- That’s an “A” in my book…
It looks like it’s time for me to go back to school. NPR is reporting that Appalachian State University will soon have a carboy cozied up to their Agilent 6850 Series II Gas Chromatographer and a brew kettle bubbling next to the Dionex ICS 1000 (with anion exchange column, of course!). That’s right – they are giving chemistry students the chance to brew beer for college credit.
According to the report, the idea met with resistance from the head of the chemistry department and some of the professors, but the robust student response (what a shock) got Honors Chemistry: Intro to Brewing Beer the green light.
Sensing a chance to boost enrollment, Appalachian State is now looking to take their commitment to the ancient art of brewing to the next level. There is talk of adding Fermentation as a major, creating an on-campus brewery, and they have applied for state and federal permits to sell beer. I wonder how this will affect their Party School rank in the Princeton Review?
With the craft beer juggernaut continuing its rapid ascent, it makes sense to give kids who are interested in the science of brewing a chance to learn how to do it right. There are careers in beer out there, and Appalachian State is giving their students a keg up leg up.
Now they just have to figure out a way to keep the co-eds from skinny dipping in the bottling tanks. 😉
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Beer & Whiskey Brothers 
Nice to see that there’s more schools like this opening in the US. I had to travel to Scotland to do it. I’d like to see more accredited US schools offering degrees in Brewing or Brewing and Distilling.
I agree. I think it shows how much a part of our culture beer has become.
When I went to school, I could only minor in beer here in the States, and that was only for drinking it. 🙂
First, they beat Michigan in the “Big House.” Now this? I love me some App State, yo.
Holy crap! I was logged in under a work account without realizing it. I think I have too many blogs and accompanying accounts.
Or you’ve had too many beers. 😉
Spoken like a true Buckeye, Zac.
Auburn University is also in the very early stages of starting a fully accredited brewing program.
+1 for the Southeast.
I get the sense that this is going to be a recruitment tool that many universities embrace.
Virginia Tech has a pretty good Brewing Science course (complete with weekly Sunday brewing sessions!) that has exploded in the past 5 or 6 years. There used to be 6 or 7 kids enrolled, but now it’s up above 200. It’s not a full program, but it’s certainly a start. +1 one more for the Southeast.
I love the fact that this is becoming a movement within State run universities! It is a very good thing.
That looks like a blast. I suppose there’s a chance it might serve the negative function of disillusioning kids who are excited about beer but don’t realize the full chemistry behind it… but that’s a small price to pay for something cool like this.
I work at a university that has a Harry Potter class. I’m not sure why I confessed that, because that’s a big dent in the ol’ party ranking.
Unless they party with a 20-sided die, John! And those LARPers can get NUTS!!
On the beer front, at least it’ll get some of the idiots out of the Communications program. When I went to school, there was a lot of dead weight in the department, kids who were like “I like to watch tee-vee, so I’ll learn to make tee-vee.” Now they can follow their passion for cheap beer instead.
That’s exciting! If you can get a Master’s in winemaking from UC Davis, or get a food science degree from Cornell, then why not a degree in brewing and distilling? Makes perfect sense to me!
I’m actually surprised this wasn’t already happening across the country.
This is a great reward for the kids busting their humps to get through a chemistry major. My head still hurts from taking organic chem over 10 years ago!
And it’s far better than them using the lab to concoct other fun chemicals that go well with glo-sticks.
and Dr. Seuss hats! I’ll bet the success of “Breaking Bad” has spawned a good number of chemists turned meth cooks. Making beer is better. You can sample your produce without losing your teeth.
True. And the chances that you’ll blow yourself up are greatly reduced as well.
I don’t know Jim…Bayou Burner…Nuff said.
I just want to point out that the University of Wisconsin-Madison has a very sophisticated fermentation sciences class that has been going for a while now, and brewing beer is part of the course.
That’s not surprising, what with your proximity to New Glarus. I’d do a lot of “research” there if I was a Fermentation major.
Nice! I like how more attention is being given to brewing beer by colleges now… with all these micro-breweries appearing out of nowhere, it is only a matter of time before more well known colleges offer it as a career…
You’re right about that. But of course, brewmasters don’t make a lot, so I’m not sure if it’s more of a trade thing versus a college thing:
https://beerandwhiskeybros.com/2011/02/24/guess-how-much-a-brewmaster-makes/