BEHIND THE BREW
A LOOK AT PUBLIC TYPOGRAPHY
BEHIND THE BREW
A LOOK AT PUBLIC TYPOGRAPHY
written & designed
nicollette haskell
BEHIND THE BREW, is a close up on typography found in the unseen interesting places where the brews are made. A domestic and craft brewery were included to give a range in production, location and equipment. Follow through for some history on beer and the breweries location, along with the discovered type and its meaning.
ANHEUSER-BUSCH
BOULEVARD
anheuser-busch ANYONE AND EVERYONE has heard of Budweiser or possibly even of their world famous Clydesdales, but what you may not know is that it started more than 150 years ago, way back in 1852. Although its main headquarters are in St. Louis, Missouri, it operates 11 other breweries in the United States.
ANHEUSER-BUSCH IS THE LEADING AMERICAN BREWER, HOLDING 46.6% SHARE OF U.S. BEER SALES TO RETAILERS.
“Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy.” BENJAMIN FRANKLIN
the partnership EBERHARD ANHEUSER traveled to St. Louis from Germany in 1843. He had no brewing experience, in fact he was actually trained as a soap manufacturer. Anheuser went on to own the largest soap and candle company in St. Louis, when he decided to become part owner of the Bavarian Brewery. By 1960, he bought out all of the other investors and E. Anheuser & Co. became the new name for the brewery. Eberhard met his soon to be partner, Aldolphus Busch, through enterprise. Aldolphus was introduced to Eberhard’s daughter Lily, and by 1861 Aldolphus Busch and Lily Anheuser were married. Aldolphus went to work for his father-in-law, which led him to purchasing half ownership in the brewery.
the aging tanks THE BEECHWOOD AGING is Budweiser’s process that enhances fermentation to create a crisper, more sparkling carbonation while imparting smoothness to the characteristic taste of Budweiser. Anheuser-Busch is the only major brewer in the world using this aging process. The Beechwood is grown in America, harvested and then processed into chips that are recycled into compost once the beer has been bottled. This contributes to why Budweiser and Bud Light take about 30 days to brew, taking twice as long to make as many types of ales. During the Beechwood Aging, the beer is being krausened, naturally carbonated and then aged on the beechwood chips for 21 days it a chilled building. This process matures the flavor of the beer. Each numbered tank has a capacity of 3600 barrels. Once finished it goes into its finishing stage where it is then filtered for clarification before being released for packaging.
In order for one person to consume all of the beer in one of these aging tanks, you would have to consume one beer, every hour, every day, for 130 years.
BUDWEISER BECAME THE FIRST BREWERY IN THE US TO PASTEURIZE ITS BEER, WHICH HUGELY IMPROVED ITS SHELF LIFE AND WOULD LATER BECOME STANDARD PRACTICE FOR MOST MAJOR BREWERIES.
historical buildings THE LOCATION OF the Anheuser-Busch brewery is designated as a National Historic Landmark District. Three of its buildings the Old School House, the Brew House, and the Clydesdale Stables have each been placed on the Registry of National Landmarks back in 1966. The Brew house, to the right, was built in 1891. It is the center of the Anheuser-Busch’s St. Louis Brewery. Standing six stories high with a clock tower extending another two levels, this was Adolphus Busch’s dream to “make this the finest brew house in the world”. All of the buildings within the brewery have a grand appearance with a Romanesque inspiration. Each building is also engraved or labeled with the date it was built, as you can see in the photos. The numbering on each is slightly different from the others as they were built on a range of years. This signage has an old-time, English letter sort of typeface, dating back to what was current for the 1900’s.
The Brew house originally consisted of six kettles, bringing in an annual production of 1.8 million barrels. Over the years, expansion has brought it to an annual capacity of 15.8 million barrels.
