Tribo-rheology of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beer

The analysis of mouthfeel is an important but challenging area for objective study. The use of human tasting panels presents issues of comparability between studies together with ethical limitations on consumption. Here, tribo-rheology was used in the analysis of lubrication of seven beer styles in their standard and low/no alcohol formats. Tribo-rheology was used to generate Stribeck curves showing the frictional characteristics and differences between the beers. Some possible causes for the differences in lubrication were evaluated including varying concentrations of ethanol, maltose, maltodextrin and sodium chloride. This work demonstrates statistically significant differences in lubrication between low/no alcohol beers and standard strength beers from the same producer. To conclude, the results and differences in lubrication are discussed in terms of molecular detail.