Germany, considered the home of beer, is witnessing a movement towards the development of powdered beer. A brewery based in a former East German monastery called Neuzeller Klosterbrauerei has recently announced that it has successfully developed a powdered lager, making it the world’s first beer of its kind. According to the brewery, the powder can be transformed into lager beer by adding water.
In a recent press release, the 400-year-old brewery stated that it has succeeded in developing the world’s first powdered beer after two years of research with the support of the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi). The brewery’s existing beer-making technology was used to brew the beer, which was then processed into a powder that dissolves in water.
The brewery cited the reduction of the carbon footprint of beer as the reason for developing powdered beer. As beer is over 90% water, removing water could significantly reduce transportation costs. This could be a significant advantage for the export of beer to far-off places like Asia and Africa.
Stefan Prechtl, the brewery’s owner, said, “If we convert all beer to powdered beer, we can reduce Germany’s greenhouse gas emissions by 3-5% and the world’s emissions by 0.5%.”
Although the idea is ambitious, the ultimate goal of powdered beer development is not just to reduce transportation costs. The brewery aims to develop a new beer-making model that shortens the beer-making process and uses less raw materials and energy.
However, the current version of powdered beer is non-alcoholic, and adding alcohol and carbonation remains a challenge. It is also crucial to maintain the unique taste of beer.
The question remains whether consumers will embrace powdered beer. Prechtl acknowledged that beer enthusiasts are skeptical about powdered products, but believes that powdered beer could disrupt the entire beer business model instead of just being a new product on the market.
For now, the brewery plans to target consumers of non-alcoholic beer with its powdered beer. In the long term, the company aims to develop an independent market for powdered beer, stepping away from the niche market of traditional beer.
However, local media outlet “Berliner Kurier” criticized the taste of powdered beer, saying that it has a strong taste of water, hardly any typical beer bitterness, and that the powder does not dissolve entirely, making it far from enjoyable. Master brewer of the brewery, Fäcke Schäuermann, acknowledged that there are still several drawbacks to the current product, but…