From
www.heartlandhealing.com
Chemicals in commercial beer?In a barley malt brewed beer, the protein structure is there because of the amount of malt used. What mega-breweries do is use cheaper grain such as corn and rice to cut cost. Light beer especially is an industry creation. It lowers the cost to the brewer because they use less ingredients, more water and then it becomes bland and inoffensive to as many people as possible. Then the flavor profile tends to be bland in flavor. Because they use those other grains, they dont have the protein structure to support a head on the beer. So they use chemicals and additives to make it behave like a beer. Those preservatives and chemicals become a component and a lot of people react to that and can get hung over, not because of alcohol but because of the chemicals.
And who knows what those chemicals are? One report to Congress many years ago identified substances known as adjuncts that were commonly found or allowed in beer. The list includes propylene glycol alginate, calcium disodium ethylenediaminetetraacetate, peptone, sodium erythorbate, benzaldehyde and about 50 others. Not all of them may be bad but with real beer, they are unnecessary. The larger problem is that the manufacturer isnt required to list them.
Even back before light beer existed, a Creighton University research doctor, James Sullivan, found that cobalt added to beer to increase head retention caused heart disease.
Its safe to say that all mega-breweries, whether light beer or not, have something going on in the additive department, Dobmeier cautioned. Its something that craft brewers dont do because its not our mindset to do that. Were not trying to capture 100 percent market share. Were just trying to find like-minded people who appreciate quality and flavor.
There are only four ingredients necessary to make beer. I put in only malted barley, water, yeast and hops, Dobmeier reminded. That is the same list of ingredients allowed by the German Purity Law to be used in the making of beer.
Of course we add adjunct grains to the extent that a style calls for them, he said. Ill add wheat to a wheat beer, for example. Or Ill add oats if Im making an oat style. But those are grains that are added because of the style, not for cost-cutting or economy.
In the craft brew segment, its a safe bet that you wont see those kinds of [chemical] additives that are common in mega-breweries. When I filter beer into a serving tank, thats where it comes from when they pull the handle at the bar. Theres no need for preservatives because its not going to last long enough to need it. When you drink one of my beers, it was grain a couple weeks ago! Its that fresh. Its always freshest at the brewery and thats what we are, a brewery.
Talk to people who used to work at the old Falstaff plant in South Omaha and theyll all tell you how great it tasted at the brewery. It always does.
So if you are looking to reap the health benefits of the brew, do it where its brewed, dude. And remember these words from Brewmaster Dobmeier: Light beer is to beer what Velveeta is to cheese.
This combined with the yeast makes good sense to me why I only become dehydrated from drinking too much hombrew and don't get sick or have a headache.
I've heard that the major breweries here in Canada add a detergent to achieve the head in their lagers. Nice. "Palmolive. You're soaking in it (or, it in) Mag!"