**Historical Evolution of Brewing:**
– Alulu beer receipt from ancient Sumerian brewery in 2050 BC
– Brewing in Neolithic Europe
– Brewing initially as domestic work, later industrialized
– Emergence of breweries in monasteries and Christian institutions
– Oldest functioning breweries like Weihenstephan and Weltenburg Abbey
– Technological advances during the Industrial Revolution
**Technological Advances in Brewing:**
– Contributions of James Watt, Carl von Linde, and Louis Pasteur
– Use of steam engines, refrigeration machines, and pure yeast cultures
– Importance of hydrometers and thermometers in brewing
– Significance of stainless steel in modern breweries
– Quality control analyses in modern brewing plants
**Brewing Process and Equipment:**
– 9-step brewing process including milling, malting, mashing, and boiling
– Importance of mashing, lautering, and fermentation
– Modern brewing equipment made of stainless steel
– Heating methods using pressurized steam
– Cooling techniques using cooling jackets on tanks
**Fermentation and Conditioning:**
– Process of fermentation and its importance in beer production
– Various fermentation tanks used in breweries
– Conditioning of beer in tanks with cooling jackets
– Use of active yeast culture for fresh beer
– Different methods of conditioning and filtering for beer stabilization
**Brewery Industry and Practices:**
– Range of brewing companies from small to multinational conglomerates
– Growth in brewery employment in the U.S.
– Types of breweries like microbreweries, brewpubs, and macrobreweries
– Contract brewing and gypsy brewing practices
– Role of head brewer/brewmaster and their qualifications
A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of beer has taken place since at least 2500 BC; in ancient Mesopotamia, brewers derived social sanction and divine protection from the goddess Ninkasi. Brewing was initially a cottage industry, with production taking place at home; by the ninth century, monasteries and farms would produce beer on a larger scale, selling the excess; and by the eleventh and twelfth centuries larger, dedicated breweries with eight to ten workers were being built.
The diversity of size in breweries is matched by the diversity of processes, degrees of automation, and kinds of beer produced in breweries. A brewery is typically divided into distinct sections, with each section reserved for one part of the brewing process.