Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios Posted on 09/12/2022 11:26:21 AM PDT by Red Badger
Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios
Illustration of a beer tap dripping droplets of beer.
The U.S. is experiencing a shortage of carbon dioxide and Boston beermakers are beginning to worry they won't have enough of the gas to get their products to market.
Driving the news: A CO2 production hub in Jackson, Mississippi, became contaminated by an extinct volcano, which cut down on an already limited supply of the gas.
The pandemic put pressure on the CO2 market and drove up prices in part due to the immense amount of dry ice (frozen carbon dioxide) needed to transport COVID-19 vaccines last year. Why it matters: It's going to get cold and gloomy in a few weeks and there may not be enough beer to get us through the winter. Smaller brewers with less ability to recapture CO2 are most at risk.
Beer consumption has increased 53% in 2022, according to Top Data, and beer sales have seen a 25% increase since the start of the pandemic. Be smart: Carbon dioxide is given off as part of the natural fermentation process of beer, but brewers need to add even more of the gas to the finished product to give it noticeable fizz.
What they're saying: "We've been running delivery to delivery for the past few weeks, and we are certainly concerned about the supply," Aeronaut Brewing Company co-founder Ronn Friedlander told Axios in an email.
Aeronaut brews popular IPAs like Hop Hop and Away and A Year with Dr. Nandu out of their Sommerville and Allston facilities. State of play: Nightshift Brewery in Everett shut down a facility due to the lack of CO2. And things have gotten so rough for Aeronaut, they've begun looking for ways to drastically cut back on their CO2 use.
They've switched to using nitrogen where they can, which required new hardware and training and can alter the taste and feel of the beer. Aeronaut is trying to cut down on how much CO2 they vent and is looking into how much can be captured and reused. "We've looked into CO2 capture systems, but the lead times are five to six months, which doesn't address the current supply problems," Friedlander said. Yes, but: Other brewers have been unaffected. Cambridge's Lamplighter Brewing told Axios they've been able to continue to purchase CO2 through their usual provider.
The bottom line: Beer blogger Kendall Jones pointed out last month that most large brewers use carbon-capture systems and are weathering the shortage just fine.
WHAT!?
You can turn CO2 into BEER!?
...what climate crisis?
Make More Beer!!
Learn to brew your own.
I learned recently that the US has the most volcanoes of any country in the world, with Russia our nearest rival.
We have 173, and 161 are active.
That surprised me.
Many years ago, I was fond of Cooper’s Real Ale. There was yeast in the bottom of each bottle, and you could either pour carefully or just swirl it up. Haven’t seen it in a long time, but I don’t go to bars now, and very seldom drink beer at all.
I’ve joked about the same thing.
...thing is - maybe we should actually be serious about it and petition to ban beer. It might expose this lunacy for what it is. ...beer would be a deal breaker.
Time to dig out my beer making equipment.
If Joey Xi and his merry Commies want to piss off red necks, that’s definitely the way to go.
A beer crisis will bring about the civil war Democrats seek.
Look at what the 18th amendment did.
I loved Double Diamond!
It was duty-free on the Channel ferry, Calais to Dover and Dover to Boulogne returning.
I took the overnight Magic Bus from Paris, Faidherbe-Chaligny to London, King’s Cross Station when I was on leave.
The competition was fierce with the football rowdies to see who could drink the most Double Diamond.
There is, already, a good beer shortage.
Why not use nitrous oxide?
Beer shortage + bacon shortage = Great Depression.
My dad’s beer...and root beer—had plenty of natural ‘fizz’.
Of course, he BREWED it, not MANUFACTURED it.
Ha-ha!.........................
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