Saccharomyces pastorianus, a popular beer yeast, has yielded the first gene for beer foam. Recently published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, the gene could potentially improve the stabilization of the foam.
The Breakdown
The head of your beer consists of bubbles full of CO2. Carbon dioxide is the gas created as yeast turns sugar into alcohol. (The fun stuff.) These bubbles are formed by proteins from the grain and yeast. These proteins stabilize the bubbles, preventing the head on your beer from dissipating too quickly. The mystery was which yeast gene was responsible for making the protein that stabilizes the head on the beer.
That gene is CFG1. It’s identification could lead to improvements to foam character in your favorite beer.
