Brewing Science is an applied science. The people, especially academics in the field, contributing are academics and professionals who typically teach other professionals in the brewing field.
Experts in brewing science are typically directly applying those concepts in the fields with measurable results.
At the risk of awakening the posting police...... apologies first for reading a 2 year old thread.
Agree that there is immense catalogue of science in the field, but at whose behest is all the science developed? Who pays for it all? Whose interests does it support? Its not done out of the goodness of peoples hearts is my guess. Certainly not backed by the home brewing establishment, and just how big is the home brewing market versuas that of even one of the giant commercials alone?
So who does pay for all this science?
Is it not absolutley necessary for commercial breweries to understand the nuances of even slight variations in temperature, pitch rate, oxidization, boil time, chill rates, decoction process, lagerring, etc. so that they can maintain an optimal consistency throughout their process? Maximize efficiency? Their scalle is global, not 10 gallon batches. Its not even about great tasting beer, as many a craft brew enthusiast, and home brewer might attest, while slugging down a Coors Light. Its about making sure that every can comes out tasting the same, and being as efficient with ingredients as they can possibly be. The science therefore is what they need to be so exact in the scale of their process.
Does it all scale to the home brewer, and is it necessary to adhere to science to make a decent or very good beer? I have my doubts. While i dont pretend to make the crispest, clearest most consistent beer in the world, i still prefer the majority of what i brew (with a simple BIAB process) to any budeweiser, coors light, miller light etc. Its not a high bar in terms of taste, after all, outside the incredible consistency they achieve, despite the $billions they sell a year.
Even with the science, the majors struggle to brew the same tasting beer when brewed in Canada, Europe, and USA as attested by many folks. A distinct difference between a US coors light and that sold / made in Canada imho.