When it comes to beer, people often associate it with the fermentation process, because the traditional beer brewing process mainly relies on yeast to convert sugars into alcohol and flavor substances. However, with the continuous development of the wine industry, some fusion products (such as malt alcoholic beverages, non-alcoholic beer, craft beer base, etc.) have gradually entered the market. At this time, distillation technology and its supporting equipment began to play an increasingly important role in the beer-related industry chain. Although distillation is not a standard process in traditional beer brewing, it plays an indispensable role in product expansion, flavor innovation, alcohol regulation, etc.
Basic principles of distillation
Distillation is a physical separation method based on the difference in boiling points of the components in a mixture. For alcoholic beverages, the main goal is to separate ethanol (alcohol) from water and other solutions.
Boiling point difference
- Boiling point of ethanol: 78.37℃
- Boiling point of water: 100℃
When the fermentation liquid is heated, ethanol evaporates before water. The vapor is then condensed into liquid and collected, resulting in a more concentrated alcohol liquid (also called “alcohol distillate”).
Fractionation and multi-stage distillation
Modern alcohol distillation equipment often uses the principle of “fractionation”. Through a tower structure, multi-stage condensation and reflux system, it can achieve efficient separation of alcohol from other components, thus obtaining a distillation product with higher purity and more controllable flavor.
Structure and composition of distillation equipment
- Distillation pot: It is the core heating container of the equipment and is used to heat the fermentation liquid. It is usually made of stainless steel and copper, which have high thermal conductivity and chemical stability.
- Rectification Column: Steam rises from the distillation pot and is cascaded through the packing layer or plate structure of the tower body. The higher the tower body and the more layers, the better the separation effect.
- Condenser: The evaporated alcohol vapor is quickly cooled into liquid, and a water cooling or air cooling system is often used.
- Collection tank: It is used to receive the condensed alcohol product, which is divided into fore distillate (head), main liquor, and tail liquid.
- Control system: Modern equipment is usually equipped with temperature sensors, pressure control valves, and automatic control interfaces for precise control of heating and cooling processes.
Main types of distillation equipment
Pot Still
- Simple structure, traditionally used for distilled spirits such as whiskey and brandy.
- Mostly used for small batches and manual operations
- Used for flavor extraction and experimental alcohol distillation in the beer industry
Column Still
- Can continuously feed and discharge, high efficiency, suitable for industrial-scale operation
- Commonly used in high-purity alcohol production
- Used to extract beer-based alcohol for RTD (Ready To Drink) alcohol or non-alcoholic beer production
Vacuum distillation equipment
- Distillation under negative pressure, lower boiling point, to avoid loss of flavor substances
- Applicable to the dealcoholization process of non-alcoholic beer
- Retain the original aroma and taste of beer, high technical difficulty, but ideal effect
Specific application of distillation equipment in beer brewing
Alcohol-Free Beer
Alcohol-free beer refers to beer with an alcohol content of less than 0.5% (or 0.0%). One of its production methods is to remove alcohol by vacuum distillation after fermentation.
Process advantages:
- Does not destroy the protein and flavor components in beer
- Retains malt aroma and beer taste
- Highly restores the “beer-like” experience
- The role of distillation equipment in this process is to accurately control the temperature and vacuum degree so that the alcohol evaporates and the aroma is retained.
Craft Alcohol Beverages/RTD
Many craft breweries use malt fermentation liquid for distillation, extract alcohol, and add juice, tea, coffee and other flavors to make “malt-based alcoholic beverages” (such as Hard Seltzer or Hard Tea).
Distillation goals:
- Obtain a high-purity, neutral-tasting alcohol base
- Increase the alcohol content to facilitate flavor adjustment
- This type of alcohol is usually produced by a continuous tower distillation system to improve efficiency and purity.
Waste liquid resource utilization
The byproduct liquid after beer fermentation (such as residual sugar liquid, secondary fermentation waste liquid, etc.) still contains usable sugars and alcohol. Some large breweries recycle resources through distillation equipment and extract industrial alcohol for disinfection, energy, the chemical industry, and other fields, achieving a win-win situation for environmental protection and the economy.
The role of distillation in flavor and quality control
Controlling alcohol concentration: In products that require precise adjustment of alcohol content (such as non-alcoholic beer or light alcoholic beverages), distillation provides an efficient and controllable method.
- Flavor reorganization and separation: Distillation can not only separate alcohol, but also separate aroma components with different boiling points. For example, the head distillate may contain methanol and aldehydes, and the middle distillate needs to be removed to retain the target flavor components.
- The tail distillate contains high-boiling point substances, and the brewer can choose whether to retain it.
- Improve product stability: The alcohol obtained by distillation has high purity, few impurities, is not easy to deteriorate or oxidize, and is more suitable for long-term storage or use in other mixed wines.
Modern development trend of distillation equipment
Energy saving and environmental protection
Modern distillation systems greatly reduce energy consumption through heat recovery, double-effect distillation, closed-loop cooling, etc., which is especially suitable for high-capacity breweries to save costs.
Automation and intelligent control
Intelligent temperature control, data recording, and remote monitoring have become standard features of distillation equipment, ensuring that each batch of distillation parameters is traceable and the flavor is consistent.
Popularization of small modular distillation equipment
Many small and medium-sized craft breweries hope to expand their product lines and use modular, small-volume distillation equipment to try to develop new products such as RTD, alcohol-free, and liqueurs to improve product added value and market competitiveness.
Conclusion
Although distillation is not a necessary part of the beer brewing process in the traditional sense, its importance is increasingly prominent in the modern alcoholic beverage industry chain. From the production of non-alcoholic beer, to the extraction of craft beer base, to the resource utilization of by-products, distillation equipment, with its efficient, precise and controllable technical advantages, brings broader innovation space and commercial possibilities to the beer industry.
It can be foreseen that with the diversification of consumer tastes and the rapid growth of the low-alcohol and non-alcoholic beverage market, distillation technology will play an increasingly core role in the beer-related industry. And efficient, intelligent and environmentally friendly distillation equipment will also become one of the important equipment for the upgrading and transformation of beer brewing plants.