Craft beer popularity has grown in recent years, and Swedish craft breweries are increasing to meet consumer needs. Breweries must understand consumer preferences to effectively align their offers in this changing landscape. Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate the consumer preferences in the Swedish craft beer market, focusing on how various attributes of craft beer influence consumer choices and how the consumer factors and craft beer attributes can segment consumers.

It has been suggested that cellular damage from oxygen radicals is one of the processes leading to cardio-vascular disease and cancer. Natural antioxidants prevent uncontrolled oxidative reactions by decreasing molecular oxygen levels, scavenging chain-initiating and chain-propagating free radicals, chelating metals, or decomposing peroxides. Beer is rich in antioxidants, derived both from malt and hops, consisting mostly of flavanoids and phenolic secondary plant metabolites. Much research has been conducted concerning antioxidant activity of beer in relationship to flavor stability. Yeast cells possess both enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidant systems to defend against oxygen radicals, in addition to scavenging and absorbing molecular oxygen for cell synthesis. It is well known that bottle-conditioned beer has a longer shelf life than conventional beer in terms of flavor stability and freshness. This is likely due to a complex relationship between the yeasts inherent ability to scavenge oxygen species, produce SO₂, chelate transition metals and employ other methods to defend against molecular oxygen. The objective of this research was to determine whether bottle-conditioned beer (which contains live yeast) has a higher antioxidant activity compared to that of conventional beer. Initial experiments were conducted to establish a baseline of antioxidant potentials. The first experiment consisted of determining the antioxidant potential of commercially available beers and how those values compared to common foods and drinks. Next, live yeast was added to commercially available artificially carbonated beer, to determine whether the presence of live yeast alone had an impact on antioxidant potential. Lastly, in the first set of beer trials wort was prepared, brewers yeast added, and then allowed to complete primary fermentation. The beer was bottle-conditioned (naturally carbonated) by the addition of a second yeast strain and either a 'high' or 'low' level of sugar, or artificially carbonated. Treatments consisted of using three different yeasts. A control was prepared by artificially carbonating beer without live yeast. Antioxidant potentials were determined using Ferric Reducing Antioxidant Potential (FRAP) analysis. Results indicated that there was an increase in the level of antioxidant activities between the bottle-conditioned beers compared to the control beer, whether or not the high or low level of yeast was present. In the second set of beer trials wort was prepared, brewers yeast added, and then allowed to complete primary fermentation, as in the first set of beer trials. The beer was bottle-conditioned by the addition of a second yeast strain and sugar, or artificially carbonated followed by the addition of a second yeast but no sugar. Treatments consisted of using three different yeasts. A control was prepared by artificially carbonating beer without live yeast. Dissolved oxygen, free and total sulfite, yeast viability, and antioxidant capacities were again determined. Results indicated that there was an increase in the level of sulfite, a decrease in dissolved oxygen, yeast remained viable for a longer period of time, and antioxidant activities were higher in the bottle-conditioned beers when compared to the control beer. Furthermore, while the differences were not as great, the same trends were observed for all parameters when comparing the artificially carbonated beers containing live yeast to the control beer. The elevation in antioxidant activities of beer with live yeast present (live beer) was significant. The third and final phase of experiments focused on the contribution of antioxidant potential specifically from the yeast. Yeast cells for each strain were cultivated in beer wort, harvested, washed, and cell extracts prepared. The crude yeast extracts were subjected to heat treatment, size fractionation followed by heat and protease treatments, glutathione determination, and lipid extraction, and then analyzed for antioxidant activity. Results indicated a complex interaction between many different yeast components that contributed to the total antioxidant activity provided specifically from yeast. Rather than one single compound, the yeast contributed heat stable components, consisting of proteins and enzymes, molecules with high, medium, and low molecular weights, and active lipid portions. The overall results suggest, that while the malt and hops components likely play the major role in antioxidant activity of beer, beer containing live yeast has a significant increase on that antioxidant activity. Consequently, the flavor stability and health benefits from beer containing live yeast would be increased. / Graduation date: 2003

