BROOK’S TAKE ON THE RESEARCH: The Michigan Craft Beverage Council (MCBC) provided funding for our MSU malting barley research team to extend our work to other grains of interest, starting with cereal rye. We’ve evaluated 20 varieties of rye for their suitability to be grown for grain production and be used to produce spirits – most notably rye whiskey. It turns out that rye varieties are very different in their agronomic, winter survival, and distilling characteristics.  We’ve generally found that higher-yielding varieties have milder flavor profiles, while low-yielding types have spicier flavor profiles. We have some preliminary evidence that suggests the growing location also influences the flavor profile of the rye and are starting a new project to dive into this question in more detail.

I’m super excited about the connections that I’ve made in the distilling industry through the MCBC projects. We have some very innovative spirit producers in Michigan, and the MCBC projects have provided avenues for connections to many of these individuals and businesses. The opportunity to continue to help facilitate the success of Michigan distilleries and farms sustains my motivation for this work!

View the MCBC research database to find research reports. Search keyword “rye”.

This is the first in a series of researcher profiles. All profiles will be published to our website.

View Brook’s bio page at MSU

To celebrate the Michigan Brewers Guild's 25th Anniversary, they are inviting friends from Michigan and around the world toshout out to the Guild on this momentous year! Share a little about when and how you connected with them, what you love or learned about Michigan’s brewing community, any stories you might have related to Michigan beer, or what you look forward to over the next 25 years.

 The Guild welcomes entries in form of video, short story, or an audio clip. Simply create and upload one of the following:

• A video, 60 seconds or less (.mov, .mp4)
• A written story (.doc or .pdf)
• A photo (.jpg, .png, .pdf, .tiff)
• An audio file (.mp3, .wav)

 Please follow this link and select "Beer Lovers" to submit your story! www.mibeer.com/Supporters/Share-Your-Voice

Michigan Brewers Guild be accepting files throughout 2022, but encourage you to submit your story by April 1, 2022.

Grape growers in Michigan face many environmental challenges, including short growing seasons, cool summers, high humidity, and variable precipitation that can limit fruit production and quality. As a result, managing climatic constraints with better and faster decision-making is critical for achieving target yields, fruit quality, and, ultimately, economic sustainability in the vineyard. Precision viticulture technologies provide reliable tools for collecting and analyzing various vineyard and grapevine data. Read more about mechanization and other technologies.

The 16^th annual Great Lakes International Cider and Perry Competition is taking place May 18-20 in Grand Rapids. Visit glintcap.org/register to register cider entries. There is no limit to the number of entries you may register. You may also register additional entries while registration is open simply by submitting a new entry form.

The event is also looking to fill volunteer positions, including hard cider judges. If you are interested in volunteering, please visit https://glintcap.org/volunteer/ and complete the questionnaire.

Many thanks to the Michigan Cider Association for their support of this incredible event!