OUTCOME
PROJECT AYCBR had a duration of six months, but both organizations planned this project as a continuous partnership that will be on-going and will have results even after the end date. The entire project had a huge impact on Oriel Beer, HopSaSam and the craft community in Romania, not only because it was the first time something like this took place, but because of the numerous outputs of it and the applicability in other fields too. Ascomycota, innovative yeast cultivation from Belgium to Romania commence a new stage of evolution of the education and specialization in the field of craft beer in Romania.
EXTENSIVE KNOWLEDGE THROUGH EDUCATION AND SKILFULNESS
The young Romanian brewers of Oriel Beer, Ioana and Laurentiu, benefited of extensive knowledge from the practical training course of harvesting wild yeast. Learning and working in the Belgian, professional, environment, they gained a lot of experience and know-how for their brewery. This know-how can be used and applied in Romania also, by searching virgin areas, where can be found wild strains of yeast that can brew spontaneously fermented beers. From this starting point, it can begin collaborations with laboratories of Romanian Universities that can isolate, multiply and check the sustainability of the wild yeasts.
KNOWLEDGE PUT INTO PRACTICE
For the first time, Oriel brewed an oud bruin style beer, the specific style that is brewed in Belgium, at the breweries near the Schelde river. The collaboration between the two breweries in Romania, helped the Romanian brewers to apply all the analytical information into practice, under the supervision of the Belgian accomplished specialists. Learning the craft of brewing this specific style of beer gives the brewers of Oriel the opportunity of being the first in Romania to do that.
TENETS OF BELGIAN BEER & YEAST BROUGHT TO THE ROMANIAN COMMUNITY
The development of the craft beer community was also targeted in this project and twenty applicants selected from a targeted group interested in this domain, improved considerably their knowledge about certain Belgian style beers, beer fermentation and the microbiology of yeast. The expertise of the Belgian specialist, biochemist Koen Van Lancker, brought by the brewer of HopSaSam helped those present to understand more about this side of brewing. Through this, the project helps to open new career opportunities for the sector of young people or unemployed.
INTELLECTUAL OUTPUT – OPEN PRESENTATION
SHARING APPRENTICESHIP
Five applicants chosen based on the questionnaires scores were selected to learn all the steps of brewing beer at the Oriel brewery. The Romanian brewers had the chance to share their know-how with those who don’t have the possibility to learn in a professional or academical environment, helping them to orient towards this field for new career opportunities. The potential craft beer has is growing each year and trough education, we can help recent graduates, unemployed or passionate people to choose to work in a brewery, a laboratory or in any adjacent domain.
CIRCULAR ECONOMY AT A SMALL SCALE
Transiting towards a common principle, that of reducing waste, Oriel Beer teamed up with Grain Trip, a local, artisanal bakery that is taking over the spent grains (malted barley that is used for the beer production) and makes bread with them, becoming a new product entering the local market.
YEAST
Education, training, development, proficiency, gained experience. Both organizations were impacted by the positive results they had. As an on-going project, even if the finale innovative beers that were brewed with the harvested wild yeast are still fermenting and aging in the wooden barrels, the yeast is vaulted and can be used for future brews.
IMPACT & DISSEMINATION
Project AYCBR has so far enjoyed international appreciation at the biggest craft beer festival in Italy, Eurhop, as well as the appreciation of the esteemed ambassadors and representatives of the European Union, present at Oriel brewery in November, during the XVth edition of the Caravan “Da, ne pasă!”, organized by the Representation of the European Commission in Romania, in partnership with the Embassy of the Czech Republic in Romania.
Also, in December 2022, Oriel Beer was awarded by the National Agency for Community Programs in the Field of Education and Vocational Training, ANPCDEFP, during the National Conference “Perspective, învață și dă mai departe” for the success of the project.
