Episode 67: Improving your Beer Quality
From BYO Nano Brew Podcast by Brew Your Own
July 15, 2025 · 59 min · Episode 67
About this episode
Experts discuss improving beer quality through sensory analysis and quality control.
Sensory analysis, setting up a lab for QC tests, and understanding your raw ingredients are all paramount when it comes to improving the quality of your beer. We talk with two experts - Lindsay Barr and Ashton Lewis - who are here to help you level up beer quality in a small-scale brewery. Guests: Lindsay Barr is the CSO and Founding Partner of DraughtLab Sensory Software where she helps food & beverage companies use tasting technology to make products that people love. After earning a Masters in Food Science from UC Davis, she began her career at New Belgium Brewing Company managing the Sensory and Consumer Research program. Along with her work at DraughtLab, she teaches Sensory for the Master Brewers course at UC Davis and the Siebel Institute and judges global beer competitions. During her career, she has published numerous groundbreaking techniques to lower the barrier-to-entry into sensory science and continues to be passionate about making sensory accessible for all businesses. She currently lives in San Francisco and can be found running or lounging in Golden Gate Park, sailing, or playing around in the Castro. For the last 29 years Ashton Lewis has worked for Brew…
People in this episode
Guests: Lindsay Barr, Ashton Lewis
Topics covered
- beer quality
- sensory analysis
- quality control
- brewing techniques
- raw ingredients
Keywords
- beer quality
- sensory analysis
- quality control
- brewing
- raw ingredients
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: DraughtLab Sensory Software, Brew Your Own Magazine, RahrBSG, UC Davis, Siebel Institute
Places: San Francisco, Golden Gate Park, Castro
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- Episode 74: Running Private Events at your Brewery · February 15, 2026 · 41 min
- Episode 73: Making the Most Out of Yeast Cultures · January 15, 2026 · 1h 24m
- Episode 72: New Small-Scale Brewery Strategies for the New Year · December 15, 2025 · 1h 2m
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