Chris Kim - AB Biotek

Bio

Chris Kim is Technical Sales Manager for AB Biotek, supporting brewers and distillers across Australia and New Zealand. With over 20 years of experience in the brewing and distilling industries, he has held technical, production, and leadership roles across multinational breweries, craft brewing, contract manufacturing, and distilling operations. Chris is passionate about fermentation and yeast technology, helping brewers and distillers improve quality, efficiency, and product innovation.

Presentation

Rational, Style-Driven NABLAB Formulation via Controlled Mashing and Limited Fermentation

Designing non-alcoholic and low-alcohol beer (NABLAB) recipes across diverse beer styles requires precise control of the wort carbohydrate profile to optimise body while minimising alcohol content, residual sweetness, and astringency in the finished product. This study presents a systematic approach that couples controlled mashing with limited fermentation to produce beers below 0.5% ABV without reliance on post-fermentation alcohol removal. Mashing trials were conducted using a laboratory-scale mashing unit, enabling independent variation of key parameters including temperature profile, mash duration, and dextrin malt percentage. The resulting worts were subsequently fermented with a panel of commercially available yeast strains, including both maltose-negative and maltotriose-negative variants. Detailed carbohydrate profiling at the onset and completion of fermentation was used to quantify fermentable sugar utilisation and residual extract composition across the different mashing conditions and yeast strains. The resulting correlations provide practical guidelines for targeting a range of starting gravities and residual extract composition, supporting rational, style-driven NABLAB formulation.

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