Zymurgy

File:Wye Valley fermenter.jpg

Beer fermenting at a brewery.

Zymurgy or zymology is the study of fermentation. The word was originally used to describe the science involved in these processes but it has since become more broadly used to describe the brewing of alcoholic beverages. A zymurgist (or zymologist) is one who studies zymurgy.

Zymurgy is the name of a homebrewers magazine. The word also can be found in the names of several organizations involved in brewing alcohol.

History

Louis Pasteur is considered to have been the first zymologist when, in 1857, he connected yeast to fermentation. Pasteur originally defined fermentation as "respiration without air". The German Eduard Buchner, winner of the 1907 Nobel Prize in chemistry, later determined that fermentation was actually caused by the yeast's secretion of an enzyme that he called zymase.

Trivia

Zymurgy is the last word in most English-language dictionaries, excluding proper nouns and onomatopoetic words.

See also

• History of wine
• History of beer
• Fermentation of food

References

• "Zymurgist." Webster's New Millennium Dictionary of English, Preview Edition (v 0.9.6). Lexico Publishing Group, LLC. May 13, 2007. <Dictionary.com http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Zymurgist>.
• American Heritage® Dictionary definition for zymurgy