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SUMM E R m i n i 2011
 CONTENTS
It’s summer. Time to talk beer.
BREWING
03
BREWING YEAST
05 BY LUDA SHTESSEL
YEAST
PROGRESSIVE FOOD ACTIVIST JOEL SALATIN
D
ifferent flavors in beer come from
06
UNC SYSTEM BUDGET CUTS
the endless variety of ingredients
including corn, sweet potato, choc-
olate, basil and even cedar - all added at
different steps in the brewing process.
But did you know that differences in the
type of yeast strain you use can dramati-
cally impact the flavor profile and even
the alcohol level of the beer? Yeasts are
microscopic, unicellular organisms that
are not only vital for the production of
the alcohol in beer but also its flavors.
Yeasts produce alcohol in a process
called fermentation. They are a byproduct
of breaking down the yeast’s food source
STAFF that comes from sugars that are released
sally fry editor-in-chief
from the barley and hops.
erin becker
Traditionally, two distinct yeast species
saurav sethia have been used for brewing beer. Sac-
managing editors charomyces cerevisiae, the same species
carey hanlin as the more commonly known “baker’s
assistant editor yeast”, is used for brewing ales, where-
jasmine lamb as Saccharomyces pastorianus, a hybrid
creative director originating from the S. cerevisiae ale
tyler tran yeast (a non-S. cerevisiae strain) is used
photo editor for brewing lagers. Over a hundred differ-
erin becker, david gilmore, ent strains of ale, weiss and lager yeasts
troy homesley, luda shtessel,
exist and belong to a master category
brandon wiggins, kara williams
named “brewer’s yeast”.
staff writers
In 2008, Drs. Dunn and Sherlock at Stan-
sally fry, jasmine lamb
ford University revealed that there are
design staff
two hybrid lager yeast strains; not just
the one previously thought. The “Saaz”
family of yeasts, giving rise to beers from
the Carlsberg and Budweiser breweries,
originated from Denmark and the Czech
Republic, whereas the “Frohberg” family,
which includes beers like Heineken and
Oranjeboom, originated in the Nether-
lands. Both the” Saaz” and “Frohberg”
On the cover: yeasts retained most of the genes from
“Foggy Day” by the non-S. cerevisiae parent, S. bayanus.
Anwuli Chukwurah -
The major genetic differences lie in the
CBP’s featured artist.
number of S. cerevisiae genes present in
the two groups. Where the “Saaz” yeasts
02 SUMMER 2011
abandoned most of these genes, the
“Frohberg” yeasts picked up extra copies.
Ales are brewed at temperatures that
allow the ale and weiss yeasts to grow
well, typically around 70°F. These top-
fermenting yeasts rise to the surface dur-
ing fermentation, creating a thick, foamy
head. Lots of esters, which are small and
fragrant compounds that flavor the beer,
are produced at this temperature. Lagers
are brewed at lower temperatures, typi-
cally around 50°F, with yeast types that
are distinct from the ones used to brew
ales. The lower brewing temperatures of
ales slow the growth of the yeast and
produce less surface foam. Additionally,
less esters are released at the lower
temperatures, which allows for the fla-
vors of the other ingredients to become
more prominent. These beers are also
commonly lagered for 1-3 weeks, which
involves storing the beer after fermenta-
tion is complete to remove the unpleas-
ant-tasting diacetyl compounds that are
released during brewing.
With everything else held constant, dif-
ferent yeast strains, which are all of the
same general yeast species cerevisiae,
will yield dramatically different fermen-
tation results, giving rise to the numer-
ous subtleties in the taste of the product.
While yeast consumes sugars, it releases
various compounds at the different stag-
es of the brewing process. In addition to
alcohol and carbonation (in the form of
CO2), yeast produces a multitude of com-
pounds, of which there are hundreds,
that have distinct flavors, including grass,
butterscotch, flowers, banana, apple and
aniseed.
The genetic differences in the yeast
strains are what dictate the amounts and
types of compounds released by the dif-
ferent yeasts as well as their growth and
fermentation behaviors. For example,
weiss yeasts are characterized by the
presence of the gene PAD1, which paints
weiss beers with spicy, clove, vanilla and
nutmeg flavors. Differences in the FLO1,
FLO5 and FLO8 genes that function in
flocculation, a process where yeast cells
aggregate and sediment, or fall to the
bottom of the fermentation barrel, affect
the timing and efficiency of this process.
If yeast sediments too early, the beer will
become cloudy and hard to filter. In con-
trast, if the sedimentation process occurs
too late, the beer will not mature prop-
erly.
Glycerol, which provides a sensory
sweetness, is the third-most abundant
compound produced during fermenta-
tion. Its production is intimately connect-
ed with the levels of alcohol that are also
produced, whereby an increase in the re-
lease of glycerol as a byproduct causes
a decrease in alcohol release. Brewers
aiming for a more flavorful, light and less-
alcoholic beer would need to use yeasts
that were skewed towards this kind of
production. Such yeast indeed exists!
They express the GPD1 gene, which func-
tions in glycerol production, at higher
levels than other yeasts, thus producing
much lower alcohol levels.
The yeast gene differences described
above are just a tiny subset of the various
properties of beer that are at the yeast’s
mercy. Variations in the yeast genome
can affect the levels of potential carcino-
gens, antimicrobial compounds and car-
bohydrates (the difference between a cal-
orie-light and a regular beer) as well as
the beer’s viscosity, filtration properties
and lagering time. It’s now easy to see
why most brewers stress choosing the
right yeast strain as the most important
decision in the brewing process. Now
that you’re thirsty, bottom’s up! Drink re-
sponsibly.•
SUMMER 2011 03
 INFO COMPILED
BY ERIN BECKER
Progressive Food Activist
Joel Salatin Visits UNC
BY TROY HOMESLEY

