How Beer Is Made From Sewage Water And Urine
A brewery in Singapore is producing beer from sewage and urine in an effort to be environmentally friendly. The use of NEWater, Singapore’s prototype for fresh, high-quality recycled water, elevates the brewery to a whole new level and is used to make the beer known as NEWBrew.
According to BBC reports, it is made of a fluid that is pumped into Singapore’s water supply after being filtered and recycled from sewage. PUB, Singapore’s national water provider, and local craft beer brewery Brewerkz are partnering to introduce the beverage.
According to Strait Times, the distinctive beverage “highlights not only that Singapore’s recycled water more than adheres to international standards of safe drinking water, but that it is also clean enough to be used in beer brewing.”
Brewerkz states that it is a “highly quaffable beer,” which is perfectly suitable for Singapore’s tropical climate, “with a smooth, toasted honey-like aftertaste.”
Also, 95 per cent of the tropical blonde ale beer is made out of NEWater. It is done using “the finest ingredients, such as premium German barley malts, aromatic Citra and Calypso hops, as well as kveik, a highly-sought-after strain of farm-house yeast from Norway”.
How is it made?
NEWBrew is made out of NEWater, which is recycled from sewage, filtered, and pumped into Singapore’s water supply.
NEWater goes through stringent tests, several rounds of filtration, making it safe to drink.
According to Independent, the sewage is treated to become “ultra-clean” water, before it is used to make 95 per cent of the tropical blonde ale.
According to The Straits Times, NEWBrew was launched last month by national water agency PUB and local craft beer brewery Brewerkz, along with Singapore International Water Week (SIWW).
The clean NEWater does not contaminate the taste of the malt, hops and strains of yeast in the drink.
The water board has been treating sewage for years to turn it into drinkable water. It says that the aim of the exercise is to cushion water supply against dry weather.
During dry periods, the recycled sewage gets added to reservoirs, before the water there is treated and used as tap water.
The craft beer, which describes itself as having a “toasted, honey-like aftertaste”, is another way of keeping Singapore hydrated when it gets hot and dry while keeping its water supply secure.
Not the only player in the game
NEWBrew isn’t the first craft beer to be made from recycled water. Similar drafts have been brewed by people elsewhere.
According to The Straits Times, In San Diego, craft beer company Stone Brewing rolled out Stone Full Circle Pale Ale in 2017, a beer brewed with purified reclaimed water.
People have also tried to raise awareness about food wastage through alcoholic beverages.
Crust Group rolled out a line of artisanal beers made from surplus bread and other ingredients from its restaurant and hotel partners, to raise awareness on food waste.
Restaurant Super Loco Group has also introduced a “zero to hero” cocktail, made using tropical fruit scraps, in its Loco Earth Month menu to mark Earth Day on 22 April.
