Learning oftentimes starts in the classroom, but it doesn’t always end there. That’s the case for one class at Southwestern College where San Diegans studied the biology and chemistry of making beer this semester.
For William Greenleaf, a professor of biology at Southwestern College, he’s teaching a unique type of science curriculum that falls under the chemistry and biology department.
The Science of Brewing Beer class
“The name is The Science of Brewing,” Greenleaf said.
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If you’re wondering how the class goes, Greenleaf says his class starts with learning about safety when brewing, which then leads to learning the terminology.
“Then we do a run-through using water, typically, the brewing steps,” Greenleaf said.
Students in his class create three different batches in all different styles.
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“It starts up with the build-up and then we try to perfect it and hone in,” Greenleaf said.
Greenleaf, who also has experience in home brewing himself, explained how the science works in the brewing process.
“The biology side, it starts with a plant that produces a seed, and we get the sugar out of that seed,” Greenleaf said. “Really those seeds are little baby plants, and that sugar is meant to grow more plants."
Hops is used too, which is also a plant, in addition to yeast strains.
He calls brewing a complex, interconnected topic, so if one thing is changed, it changes other aspects too.
“Small details that can have a big impact on the final product,” Greenleaf said.
In all the class uses yeast, water, barley, and hops create an amber beer with spicy notes and at 8.3% ABV (alcohol by volume). But the class doesn't do this alone.
“We brewed what’s known as a winter warmer,” Greenleaf said.
The class is offered in the fall and spring. Find more details on the class here.
A Chula Vista brewmaster offers guidance
Together, with the guidance of Novo Brazil Brewmaster Guilherme Hoffman, students were able to create the beer. For this Southwestern College program, Greenleaf says it was the third time they’ve worked with Novo.
”I try to do the same thing that my masters did for me and teach the process and the passion about beer brewing,” Hoffman said.
From the beginning of the process to the end, Hoffman says, it’s all about the fermentation process.
“Everything that they see on the board, and they understand the metabolism and the glucose, it’s like a process,” Hoffman said.
Walking NBC 7 through the process of brewing the beer, just like the students did, Hoffman says it starts with the barley malt that will go through a mill. Eventually, that’s transferred to a vessel where it is stirred in water before being filtrated into a kettle with boiling water, which is when the hops are added. After that, it’s chilled and fermented for about a week. Then the beer will age at a freezing temperature. He says the entire process takes about two weeks.
Then, it’s time to taste!
Greenleaf calls Hoffman a natural teacher and this experience is only one you can get by being in the brewery.
“Being able to learn from somebody like that, which is not common, honestly. It's really a fantastic opportunity," Greenleaf said.
The class's beer is on tap at Novo Brazil in Imperial Beach and its Otay Ranch locations.