Guatemala's Cerveceria Centroamerciana is one of the country's most prestigious, recognizable, and successful national industries. Founded in 1885 by brothers Mariano and Rafael Castillo Cordoba, over the course of the twentieth century they effectively marketed their widely popular Gallo beer to the masses. They facilitated a shift in popular tastes, promoting beer consumption as a healthful and sophisticated alternative to other crudely concocted alcoholic beverages. Through sophisticated marketing they endeavored to create an illusion of national cohesion in a country with deep class, race, and ethnic divisions. In order to all the more entrench their position in the country's oligarchy and to ensure the longevity of their business, the Castillo's functioned as a mediator in the relationship between the state and society. While the consumption of Gallo beer offered an illusion of modernity, it all the more reinforced cultural assumptions and ascriptions of indigenous identity.

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<p>With the purpose of expanding the understanding of the main causes that make creating and maintaining successful, strong brands a challenging issue for companies, a qualitative research is conducted in this thesis. It is based on an integrated model of Doyle’ and Stern’s along with Aaker’s approaches discussing building successful/strong brands with the following Doyle’ and Stern’s model discussing sustaining successful/strong brands; thereby selecting a single case study of Carlsberg Polska belonging to brewing potentates on the Polish beer market and two of its major brands – Carlsberg and Harnaś.</p><p>The findings show that, in terms of building successful brands, introducing a quality product along with superior perceived quality, creating a basic brand along with brand awareness, augmenting a brand along with building brand loyalty as well as establishing a potential brand along with brand associations are the most crucial actions that had to be taken by Carlsberg Polska in order to win out a number 3 market-leader position. Concerning sustaining strong brands, on the other hand, the investigated firm needs to monitor competition and constantly revitalize and reposition its products in order to be the fastest growing beer producer on the Polish market.</p>

This work set out to examine the methodologies of dry hopping, compare different hop materials, and look at the extraction behavior of different types of hop compounds. This work consists of two discrete studies, where the first study informed the design of the second. The first study measured the concentrations of hop aroma compounds extracted from Cascade hops during dry hopping using a model beer system devoid of malt, yeast aromas, and hops. Cascade hops pelletized by four different processors yielded different particle size distributions and pellet densities. These pellets were dosed into a degassed medium (water, 6% v/v ethanol, pH 4.2) and the hop aroma extraction was measured periodically over a one week period. Solid phase micro-extraction (SPME) followed by gas chromatography (GC-FID) was used to analyze the levels of aroma compounds in the extraction medium. Variation in the hop pellet physical properties did not significantly impact the extraction rate of hop volatiles such as linalool, geraniol, limonene and myrcene with one exception. One treatment showed an increased absolute concentration of geraniol. Separately, dry hop aroma extraction was measured over a short time (1 day) at room temperature in an unhopped beer using small-scale (1L), stirred vessels. Irrespective of the hop form (whole or pellet), the concentrations of hydrocarbon terpenes peaked between 3 and 6 hours and subsequently declined, while the concentrations of terpene alcohols continued to increase throughout the 24 hour dry hop extraction. The rate of hop aroma extraction did not appear to be significantly influenced by hop pellet properties and occurred rather rapidly regardless of the hop form. The second study examined the extraction of hop aroma compounds during a pilot brewery scale (~4hL) dry hop treatment. Dry hop treatments consisted of whole cone hops and pellet hops (Cascade cultivar, 2011 harvest) which were dosed into cylindroconical vessels which were either stirred with a pump or left quiescent. Samples were taken for GC-FID and HPLC analysis as well as sensory evaluation at various time points between 30 minutes and 12 days. Polyphenol and alpha acid extraction was highest in a stirred system dosed with pellets. Hop aroma compound extraction was also the highest in the stirred system utilizing pellet hops. The sensory panel rated the stirred pellet samples as having the highest hop aroma, bitterness, and astringency. The results showed that hop flavor from dry hopping can be readily achieved with much shorter contact time than the current 4-12 day industry practice. / Graduation date: 2013

