Science and beer have always paired well together in my mind. I always hope that there is a link beyond the pure beer science. Louis Pasteur demonstrated that the fermentation process is a function of living yeast cells rather than a spontaneous occurrence. This was the dawn of modern microbiology and pretty important for our beer and understanding of yeast, but maybe beer has played an even larger role in science. I find myself thinking of other scientists, and if beer played an equal importance in their work. Perhaps as Einstein postulated his Theory of General Relativity he had been enjoying a few of his favourite beers. Would he want a lager or did he enjoy something more complex and robust? As physicists smash protons together at the Large Hadron Collider searching for the elusive Higgs Boson particle, do they complete the night with a round of beer tastings from the local breweries? Maybe this is not important. But in my mind, beer and science are equal parts awesome; because if you find  yourself scratching your head trying to understand Superstring theory and an 11 dimensional Universe, nothing will cure that headache faster than a good beer.

Continue Reading