Is brewing an art or a science?

I used to think it was a science until I tried BCBCS. That beer is a goddamn work of art.

 

Both. There's science involved but the application of that science to producing a product also includes art. Its not an either or type situation.

 

Neither -- it's a craft.

 

Magic

 

Its science and art. The chemistry and physics are incredibly complex so lots of 'rules of thumb' end up getting used to piece together the final product, and thats where the art comes into play. Someone with a complete understanding of all the temperature dependence of the reactions wouldn't require these shortcuts, but those people are few and far between.

 

Is brewing an art or a science?

Yes.

 

Alchemy

 

I agree with this and I think the line is really blurry up to a point. It is an confluence of the two, speaking as an engineer in the food biz who works with machines that GD well better do what they are designed to do every day. I have one that doesn't and the SOB drives me insane (yeah - it IS a short drive...)

I think the art comes in with the original recipe development and continues during the early production - where you may say "hmmm...that doesn't look/smell/taste quite right" and make an adjustment or play the "I wonder what happens if..." game. But every step of the way, science is certainly being applied - mash temperature/time, water chemistry, etc. Yeast biology is so critical. It is a combination of science (growth phases, pitching rates, etc) and art (which yeast to pick, fermentation conditions to some extent). Maybe all the sensory "science" - taste, mouthfeel, aroma - leans towards the art side because it relies on the brewer's vision. Understanding how these things all interact - to me that is art because it is more the skill of the individual brewer. There are certainly underlying scientific principles involved, but the vision and innate understanding of how components interact and the application of said science to achieve a desirable result - I would call art. It isn't like buying a heat exchanger where I know my flow rates, delta-T, heating media, etc - there's no art involved there.

It's more scientific when you've built the recipe (or use an established one) and trying to replicate it - then it seems like straightforward process control.

 

Both. But like others have said its a "craft"

 

yes

 

When a new beer is imagined then created, it's art.
Brewing that beer over and over again and having it taste the exact same is science.

Some brewers are good at the art, some are good at the science, some are good at both, and some are good at neither.

 

Art=Science. Science=Art.

Open your mind.

 

Even then there is a role for the experience and educated judgment of the brewer. As an agricultural product neither hops nor sometimes malted grain can be assumed to be identical from year to year, field to field, etc. and adjustments are required to do fine tuning or dialing in to get an end result that matches closely enough with the desired goal to be bottled and released.

 

Yeah, this. I don't think the lines between science and art are as clear as we sometimes like to think. There's always some overlap, even if that overlap boils down to basic principles laid out in scientific concepts.

It's like writing a good novel. It requires a good dose of imagination and feeling, but it also requires research, consistency, revision, learning certain techniques and the likes.

 

It's definitely both. Obviously, one wants to brew scientifically to maximize the chances of everything going to plan and creating a consistent, quality product. One can use scientific principles to get certain flavors, aromas, or textures out of a beer. And it should go without saying that everything that you can do to a beer can be determined scientifically. But imagining and developing want you want a finished beer to even have is an art. Knowing what "works," how to get started in that direction, how to troubleshoot, etc., I think, take a kind of intuition.

You can know everything there is to know about Maillard reactions and still suck at making toast.

 

the science part isnt hard. yeast will turn sugar into alcohol all day long. the rest, of course, is art

 

While I'm not someone who knows a lot about the science behind brewing I would bet my Belgians on the stipulation that it's not entirely that easy.

 

i don't think the two are mutually exclusive, when it comes to brewing there's definitely room for both.

 

Art