O
n April 14th, one of the most respected
food activists of our time paid a visit
to the UNC campus. He has starred in
numerous films about the industrial food in-
dustry and the importance of reverting back to
local, sustainable food economies. His exper-
tise has been featured in films such as Food,
Inc. and the upcoming Farmaggedon. He has
published books such as Everything I Want To
Do Is Illegal: War Stories From the Local Food
Front and The Sheer Ecstasy of Being a Lunatic
Farmer.
Joel Salatin is his name and he is leading
a veritable crusade against some of the most
powerful and entrenched food institutions in
America. Salatin argues that the industrial
farming of our time is destructive, unsustain-
able and dangerous. Salatin calls for a holistic
view when it comes to farming and he hopes
to educate others on the importance of hav-
Salatin was also sure to point out that the
myth that "farmers are dumb" is truly only a
myth. Throughout his discussion, he was
well-versed and well-read about the subject
at hand. At one point, he clarified that he
hoped that he would exhibit the "Jeffersonian
Agrarian Intellectual" that dominated farm life
during the rise of our fledgling democracy. He
also hopes that one day a farmer’s job will be
as respected as the jobs of bankers and law-
yers and doctors, because after all we all need
food.
After discussing some barriers Salatin moved
on to a very true concern for opponents of lo-
cal food economies. Salatin said that many
opponents argue "local food prices are elitist".
He agreed, but then went on to rebuff this
statement by pointing out how many things
Americans waste money on which are not per-
tinent to their survival. Salatin also pointed
BACKGROUND
• The state is facing a revenue shortfall of around $3.7 billion for this fiscal year
• The UNC system and community colleges comprise 57% of the state’s budget
• State money is roughly a quarter of UNC’s operating budget
• The House and Senate must agree on a proposal to sent to Gov. Perdue by July 1
• The proposed cuts are roughly equivalent to the cuts from the last 2 fiscal years combined
What it will look like
• Stricter criteria for financial aid awards
• Smaller grant packages
• Less support for graduate students
• More crowded classrooms
• More potential tuition increases
• Closing the FPG Childcare Center in July 2013
• Potential curtailing of enrollment growth
Roughly 15% in cuts proposed in House budget would mean eliminating:

ing a successful and sustainable farm industry.
During his lecture to a sold-out auditorium at
Hanes Hall, Salatin used his time to outline 12
myths perpetuated by his opponents. These
myths are what Salatin considers barriers to
a quick return to a local food economy. A lo-
cal food economy entails the production of
food holistically, humanely and sustainably.
Salatin believes that if these misconceptions
were eliminated, then it would be possible to
achieve a world food economy in which local
producers support a hungry world.
A main staple of Salatin's argument is that
in his words, you must let the "chicken exhibit
its chickenness and the tomato it's tomaton-
ess". Salatin wants people to be aware that
animals are meant to do specific things for our
environment; they are meant to help our grass
grow, to feed us, and to cultivate fertile soil.
They are meant to do much more than merely
be stowed away in sprawling warehouses and
slaughtered mechanically.
3,200
out that an entire 50% of world-wide edible
food supply goes uneaten. The waste and il-
logical spending outlined here, in Salatin's
opinion, provides a clear argument for the im-
portance of spending good money on good
food for good reasons.
Salatin ended with the stunning statistic
that there are twice as many Americans in-
carcerated than there are American farmers.
This provides a stark and bitter perspective OVERALL POSITIONS
on the future of a nation founded on agrarian
values, and also molds a juxtaposition that
stuns the mind of even the most spirited op-
ponent of local food economies. As Salatin
scurried from the auditorium, returning home
to his humble farm in north Virginia, the crowd
stood prepared to lead a food revolution -- will
their fervor last until their next cheap meal at
McDonald's? Until this fervor can overcome
FACULTY COURSES CLASS SEATS
the massive scales of pressure from industrial-
ized food, it will be a tough fight for the future
of healthy, sustainable and local food. • 1,500 9,000 240,000
Sources: dailytarheel.com, gazette.unc.edu
studentfreepress.com, heraldsun.com
universityrelations.unc.edu/budget

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