Wort Boiling Today-Boiling Systems with Low Thermal Stress in Combination with Volatile Stripping

Wort boiling is the most energy intensive stage in the brewing process. For this reason considerable attention has been given to improve the efficiency of wort boiling systems. Alternative wort boiling technologies, such as low pressure boiling and high temperature wort boiling, have been studied in detail during the last decades, with a focus on the reduction of primary energy consumption. Recently, new boiling systems have been developed and commercialised. The new systems reduced the energy consumption still further and are all characterised by exerting a low thermal stress on the wort during boiling. In this review, an overview of wort boiling objectives, possibilities to reduce the thermal stress on wort and environmental aspects of wort boiling are discussed. Furthermore, recent wort boiling systems - i.e. dynamic low pressure boiling and boiling systems which are based on low thermal stress boiling in combination with volatile stripping (steam, film and vacuum stripping) - are copiously treated.