Pre-Investigation #9 Sugar, Yeast, and Fermentation

Chemistry and Microbiology of Beer

University of South Florida
Fall 2015
Markos Perez

Pre-Investigation #9 Sugar, Yeast, and Fermentation

Sugar and Yeast regarding Beer Production
The main function or pathway that goes on to make beer is that yeast converts sugar to
alcohol to give beer its alcohol content. Sugar itself is built of many different building blocks and
can create many different types of sugars such as sucrose, fructose, and maltose. Yeast are very
methodical organisms. Even though sucrose usually comprises only a small percentage of the
wort, studies have shown that most brewers yeast strains seem to work on it first, breaking it
down into its glucose and fructose parts (Plamer, 2004). Once the sucrose has been broken down,
the yeast cells consume the glucose first, followed by fructose and maltose. There are over 500
species of yeast and it is responsible for most of the flavor and aroma in beer (White, 1998).
Some yeast strains behave differently; consuming maltose at the same time as the
monosaccharides, but this seems to be the exception. Most yeast strain utilize most of the
glucose in the wort before consuming the other sugars (Plamer, 2004). They also ferment most of
the monosaccharides before fermenting maltose. In fact, it is known that high levels of glucose
and fructose in a wort will inhibit the fermentation of maltose. This repressive behavior is
probably a common cause of stuck fermentations in worts containing a lot of refined sugars, the
yeast have fermented the monosaccharides and then quit, leaving more than half of the total
sugars unfermented.Yeast metabolizes the different wort sugars in different ways (Palmer, 2004).
To consume the disaccharide sucrose, the yeast utilizes an enzyme called invertase, which works
outside the cell to hydrolyze the molecule into its components glucose and fructose. The
glucose and fructose molecules are then transported through the cell wall and metabolized inside
the cell. Conversely, maltose and maltotriose are transported into the cell first, and then are
broken down into glucoses by the enzyme maltase (Palmer, 2004). Even though the enzyme for
both sugars is the same, maltose is typically consumed first, indicating that the cell wall transport
mechanism for the two sugars is different. Maybe maltotriose is too big to get through the
maltose entrance. The overall point is that all fermentable sugars are broken down into
monosaccharides like glucose before being utilized by the yeast, and that yeast evidently prefer
to eat their sugars one at a time.
Lots of different sugars can be used in brewing and many people pick the sugars that
yeast will want to eat most. So there are a few reasons why sugars are used and they are that they
raise the alcohol level without increasing the body of the beer. Also, to lighten the body of the
beer while maintaining the alcohol level, to add some interesting flavors, and to prime the beer
for carbonation (Palmer, 2004).

Pre-Investigation #9 Sugar, Yeast, and Fermentation

Sugar and Yeast regarding Food Production
There are three main functions of yeast in the production of baked goods. The first
function would be the production of carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide is generated by the yeast as
a result of the breakdown of fermentable sugars in the dough. The evolution of carbon dioxide
causes expansion of the dough as it is trapped within the protein matrix of the dough (Walters,
2012). Also, it causes dough maturation. This is accomplished by the chemical reaction of yeast
produced alcohols and acids on protein of the flour and by the physical stretching of the protein
by carbon dioxide gas. These results in the light, airy physical structure associated with yeast
leavened products (Walters, 2012). Last but not least, the development of fermentation flavor.
Yeast imparts the characteristic flavor of bread and other yeast products. During dough
fermentation, yeast produces many secondary metabolites such as ketones, higher alcohols,
organic acids, aldehydes and esters. Some of these, alcohols for example, escape during baking.
Others react with each other and with other compounds found in the dough to form new and
more complex flavor compounds. These reactions occur primarily in the crust and the resultant
flavor diffuses into the crumb of the baked bread (Walters, 2012).
Some reasons sugar is used in food production is mainly as a sweetening product. Suagr
can be added to pretty much any food and it will cause that food to become sweeter if the right
amount of sugar is added. Although the main reason for the use of sugar is its sweet taste, sugar
has many other functions in food technology. The most important among these are that added
sugar in foods acts as a sweetener, preservative, texture modifier, fermentation substrate,
flavouring and colouring agent, bulking agent (Corriher, 2014). The various methods of use of
sugar are based on its physical and chemical properties. The replacement of sugar by the newly
available sweeteners is difficult if the sweetness values or physical and chemical properties of
the substitutes differ greatly from those of sucrose (Corriher, 2014). In some products, sugar can
act as a natural preservative. Reducing sugar concentration in a food product may shorten its
shelf life and impact on quality. For example, a jam with reduced sugars content will need to be
stored in the fridge (Corriher, 2014). No single ingredient can replace sugar in all foods and
replicate its many functions at the same time. Thus, replacing sugar often results in the use of
several additional ingredients and additives, which may result in higher calorie content (Corriher,
2014).

Pre-Investigation #9 Sugar, Yeast, and Fermentation

APA References

1. Corriher, S. (2014, July). Yeast's Crucial Roles in Breadbaking. Retrieved October 29, 2015,
from http://www.finecooking.com/articles/yeast-role-bread-baking.aspx

2. Palmer, J. (2004, March). Sweetness: Brewing Sugars & How To Use Them. Retrieved
October 29, 2015, from https://byo.com/bock/item/1441-sweetness-brewing-sugars-how-to-usethem

3. Walters, J. (2012, May). Functions of Yeast in Baking. Retrieved October 29, 2015, from
http://www.dakotayeast.com/yeast_functions.html

4. White, C. (1998, February). 7 Fascinating Facts About Yeast. Retrieved October 29, 2015,
from https://byo.com/mead/item/62-7-fascinating-facts-about-yeast