Anheuser-Busch, MillerCoors Post Beer Ingredients

Well, ya got me on the rye, but I've never reviewed any wheat beers that I recall, and I didn't see any on my list. Don't like them.

And is the rye germinated when used in rye beers? If so, it would then technically be a malt, n'est-ce pas?

 

Just as an FYI, the RHG wording specifies Barley. So that’s the only malted grain that counts under the RHG.

 

I simply looked up the definition of malt which is any germinated grain. Didn't look up the RHG specifics. Thanks for the clarification. Guess I need to rephrase my beer philosophy:

"I'm a Reinheitsgebot kinda guy, with a few exceptions. Water, malted grain, yeast and hops. What more do you need?"

Geez. Posting here is like dealing with lawyers...

 

You have still basically thrown out all of Belgium, Britain and non-Bavarian parts of Germany. NTTAWWT, if that is your choice.

 

Well when you cite a law what did you expect... :-)

In Germany if you claim to adhere to the RHG and don't the consequences are much more severe... :-)

 

Gotta love it. Have never heard of food babe before today. Guess I'm luckier than most haha.

Here is a great quote from Mitch Steele in linked article re food babe's erroneous listing of sulfites in beer, " Sulfite preservatives are generally not added to beer. Ironically, the Food Babe’s website features a photo of her drinking wine, one of the most heavily sulfated beverages in the world. Sulfur is applied to grapes and to wine at many stages throughout the winemaking process."

 

Matt you can't be a Jedi with a Sith avatar

 

Man, I'm no MRA, in fact pretty much the opposite, but Jezebel really grinds my gears with how idiotic they really are.

 

...Have no idea what NTTAWWT is.

Don't care for Belgian style beers either, nor have I had any imports since I started drinking craft---except for Zwyiec porter. And no, I haven't researched to see if it has any other ingredients besides the 4 basics.

By the way, why do you have such a 'tude about my preferring beers without adjuncts and flavorings?

You mean if I claim to adhere to the Reinheitsgebot and I'm caught drinking something that doesn't fit, I will face "severe consequences" in Germany?! Whoa! Those people are serious about their drinking!

 

I'm just loving the comments regardless of my social persuasion! That said, I don't exactly hold jezebel in high esteem for their quality of journalism.

 

If you are a brewer it’s a violation of the law. If you are just a simple beer drinker as most of us are you face scorn (usually privately expressed and not told to you directly) and some degree of social disapproval and will have, in the eyes of at least some of the locals, shown that you are clearly a tourist and lacking in class and appreciation of the finer things of life....

 

I think I left out an "I" from the standard -- Not That There's Anything Wrong With That. Its important later in the post.

Ummm...see above? I said there is nothing wrong with your preference.

Its just a little weird, IMO, to exclude major brewing traditions so totally. Its kind of like the people who say "I dont like lagers."

 

Only water, malted barley, hops, and yeast for bottom fermented beers.
Malted wheat and rye are allowed in top fermented beers.

 

As a homebrewer, I look forward to seeing the crap that the big boys pump their "beer" with.

 

As opposed to craft brewers? This is a real question.

 

It is odd. No brewer ever admits to using any additives, yet the Brewers Supply Group (a subsidiary of Rahr Malt, set up specifically to supply the "craft" brewing industry) continues to offer them for sale, to help with "...Water Treatment, Enzymes, Colloidal Stability, Flavor Stability, Wort Clarification, Beer Clarification, and Foam Control".

Seems strange that BSG bothers to list them, or that the manufacturers of the products continue to make them and offer them in small (i.e., not the size multimillion barrel breweries would purchase) packages when there is absolutely no customers for them.

Brewers Supply Group Brewing Aids

Oh, look - they sell Biofoam® K in 55 lb drums. According to the manufacturer, Kerry, it is "...the trade name for a specially prepared food grade Propylene Glycol Alginate for use in the brewing industry".

For some reason, BSG mistakenly calls it a "Foam Control" product, because the "craft brewing industry press" tells us "glycol" is "...merely a coolant used to chill beer in the brewing process (that) never touches the beer"…?

 

The RHG has been amended several times, so there are some pretty definite exceptions even for those who follow it.

I'm actually curious about the AB ingredients. Rice has long been known as their primary adjunct, but there are lots of reports about corn syrup being used, too.

 

AB's been brewing with corn since they introduced the Busch brand as their economy segment entry back in the 1950s. Before that, especially in the Pre-Prohibition era, the company was very anti-corn. Ads for Budweiser and their various other pre-Pro beers used to proclaim:

I imagine they use corn in some form for some of their other brands these days, as well. Originally when Natural Light was their "premium light", before the release of Bud Light in the early 80s, NL used rice, but now as an economy brand, it lists "corn" as the adjunct, IIRC. They continued to use both corn and rice in Rolling Rock, as Latrobe once did. Until they update their new Tap Into Your Beer website for all their beers, we'll find out if the use the industry-convention of the vague "Corn", rather than specify the form - grits, flakes, syrup, etc.

As for Anheuser Busch's rice, AB hop chemist, Peter_Wolfe had a pretty in-depth post a few months back.

 

Water treatment includes adding food grade acids, gypsum, and Calcium chloride. This is to adjust mash pH and add flavor ions. If you tour breweries you see the tanks for acid, or the bags of food grade salts.

On the fining side, you see isinglass in some, or Biofine and PVPP in one's that are vegan friendly.