Mega Brewers Water Usage Article

[fraser_john]

The Age Article

Sounds like they are trying 2.3 litres to produce a litre of beer, but it does not specify if that 2.3 litres includes the litre of beer!

 

[redbeard]

"It won't affect the taste and quality of the beer," Lion Nathan's environment director David Carter said.
yep

"We won't be using recycled water for making beer, although technically I suppose you could."
Technically ALL water is recycled.

"The brewery ... will save 1.1 million litres a day by using recycled water"
Only because it saves u money, not because u want to ...

 

[jonbob]

Most of their products taste like they are already using water recycled from a cat.

 

[///]

It would not be unlike the AHB to dislike 'The Man' and criticize at every turn , but I actually think this is pretty impressive. Knowing guys in these plants they are committed to improving the way they make beer and have made major changes to thier approach. What a stunning result they have achieved.

Sorry, the tall poppies wont be cut in my garden...

Scotty

 

[mika]

Sorry, the tall poppies wont be cut in my garden...

I'll bring round the weed killer then

How much water they're saving doesn't mean much if they're still making crap beer

 

[///]

I'll bring round the weed killer then

How much water they're saving doesn't mean much if they're still making crap beer

I'd love some round-up after spending 2 hours chasing the mower yesterday.

Ok, as this topic is drifting can I ask what 'crap' beer is. Is a Fosters or Lion Nathan product not potable, infected or other such demons that may happen to beer or what some sell as beer.

Or, can you walk into a pub in WA and Cairns, perhaps 2 of the furthest points in Aust. and the beers (VB, XXXX, New etc) will taste the kinda the same. They will sure be potable, and I can near guarantee (cos they have mutha of all pasturisers) they wont be infected but maybe not so fresh and affected by the travel sickness post brewery.

Crap beer to me usually is;

* beer made outside Australia cos' i have some patriot brewer spirit
* poor and inconsistent
* infected or with serious microbe issue
* out of balance and poorly made
* devoid of any thing resembling beer

And on this last point, which also covers point 1, discribes high quality crap, such as many of the South American Flint (not clear) Bottle beers. I rate the 'Cerveza' beers as high quality crap, your better to drink neat vodka as it has more flavour and presence.

So as it is my mission, it is to whinge about the poor attitude of brewers to other brewers who get paid to make reliable beer that we (you I them) may not like but is far from imported donkeys wee that seems to be drunk with Gusto by too many....

Scotty

 

[chris.taylor.98]

The Age Article

Sounds like they are trying 2.3 litres to produce a litre of beer, but it does not specify if that 2.3 litres includes the litre of beer!

Woo hoo, all the more water for us to use. I will have to go and dust off my wort chiller.

 

[mika]

I could apply all but one of your definitions of crap beer to 'commercial' beer I have drunk. But my comments weren't meant to be taken as an attack on commerical beer, twas more to prod them in the right direction (if they ever perchance to peruse our little forum). The Matilda Bay range could be seen as 'commerical' beer but there is certainly some flavoursome, decent beers amongst it. This is the kinda thing that should be encouraged, so that we don't become a country of 6 beers that can hardly be told apart. Perhaps it is what the consumer is asking for, but then why are we seeing such an explosion in craft beer popularity ? And such possible such populairty in the pre-mixed drinks range ?
I don't believe I have a poor attitude towards commerical brewers, they too are brewing beer so we have a common thread. My beef is with the management, who always have the final say in any decision, and the bean counters and all those others involved in advocating the brewing of bland beer.
I agree there are way too many posh sounding imported beers that are also bland and simply shouldn't be bought into the customer, though it appears there is a market for them.
Perhaps we should spend less time attacking each other, and more time educating the masses of Australia that there is better beer out there.

 

[MHB]

Before trying to get back OT, I can see a lot of merit in Scotty's point of view.

The technical expertise, knowledge and skill exhibited by the mega brewers is amazing - the brewer I hold in the highest regard would be Heineken.

All over the world with different malts, using a variety of hops and in half a in dozen different breweries they manage to produce consistent beer that is so close to specification - you can't tell where it comes from.

They also fund immense amounts of research and have one of the best staff development plans going.

Unfortunately I find their beer as boring as cold chips. That said I will drink it in preference to a lot of the local offerings which I find down right offensive. I would choose a nice little hand crafted Ale every time given the option.
I think most of us here think similarly or we wouldn't be here.

In not liking their product, I think it would be unwise to blind your self to their ability or to think we can't learn a lot from them.

Back OT

The use of water is usually quoted as how many Litres you buy : what you sell

In this case if you buy 2.5 L, make 1 L of Beer that only leaves 1.5 L of waste.

When you think that as little as 25 years ago 10:1 was regarded at typical; 5:1 or better was stellar performance.

The full version of this story got a run in the "Brewer and Distiller" the International Guild of Brewers and Distillers member's magazine.
To achieve figures like these is a world class, no a world beating performance - makes me proud that an Australian brewery can preforms this well.
As that story pointed out this is worlds best practice given the chance to hear one of the guys that worked on this project talk - I am going to shut up and listen - I can learn from these people.

Shame about the beer

MHB

 

[gerald]

I know this article is old but i just came across it while searching through the forums.

anyway SA brewing company (LN) use "5 stubbies worth of water to produce 1 stubby of beer"

so 5L per 1L of beer produced. now they have been trying to cut this down i know that so currently im not sure on their latest figures but that was what they were getting over the summer when i was working their more often.

makes the 2.5L figure sounds very appealing.

 

[Ducatiboy stu]

I always knew VB was made from recycled water.....