With the purpose of expanding the understanding of the main causes that make creating and maintaining successful, strong brands a challenging issue for companies, a qualitative research is conducted in this thesis. It is based on an integrated model of Doyle’ and Stern’s along with Aaker’s approaches discussing building successful/strong brands with the following Doyle’ and Stern’s model discussing sustaining successful/strong brands; thereby selecting a single case study of Carlsberg Polska belonging to brewing potentates on the Polish beer market and two of its major brands – Carlsberg and Harnaś. The findings show that, in terms of building successful brands, introducing a quality product along with superior perceived quality, creating a basic brand along with brand awareness, augmenting a brand along with building brand loyalty as well as establishing a potential brand along with brand associations are the most crucial actions that had to be taken by Carlsberg Polska in order to win out a number 3 market-leader position. Concerning sustaining strong brands, on the other hand, the investigated firm needs to monitor competition and constantly revitalize and reposition its products in order to be the fastest growing beer producer on the Polish market.

Group number:         2838 Research Questions:  Does the country of origin influence Thai consumers’ buying decision towards beer purchasing?  What are the consumers’ attitudes and perception towards beer consumption? Purpose: The authors aim to explore the effect of COO towards beer purchasing behavior of Thai consumer. The research study examines the attitudes of Thai consumers in terms of the beer purchasing based on two aspects: foreign and domestic brands. Method: Qualitative approach and quantitative approach was used in order to get the primary data. Questionnaire online were sent out 247 forms to the respondents and get the response 240 forms that could answers the question effectively. Interviews also were conducted with ten beer drinkers. Furthermore, several articles, researches, and literatures were used to strengthen reliability of the paper and improve the validity as well. Conclusion: Based on the study results, country of origin does not affect much in consumers’ buying decision in term of low-involvement products. Also country of origin showed that can influence consumer first purchasing activity. The research also portrayed when consumers have more knowledge or experience other cues such as price and taste have definitely effects in their buying decision more than Country of Origin factors.

Using a phenomenological account of perception drawn largely from the work of Merleau-Ponty (1962) and Gibson (1966; 1974), this thesis explores how perceptual experience is created and modified through practices and discourses. The project examines how a specific perceptual experience--the taste of beer--is formed through the practices and discourses of production. It investigates how both the nuanced taste experiences of brewmasters and the less precise taste experiences of their customers are cultivated in relation to a set of production concerns surrounding the manufacture of a consistent brand. Ultimately, it is argued that the production of brands--the urge to produce products which are identical to themselves--is a characteristic of consumer-oriented late capitalism which illustrates how mechanical reproduction influences the formation of contemporary sensory experiences and lifeworlds.

No existent analytical method allowed the determination of the vicinal diketones (VDK), 2,3-butanedione (diacetyl) and 2,3-pentanedione, by liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry (LC/MS). An LC/MS method was developed for the simultaneous determination of diacetyl and 2,3-pentanedione in beer. A method allowing the determination of the amino acids (AA) related to the formation of VDK during fermentation was also developed. VDK were derivatized with o-phenylenediamine (OPDA) to form quinoxaline compounds. The reaction of VDK with OPDA was studied to optimize reaction time. Conversion of the diacetyl precursor, alpha-acetolactate, was tested using multiple oxidative decarboxylation techniques. Attempts were also made to determine simultaneously the AA, leucine, isoleucine and valine with the VDK. Simultaneous determination was unsuitable for the AA levels found in beer fermentation and separate methods for the determination of AA were developed. Total VDK were measured over a concentration range of 10 mug/L to 10 mg/L with less than 10% variation. These analytical methods were tested using a laboratory scale experiment to assess the impact of fermentation temperature on total VDK production and AA absorption. Samples collected in a local brewery were analyzed for total VDK using the developed method.