ILC
Description
Research will be done to determine the best strategy for brewing beers with eclectic types of grains. Strategies for selecting grains for mycelial colonization will also be explored through research as well as suitable methods for Shiitake and Oyster mushroom propagation onto different grain types. Beer will be made each week and grains will be inoculated simultaneously. Colonization rates of mycelium will be recorded. Comprehensive information regarding the ways in which the inclusion of specific types of grain affect the finished beer will additionally be provided.
| Learning Objectives | Activities that will help me to attain this objective | What my sponsor will evaluate |
|---|---|---|
| How do different types of grains and different ratios of grains affect a finished beer’s character? | Over the course of the next ten weeks, a beer will be made each week with vastly differing grain compositions. What type of beer is made each week will be determined by researching beer styles and the brewing processes that include different grain compositions. When each beer is finished, the character of the beer will be evaluated in an attempt to identify how different types of grains in different amounts adjust characteristics of the finished beer. Such as flavor, mouth feel, head retention, etc. Along with this evaluation of each beer a paper will be provided that explains the step by step process by which the beer was created and how these many variables may have affected the character of the finished beer. This process will require research from the following texts: “Malt: A Practical Guide From Field to Brewhouse” by John Mallet, “For the Love of Hops: A Practical Guide to Aroma, Bitterness, and The Culture of Hops” by Stan Hieronymus, and “Yeast: The Practical guide to Beer Fermentation” by Chris White | The sponsor will evaluate the paper provided for each beer along with ejournal posts that include photos of the entire process. |
| Can mushroom cultivation act as a way to make use of spent grains that are produced by the brewing process? | After each Beer is made, the spent grains will be sterilized and inoculated with both oyster mushroom, and shiitake mushroom mycelium. Each day colonization rates of each type of mycelium will be logged and recorded. If and when the grain becomes completely colonized, a small fruiting chamber will be created to determine whether or not the mycelium can successfully fruit mushrooms. This entire process will require research from “The Essential Guide to Cultivating Mushrooms” by Stephen Russel, as well as “Growing Gourmet and Medicinal Mushrooms” by Paul Stamets. | The sponsor will evaluate my work by referring to the ejournal where the entire process will be recorded including the construction of a fruiting chamber, sterilization practices, and results. |
| What types of grains and ratios are most conducive to the colonization of shiitake and Oyster mushroom mycelium? | First, grains will be selected with only the intention of creating a well balanced beer, the spent grains will then be sterilized and inoculated with both shiitake and oyster mycelium. Next grains will be selected with only the intention of mushroom cultivation and a beer will be made from these grains. Within both of these spawn/beer experiments, the beer’s flavor and mouthfeel will be evaluated as well as the colonization rates of the spent grains by the mycelium. Based off of these two experiments, grains will be selected for both beer characteristics as well as mushroom cultivation in order to find a middle ground that can simultaneously produce quality beer and spent grains that are hospitable for the colonization of either shiitake or oyster mycelium, or both. | A final 5 page paper/presentation will be provided that explains the findings of the experiment, complete with pictures of every step including all steps of the beer making, a complete evaluation of the finished beer along with the colonization rates of both types of mycelium on each type of grain composition. |
| How and why does the process of commodification appear to turn everything into objects of economic value? Should everything–human and non-human–be measurable and exchangeable? What alternatives exist? What alternatives can be created? Students prepared for 25-30 hours per week of independent work will use an online field journal to document their individual research, apprenticeship, or internship. Options for more structured learning during winter quarter include participation in weekly lectures, films, and workshops in collaboration with Commodities, Conflict, and Cooperation (C3) or hands-on learning at the Evergreen organic farm in collaboration with SOS: Agriculture and Food Systems. | This SOS will support students to design and then engage with an individual or group project that explores an area of student interest regarding commodification processes and alternatives. While everything from eating to voting, from learning to (re)producing are possible topics, the commodification of what we all eat will provide a foundation for weekly seminars and a tasting lab. In addition to reading, writing and discussions on selections from The Secret Financial Life of Food: From Commodities Markets to Supermarkets (Newman), Racial Indigestion: Eating Bodies in the 19th Century (Tompkins) and Chronicles: Stories from the Front Line in the Battle for Environmental Justice (LaDuke) weekly sessions will focus on the taste of specific foods and processes of—and alternatives to—the commodification of eating. | Students prepared for 25-30 hours per week of independent work will use an online field journal to document their individual research, apprenticeship, or internship. Options for more structured learning during winter quarter include participation in weekly lectures, films, and workshops in collaboration with Commodities, Conflict, and Cooperation (C3) or hands-on learning at the Evergreen organic farm in collaboration with SOS: Agriculture and Food Systems. |
Evaluation of Work
Evaluation of Work The student will complete all assignments as described on the syllabus, including weekly documentation on the Project pages of the SOS program website. Whenever possible, the student will provide the faculty with a field supervisor, subcontractor, or mentor’s descriptive assessment of in-program ILC work completed with their guidance, expertise, or supervision by week 10. The student will complete comprehensive mid-quarter and final narrative self-evaluations and submit them to faculty prior to mid-quarter and final end of quarter student-faculty conferences. For the final blog post on Project websites, each student will post, and when possible present in class on Tuesday of week 10, a 10-minute PowerPoint Presentation of 10-15 slides with text that demonstrates the highlights of the student’s in-program ILC Project website at . Note: this final post should NOT include new images or text, rather it is a compilation of the highlights of all previous work posted during the quarter. Think of it as a “best of my website/eJournal” for my SOS in-program ILC project.
Faculty Support
In a single week I would like to have one type of beer made as well as the grains sterilized and inoculated. Tuesday and Wednesday of each week, time will be provided in which I can make sure that my work is complete and concise while allowing for any problems within the projects completion to be addressed and dealt with.