Tracking C3 vs. C4 Grains in Beer

Tracking C3 vs. C4 Grains in Beer

"Beer. This beverage is derived from the brewing and fermenting of malted grain or cereal, usually barley and other cereals. The term "beer" is used generically to refer to any fermented drink made from malted cereal grains and comes from the Latin word bibere, meaning "to drink." The brew is flavored with hops, and the alcoholic content in contemporary beers in America is generally about 4 to 5 percent by volume. In the U.S., beer is normally taken to mean lager beer, which is brewed in a bottom- fermentation technique. Other types are classed as ale, porter, stout, malt liquor, bock, steam beer, or sometimes according to region of origin such as Pilsener, or Dortmunder. The origins of beer and brewing can be traced to ancient Egypt, where barley was used as a brewing cereal. And during the Middle Ages in Europe beer was a common beverage. Until about 1840, however, virtually all beer was of the top-fermentation variety-ale, porter, stout, and what was called stong, or common beer, brewed by the common brewer. Then in the 1830's a new yeast was discovered in Germany and introduced in America, probably in 1840. This yeast settled at the bottom of fermenting vats and resulted in a lighter, more effervescent brew, known as lager because if had to be stored for a few months after fermentation. Lager became very popular in German countries and in the U.S. Today about 90 percent of American beer is of the lager type"(Downard 19).

The origins of beer and brewing can be traced back more than 5,500 years to Ancient Egypt. Archaeologists from the museum of the University of Pennsylvania and the American Schools of Oriental Research found pottery with "two brewery workers using long poles to stir th...

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Downard, William L. Dictionary of the History of the American Brewing and Distilling Industries. Westport, Connecticut and London, England: Greenwood Press,1980.

Persons, Warren M. Beer and Brewing in America: An Economic Study. New York, NY: The United Brewers Industrial Foundation, 1941.

Cooper B.A., M.A., B.L.S., Isabella M. References: Ancient and Modern to the Literature on Beer and Ale. New York, NY: The United Brewers Industrial Foundation, 1937.

Brooks, Renee J., Nina Buchman, Sue Phillips, Bruce Ehleringer, R. David Evans, Mike Lott, Luiz A. Marinelli, William T. Pockman, Darren Sandquist, Jed P. Sparks, Lynda Sperry, Dave Williams, and James R. Ehleringer. "Heavy and Light Beer: A Carbon Isotope Approach to Detect C4 Carbons in Beers of Different Origins, Styles, and Prices." Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry August 15, 2002: 6413-6418.