WITH WELL OVER A HUNDRED BUILDINGS ON THE SITE, THE BREWERY HAS NEVER STOPPED BUILDING, BUT THE PREDOMINANT STYLE WAS SET IN THE 1880’S AND ELABORATED ON THROUGH THE EARLY 1900S.
the malt house EVERY BREWERY HAS some version of a malt house along with their own brewing process. Adolphus Busch perfected his recipe in 1876, narrowing it down to 7 steps, which still holds for the company until today. The steps follow below:
MILLING:
MASHING:
STRAINING:
BREWKETTLE:
PRIMARY FERMENTATION:
Barley malt and rice are ground and precisely weighed. Barley malt and rice are mixed with water; natural malt enzymes break down the starch from the grains into fermentable sugars. The combined grain mash is strained, leaving a sugarrich amber liquid called wort. Hops are added to the boiling wort in the brewkettles. Hops are the spice of beer, adding special flavor, aroma, and character. The wort is cooled and clarified, and the yeast is added; for six days, the yeast ferments the wort to beer.
BEECHWOOD AGING:
During lagering, the beer is krausened, naturally carbonated and aged for 21 days to mature the flavor.
FINISHING:
To keep the lagered beer flavor and clarity intact after packaging, brewers must remove yeast and some unstable protein materials through this process.
The Malt House is where cereal grain is converted into malt by soaking it in water, allowing it to sprout and then drying it to stop further growth. The traditional malt house was largely phased out during the twentieth century in favour of more mechanized production.
EACH BUDWEISER CLYDESDALE HITCH HORSE WILL EAT AS MUCH AS 20 TO 25 QUARTS OF WHOLE GRAINS, 50 TO 60 POUNDS OF HAY, AND DRINK 30 GALLONS OF WATER PER DAY.
the biergarten BEER GARDENS originated in Munich, the capital of the German state of Bavaria, in the 19th century, and remain common in Southern Germany.
They are a
celebration of food and beer. They are usually attached to a beer hall, pub, or restaurant. The popularity of beer gardens is increasing worldwide in the 21st century.
budweiser INTRODUCED IN 1876, Budweiser is an American pale lager that has grown to become one of the highest selling beers in the United States. It is available in over 80 markets worldwide. The Anheuser-Busch brand includes many others besides Budweiser, such as Busch, Michelob, Bud Light, and Natural Light among many others. Over the years, Budweiser has undergone 12 can design changes in response to market conditions and consumer tastes. In 1936 the can was gold with an American image of an eagle. It wasn’t until around 20 years later that the introduced red, white and blue onto the label. It took until 2011, that the iconic red, white and gold color scheme. The typeface used for the Budweiser logo appear to be Brewmaster Script.
“Everybody has to believe in something... I believe I’ll have another drink.” W. C. FIELDS
know your ingredients BEER IS MADE FROM FOUR PRIMARY INGREDIENTS:
MALT GRAIN
HOPS
When using a ‘malt’ for brewing, the most common is
Hops is where the experimentation comes in. Farms
malted barley, but there are a few other alternatives
grow the hops, which have a flavor distinctly different
brewers will use depending on the brew. The malt is
from bitterness that adds to the complexity of the
the backbone of the beer, it provides the color, flavor,
beer. This bitterness is crucial to the flavor balance,
maltose, proteins, and dextrins. Other alternatives for
because it offsets the sweetness of the malt grain.
barley include wheat, rye, oats and rice. Each grain
Hops also give the beer an aroma that is derived from
has its own characteristics that will distinguish them
the essential oils within the flower. It also contributes
from the others in the finished product.
to the beers shelf life by using its beta acids to ward off bacterial contamination.
YEAST
WATER
Yeast strains are chosen based on the style of beer
Beer is around 90 to 95 percent water, making
being brewed. Bottom-fermenting yeast works well at
the quality of the water extremely important in
low temperatures and ferments more sugars leaving
the process. Depending on the style of beer being
a crisp, clean taste, this is used to create Lagers. Top-
brewed, the mineral content of the water can be
fermenting yeast works better at warmer temperatures,
adjusted. Many breweries are known to use from
it can tolerate a higher alcohol concentrations than
natural water springs and sources. The water then
bottom-fermenting which results in a fruitier, sweeter
goes through a intense filtration system.
beer, like your Ales.
boulevard IF YOU ARE from any state next to Kansas or Missouri, there is a very high chance you have heard or even tried a Boulevard brew. It has grown to be the largest specialty brewer in the Midwest as well famously known as ‘Kansas City’s Beer.’ It started by John McDonald in 1988 when he raised $750,000 and began the construction of the brewery in a brick building in the historic area of Kansas City.
construction JOHN MCDONALD started out by renting a space within an old brick building that was owned by his father. The building was located (and still is) on Kansas City’s historic Southwest Boulevard, hence where the name originated from. After the installation of a vintage Bavarian brewhouse, his first batches of beer were underway. In November 1989, John delivered his first keg of Boulevard Pale Ale to a nearby restaurant.
