From the sound the beer makes when it’s poured into a glass, to the taste someone perceives when the beer reaches their mouth, the act of drinking a beer is a complete sensory experience. And the degree to which someone enjoys the sensation of drinking your beer is almost entirely—though not completely—up to you, the brewer.

In this course, you’ll learn the basic fundamentals of sensory science as it applies to beer, and how to apply those sensory techniques to inform everyday product and process decisions. Through online lecture and an evaluation of real-world case studies, you will learn about flavor perception and sensory bias, which will inform how you apply various sensory methods and statistical analysis techniques. You’ll gain an understanding of how sensory can be used for raw materials evaluations, test verification, consumer research and quality control. Along with these topics, nuances of panelist feedback and data communication within complex production dynamics will also be discussed. By the end of this course, you will possess a deeper understanding of how to influence and adjust the sensory of your beer through methods you can use in any brewery.

Learning Outcomes

• Apply sensory methods and techniques in regular quality control testing
• Analyze sensory QC data to make business decisions
• Train a sensory panel to evaluate for product quality and consistency
• Set brand targets and evaluate for inconsistencies
• Communicate sensory QC data
• Evaluate adjunct flavor
• Execute sensory methods and techniques to make quick in-process decisions
• Apply consumer research techniques and methods of analysis
• Identify common beer aging characteristics
• Leverage sensory data to make every day brewery decisions

Skills You Will Gain

• Sensory analysis
• Quality control
• Consumer research