Researching using dairy by-products to make beer

Cornell researchers are looking into ways to make beer out of a dairy by-product.

Sam Alcaine is an Assistant Professor of Dairy Fermentation at Cornell University. His latest project is finding a more profitable used for leftover acid whey for yogurt farmers.

"But it is rich in lactose and rich in minerals so the question is what else can we do with it besides sending it to farms to be applied to the soil or feeding it to cattle," Alcaine said.

The big idea is to use it to brew beer.

"I kind of put that hat on and said hey, there's sugar here...how do we convert it into an interesting alcoholic beverage," he added.

The challenge researchers were facing was breaking down the acid whey to make it react with the yeast. One possible solution they are exploring is adding barley.

"So it turns out barely has some natural enzymes in it that also have activity against lactose so we could break down the lactose into simple sugars that traditional brewer's yeast could use and make a beer that way...by adding acid whey to the malt," Alcaine said.

Turning a dairy by-product into beer isn’t traditional, so the question is, what does it taste like?

“It comes across more like a sour beer, like a gose or something like that, so there is that kind of reference in the beer world,” Alcaine said.

With New York being the yogurt capital of the country and one of the biggest dairy producers, the economic impact of this beer breakthrough could go a long way.

"Also for small cheese and yogurt makers it's another economic model they could put into their business to actually help support them," Alcaine added.

While the drinks they’re testing in the lab aren’t quite ready for your local bar, Alcaine said they aren’t far off.

"It could come to market within the next year if we find the right partners," he added.

This means you could see dairy beer moo-ving onto shelves sooner rather than later.