BOULEVARD’S BREWHOUSE AND PACKAGING BUILDING FEATURES A GREEN ROOF THAT LOWERS THEIR ENERGY CONSUMPTION WHILE ALSO SUSTAINING A VARIETY OF PLANT LIFE & OVERALL REDUCING THE THERMAL FOOTPRINT OF THE BUILDING.
kansas city favorite THE BOULEVARD BREWERY took off and that year the company sold 1,800 barrels. Three years later, in 1992 Boulevard launches three additional brews, bringing his sales up to 7,000 barrels. By 1996, the company has reached $3.5 million in sales of 24,500 barrels. Ten years later, in 2006, a major expansion raised Boulevards brewing capacity to approximately 600,000 barrels per year, an enormous increase from John’s original business plan that counted for 6,000 barrels. With the addition of several more fermentation tanks over the years, in 2012 the company becomes the nation’s 10th largest craft brewer. More recently, Boulevard is set to open in late fall of 2015 their $12 million Cellar Five expansion. This addition will raise their capacity by 40 percent, an estimated 300,000 barrels a year. Cellar Five expansion will continue the growth of the company by helping them expand into more markets across the United States.
“A fine beer may be judged with only one sip, but it’s better to be thoroughly sure.” BAVARIAN PROVERB
brew house DOWNSTAIRS IN THE cellar or ‘brew house’ is where there was a variety of objects. Pipes, kegs, barrels, tanks and many other objects are all around. Each individual object held typography on it in some sort of fashion, typically as labels or identification markers. A good majority is printed on but I found a small sort of hand done lettering which real stuck out for its uniqueness or ‘real’ characteristics.
label system AREAS LIKE THIS require a labeling system to avoid confusion and aid to those working with the area. It can be beneficial for those new to the area to give an understanding to the purpose of the room and the object it is located on. The purpose of this typography is not to be appealing but to identify in a readable way. The equipment, operational machines, and appliances all display important messages essential to the workers in the brewery. Observing the actual typeface for the labels, it makes sense the designer would use a sans serif font, since they are most often used for short text components such as headlines or captions. An importance to the labels is that they match in the different areas that they are located at to help viewers make the connection that it is the same object. These labels to the left also have a color system and directional arrows that serve purpose to the brewers.
The addition of Nitrogen to a beer gives way to much smaller bubbles, reducing carbonation and creating a smoother, creamier experience.
barrel aging WOOD HAS BEEN used since the beginning, recently American craft brewers have been repeating the process with whisky barrels. In hopes to derive interesting flavors from the wood that were left over its previous use. The length of time the beer remains in the barrel can range from weeks to years, depending on the brewer. Due to the extra time involved they are typically sold at a higher rate. Boulevard uses Iowa’s Templeton Rye whisky barrels for aging. The interesting part about the barrels is the vernacular typography on it. The hand done lettering gives it character because it is not perfect and not two letters are the exact same.
packaging INSIDE THE BOULEVARD packaging process they have designed it to maximize the flavor and quality. Their four ingredients used are carefully inspected. They carefully monitor their process, even down into using dark bottles for their brews to protect from light that could affect the flavor. They are also proud to be one of the few that spend the money and take the time to bottle condition all of their ales, giving it a longer shelf life.
