No-Hops Beer

Researchers are using technology to produce a great “hoppy” beer less expensively and more sustainably by removing the hops altogether. Instead, they have genetically engineered yeast to produce the compounds that impart a hoppy flavor.

First, they set out to identify the chemical compounds responsible for the desired flavors and concentrated on two — linalool and geraniol. They then found that mint and basil plants contain enzymes that produce these compounds, so the appropriate genes were inserted into the yeast DNA. A panel of tasters judged the “hop-less” beer against two traditional brews and found it to actually be hoppier. The researchers are now working on fine-tuning the flavors.

The use of hops in beer has been documented all the way back to the 9th century. Depending on the variety, they can impart a range of flavors to the brew, including floral, citrus, zesty and bitter. But growing hops is expensive; it has been estimated that it takes more than 13 gallons (50 liters) of water to grow the hops needed to produce just one pint of beer. Add to that the cost of fertilizers, processing and fuel for transport, and it quickly becomes a resource-intensive operation.

In addition to creating a more sustainable process, genetic engineering allows for greater consistency of taste from batch to batch by accurately controlling the metabolism of the yeast to produce just the right flavor.