, it becomes alcohol with a higher concentration. In order to reduce the loss of flavor substances, the steam condensate is partially refluxed. The higher the evaporating temperature and the longer the processing time, the greater the loss of flavor substances. Therefore, the main control parameters of this process are vacuum degree, evaporation temperature and evaporation pressure.

Fourth, the production process of alcohol-free beer

In recent years, the research on non-drunk beer has progressed rapidly, technology has been continuously innovated, and production methods have continued to emerge. The methods that are more valued by the majority of scientific and technological workers mainly include the limited fermentation method and the de-alcohol method after normal fermentation.

Limited fermentation

The so-called limited fermentation method is to limit the content of fermentable sugars in wort and the direction of its conversion to alcohol, that is, by controlling the amount of alcohol produced during beer fermentation to be within the required range, such as cold contact. Fermentation, reduction of the amount of sugar fermentation, fermentation of distiller's grains, etc.

Cold contact fermentation is to make the wort and yeast contact at a temperature close to freezing point, or ferment the wort at 8°C during the fermentation process. When the ethanol content reaches the requirement, it is rapidly cooled to 0°C. At this time, yeast fermentation produces less ethanol, and at the same time, the aromatic substances such as fatty acid ethyl ester, isopentyl vinegar, and phenethyl ester produced by fermentation infiltrate the beer, so that the alcohol-free beer has the characteristics of ordinary beer in flavor.

The method of reducing the amount of sugar fermentation is to make wort at high temperature, that is, wort is made from malt at 75-78 °C (instead of 63-68 °C) to destroy the amylases that convert starch into fermentable sugars, which can The fermentation of wort is limited, so that this degree of fermentation is only 42-46% of that of ordinary beer fermentation, so that the production of ethanol is controlled at a low level.

Distillers lees fermentation refers to the production of strong beer lees (if necessary, the lees with shells should be shelled, and the rough ones should be crushed) after digestion, foaming, high-pressure steam treatment, and extraction with cold water. Adding hops to the extract, boiling, heating and extracting for 9 minutes, and then fermenting, can reduce the amount of ethanol produced.

Dealcoholization after normal fermentation The dealcoholization method is to remove the alcohol in the normal fermented beer by various means to meet the required standard. It is divided into many methods, such as reduced pressure evaporation, membrane filtration, etc. Therefore, no matter what method is used in the production, the key to its production lies in the requirement that the alcohol content in the beer is low and various flavor substances are not less, and other quality indicators must also be guaranteed accordingly.

Five, the development prospects of non-alcoholic beer

my country's economy is developing rapidly. With the improvement of people's living standards, nutrient-rich beer, known as "liquid bread", has become one of people's favorite beverages as the beverage with the lowest alcohol content in alcohol.

At present, on the one hand, the popularity of automobiles has risen, and almost all countries in the world have strictly restricted drinking and driving. On the other hand, people's consumption power has been enhanced/consumption upgrade due to the recovery of the global economy, and there is an impact from the craft beer movement. In recent years, the production of beer by large industries has Sales stagnated or even gradually declined. However, these large enterprises have seen the huge potential of non-alcoholic beer, and have transformed some production lines to become new potential growth points. Non-alcohol and low-alcohol beer "looks like beer, smells like beer, and tastes like beer". Except for the lower alcohol content, it still has the color, aroma and taste of ordinary beer. The trend of beverages developing towards health care. Major beer companies in Europe and the United States have successively launched alcohol-free beer products, and the relevant US departments have listed this as the development direction of the beer brewing industry. It is foreseeable that low-alcohol and low-sugar functional beer suitable for almost everyone will become a popular beverage in the 21st century.

6. Matters needing attention

Non-alcoholic beer does not mean that there is no alcohol, drivers and friends are careful! ! !

Drinking too much non-alcoholic beer can also get you drunk, and the blood alcohol test is still within the scope of the drink-driving test.