THE FIRST BOTTLE LINE CAME FROM GERMANY. IN 2008, BOULEVARD INSTALLED A BOTTLING LINE THAT CAN RUN UP TO 500 BOTTLES A MINUTE.
graphic design DOWN THE HALLS of the brewery are a variety of sketches from their logo and branding of the beer. These sketches all belong to Peyton Kelly, who has drawn the labels for every beer the company has created. In 1990, John McDonald hired Kelly on a freelance basis to do the label for his first beer, Boulevard Pale Ale. Since then he has designed for over 30 more boulevard beers. Kelly’s hand-drawn label art reinforces the company’s traditional, old-fashioned techniques of a hometown brewery. He uses muted and tonal colors as a tactic to stand apart from the vibrant reds and blues on products that dominate the in-store displays. To the left you can see how much of a process goes into designing the perfect logo that conveys its inspiration and character. Hand lettering is one of the most beautiful of typefaces. It allows you to be creative and let the letters speak individually.
“When typography is on point, words become images.” SHAWN LUKAS
the brews HIS FIRST BATCH was the Pale Ale in the fall of 1989. Today the company is most well known for it Tank 7 Farmhouse Ale and Unfiltered Wheat Beer. The Unfiltered Wheat has become their most popular offering, and the best-selling beer in the midwest. The also have quite the hit with their seasonal selections. Bob’s ‘47 Oktoberfest amber brew is a fall must have for the restaurants in the Kansas City Area. Boulevard even joined forces with Christopher Elbow, known for his chocolate masterpieces, to create a Chocolate Ale that comes out right before Valentines Day. Each beer has a beautiful label, distinguishing it from the others. The only thing that unites them is the Boulevard iconic red and green branding. The company’s logo appears to use a font similar to Futura Bold Condensed, which is a geometric sans serif font designed by Paul Renner and published by Linotype.
Boulevard Brewery to-date has created 64 different brews. Although a majority of them are only out for a limited time since they are specialty or seasonal beers.
BOULEVARD BREWING COMPANY UNVEILED PLANS TO UPDATE ITS ICONIC LOGO AND PACKAGING IN THE EARLY PART OF 2016.
know your terminology ALCOHOL | Ethyl alcohol or ethanol. An intoxicating by-product of fermentation, which is caused by yeast acting on sugars in the malt. Alcohol content is expressed as a percentage of volume or weight. ALE | A beer brewed from a top-fermenting yeast with a relatively short, warm fermentation. Fruitiness and esters are often part of an ale’s character. AMBER | Any top or bottom fermented beer having an amber color, that is, between pale and dark. ATTENUATION | The degree of conversion of sugar to alcohol and CO2. BARLEY | A cereal grain that is malted for use in the grist that becomes the mash in the brewing of the beer. BARREL | A unit of measurement used by brewers in some countries. For the United States, a barrel holds 31.5 gallons. BEER | Any beverage made by fermenting a wort made from malted barley and seasoned with hops. BODY | Thickness and mouth-filling property of a beer described as “full or thin bodied”. BOTTLE CONDITIONING | Secondary fermentation and maturation in the bottle, creating complex aromas and flavors. BREWHOUSE | The collective equipment in a brewery used to make beer. CHILL HAZE | Cloudiness caused by precipitation of protein-tannin compound at low temperatures, does not affect flavor. COLD BREAK | Proteins that coagulate and fall out of solution when the wort is rapidly cooled prior to pitching the yeast.
CONDITIONING | An aspect of secondary fermentation in which the yeast refine the flavors of the final beer. Conditioning continues in the bottle. DECOCTION | Exhaustive system of mashing in which portions of the wort are removed, heated, then returned to the original vessel. DEXTRIN | The unfermented carbohydrate produced by enzymes in barley. It gives the beer flavor, body, and mouthfeel. Lower temperatures produce more dextrin and less sugar, while higher temperatures produce more sugars and less dextrin. DRAFT | The process of dispensing beer from a bright tank, cask, or keg, by hand pump, pressure from an air pump or injected carbon dioxide inserted into the beer container prior to sealing. DRY-HOPPING | The addition of dry hops to fermenting or aging beer to increase its hop character or aroma. ENZYMES | Catalysts that are found naturally in the grain. When heated in mash, they convert the starches of the malted barley into maltose, a sugar used in solution and fermented to make beer. FERMENTATION | The total conversion of malt sugars into ethyl alcohol and carbon dioxide, through the action of yeast. It is defined as three parts, adaptation, primary, and secondary. FINING | An aid to clarification: a substance that attracts particles and helps them settle out of the finished beer, that would otherwise remain suspended in the brew. GRIST | Brewers’ term for milled grains, or the combination of milled grains to be used in a particular brew before mashing. HARD CIDER | A fermented beverage made from the natural yeast in apples.
