Oct. 27, 2008
CAL POLY IN THE NEWS
Discovery Channel Discovers Prof. Cano's Ancient Ale
SAN LUIS OBISPO -- Microbiology Professor Raul Cano and partners 'Ancient Ale' beer is picking up notice around the nation -- and the world wide Web.
The beer received good reviews at the Russian River Beer Festival and from other reviewers. The Oakland Tribune beer critic, William Brand, said the beer has "a weird spiciness at the finish," and The Washington Post said the beer was "smooth and spicy." Part of that taste comes from the yeast's unique metabolism.
Unique, because the yeast comes from fossils trapped in amber milllions of years ago -- and exctracted and cultured in Professor Cano's lab. Using the 25-45-million-year-old yeast, Cano and a team of brewers whipped up the inaugural batches of T-Rex Lager, Stegosaurus Stout, Jurassic Amber Ale, and Ancient Ale.
"The ancient yeast is restricted to a narrow band of carbohydrates, unlike more modern yeasts, which can consume just about any kind of sugar," says Cano.
Professor Cano of originally extracted the yeast a decade ago and has used the reactivated yeast to brew barrels of pale ale and German wheat beer.
Read the Cal Poly Magazine Story on Prof. Cano's Ancient Ale
Read the Discovery News story on ABCScience
Read the mention in the Welsh View blog
Read the story in the Winston-Salem Journal