New science-driven brewery using AI, genetic engineering launching on East Side
A new Columbus craft brewery will soon be taking the Arch City across a bold new frontier.
Run by Beau Warren–a former Virginia Tech college football player, and (more recently) head of the barrel program and lab at Aslan Brewing Co.–the concept is named Species X Beer Project. The ambitious new brewery is merging the worlds of Columbus craft beer and cutting-edge technology to create something entirely new.
Species X Beer Project–which will also feature a restaurant–is located at 408 N. 6th St., in the former home of Platform Brewing.
BROUGHT TO YOU BY
According to Warren, the brewery is weaving exciting new science and AI tech into several different areas of the brewing process.
The first involves the manipulation of the biological ingredients found in beer, mainly its yeast. This includes genetic engineering and “forced evolution” of yeast species to achieve unique flavor profiles.
This will also include Warren incorporating yeast strains and cultivation that are sometimes hundreds of years old, or even older.
“I came across this a few years ago, but there was a microbiologist who extracted an ancient yeast spore from a piece of 45-million year old amber and brewed a beer with it,” he said. “And that, to me, was about the coolest thing ever.”
Warren has already cultivated a (albeit much younger) yeast strain from a a unique, ancient source. A Welsh family shared their supposedly 800 year-old sourdough culture with him, which he used to create a yeast that he continues to cultivate today for use in hop-forward ales.
“We call it Long Sword. I isolated the yeast colony and made an amazing IPA with it, and now we can use it for more beers in the future,” he said
Additionally, Warren said Species X will utilize artificial intelligence to help create certain beers. After becoming fascinated by the topic and taking multiple classes on data analysis at OSU, he plans to create AI that will not only help him become a better brewer. This technology will also help him generate recipes that it predicts drinkers will enjoy, based on large amounts of data.
However, the human element of brewing will remain a cornerstone of Species X. Warren said that while AI technology will be used to create IPAs, light lagers, and other beers that will likely be high sellers, all the beer created with modified yeast will use recipes drawn up by human brewers.
Species X, which is aiming to open to the public in early 2024, will also feature an in-house kitchen, serving deli sandwiches and pizzas on homemade focaccia bread.
Want to read more? Check out our print publications, (614) Magazine and Stock & Barrel. Learn where you can find free copies of our newest issues here!
BROUGHT TO YOU BY