HOPS | Hop vines are grown in cool climates and brewers make use of the cone-like flowers. The dried cones are available in pellets, plugs, or whole. The herb is added to boiling wort or fermenting beer to impart a bitter aroma and flavor.
PRIMARY FERMENTATION | The initial fermentation activity marked by the evolution of carbon dioxide and Krausen. Most of the total attenuation occurs during this phase.
HOT BREAK | Proteins that coagulate and fall out of solution during the wort boil.
PRIMING | The method of adding a small amount of fermentable sugar prior to bottling to give the beer carbonation.
IBU | International Bitterness units. A system of indicating the hop bitterness in finished beer.
RACKING | The careful siphoning of the beer away from the trub.
INFUSION | Simplest form of mash, in which grains are soaked in water. May be at a single temperature, or with upward or occasionally downward changes.
SANITIZE | To reduce microbial contaminants to insignificant levels.
KEG | One-half barrel, or 15.5 U.S. gallons. KRAUSEN | Used to refer to the foamy head that builds on top of the beer during fermentation. Also an advanced method of priming. LAGER | A beer brewed from a bottom-fermenting yeast and given a long cool fermentation. LAG PHASE | The period of adaptation and rapid aerobic growth of yeast upon pitching to the wort. The lag time typically lasts from 2 - 12 hours. LIQUOR | The brewer’s word for water used in the brewing process, as included in the mash or used to sparge the grains after mashing. MALTING | The process by which barley is steeped in water, germinated, then kilned to convert insoluble starch to soluble substances and sugar.
SECONDARY FERMENTATION | A period of settling and conditioning of the beer after primary fermentation and before bottling. SPARGE | To spray grist with hot water in order to remove soluble sugars. This takes place at the end of the mash. STERILIZE | To eliminate all forms of life, especially microorganisms, either by chemical or physical means. TRUB | The sediment at the bottom of the fermenter consisting of hot and cold break material, hop bits, and dead yeast. WORT | The malt-sugar solution that is boiled prior to the fermentation stage.
MICROBREWERY | Small brewery generally producing less than 15,000 barrels per year. Sales are primarily off of the premises.
YEAST | A micro-organism of the fungus family. There are two types of yeast used in brewing. Bottomfermenting yeast works well at low temperatures and ferments more sugars leaving a crisp, clean taste. Topfermenting yeast works better at warmer temperatures, tolerates a higher alcohol concentrations and results in a fruitier, sweeter beer.
PITCHING | Term for adding the yeast to the fermenter.
ZYMURGY | The science of brewing and fermentation.
IN CONCLUSION, going on a first hand tour through each brewery, I was given a detailed look at the hidden side of the process. It was surprising how much typography was discovered in, out and around the breweries whether it was commercial or practical. In the search for typography, I realized that the majority of the type I found typically is overlooked because it is not necessarily geared for a tourist audience but rather for the workers that have more purpose for the type. And that vernacular type is the most interesting because of it’s uniqueness.
CREDITS
FONTS Gotham Light & Bold. Clarendon Light.
TOOLS Adobe InDesign Adobe Photoshop Adobe Illustrator Nikon D800
SPECIAL THANKS Boulevard Brewing Company and Anheuser-Busch for allowing me to use their breweries for this project. Katie Fleming and Tyler Parkhurst for a handful of Boulevard Images.
DESIGNER AS AUTHOR Patrick Dooley Fall 2015 The University of Kansas
SOURCES anheuser-busch.com boulevard.com howtobrew.com beeradvocate.com wikipedia.com
THANK YOU!
“Fermentation may have been a greater discovery than fire.” DAVID RAINS WALLACE