Supporting poster demonstrates larger-volume sample concentration from beer and wine using InnovaPrep’s Concentrating Pipette and BeFlat™ Degassing Jar
Spoilage organisms can create costly quality challenges for breweries, wineries, and beverage producers. Traditional microbiological methods often require enrichment or culture steps that can take days, delaying product release and increasing inventory hold time. Rapid methods such as qPCR can shorten time to result, but they are often limited by the small volume of sample that reaches the assay.
Sample preparation can help bridge that gap.
This poster highlights an InnovaPrep beer and wine workflow designed to concentrate spoilage organisms from larger beverage sample volumes into a smaller, assay-ready volume. The workflow uses carbonated beverage degassing, CP Select™ concentration, and Wet Foam Elution™ to prepare samples for downstream detection.
Beer and wine demonstration
In the study summarized in this poster, American lager beer and wine samples were experimentally inoculated with Lactobacillus brevis, a known beer and wine spoilage organism. Samples were processed using InnovaPrep’s Concentrating Pipette workflow and BeFlat™ Degassing Jar for carbonated sample preparation.
The workflow concentrated organisms from:
- 12 oz / 355 mL American lager beer samples
- 750 mL red and white wine samples
The resulting concentrates were suitable for qPCR-based analysis to support same-shift beverage quality workflows.
Key findings
- 70% to 92% concentration recovery efficiency in beer samples
- 1000× to 2000× concentration of L. brevis in red and white wine samples
- Compatibility with qPCR-based detection workflows
- Larger effective sample input compared with direct small-volume assay methods
These results demonstrate how concentration-based sample preparation can help improve the usefulness of rapid microbial detection methods for beverage quality control.
Why sample prep matters for carbonated beverages
Carbonated beverages present an added challenge because dissolved CO₂ can release as bubbles or foam during handling. Foam and residual carbonation can interfere with sample flow, sensing, and filtration-based concentration.
BeFlat™ degassing helps prepare carbonated samples before CP Select™ concentration. After degassing, CP Select™ captures microorganisms from the beverage sample and Wet Foam Elution™ recovers them into a smaller final volume for downstream testing.
For clear beer, wine, and related products, this workflow can support rapid spoilage detection. More complex beverage matrices, such as hazy beers, bottle-conditioned products, fruit-adjunct beverages, or highly foaming products, may require matrix-aware workflow selection before routine use.
Download the Poster: Concentration of Lactobacillus brevis from Experimentally Infected American Lager Beer and Wine by InnovaPrep’s Concentrating Pipette and BeFlat™ Degassing Jar
Related carbonated beverage resources
For additional guidance on carbonated beverage sample preparation, degassing, and CP Select™ concentration, review the related resources below:
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Application Note: Rapid Spoilage Detection in Carbonated Beverages Using CP Select™ and BeFlat™ Degassing Jar
Technical overview of the workflow and where it fits for beer, wine, and related beverage matrices. -
Quick Guide: BeFlat™ Degassing Guidance for Carbonated Beverage Workflows – InnovaPrep
Bench-facing guide for preparing carbonated beverage samples before CP Select™ concentration. -
Workflow Guidance: Carbonated Beverage Sample Prep Workflow Guidance – InnovaPrep
Matrix-aware guidance for selecting a workflow for clear, hazy, yeasted, fruit-adjunct, foamy, or more difficult beverage matrices. -
Protocol: Carbonated Beverage Concentration Protocol Using CP Select™ and BeFlat – InnovaPrep
Operational protocol for degassing, concentrating, eluting, and preparing samples for downstream analysis. - Technical Note: Concentration of Spoilage Organisms in Hazy Beer
Learn more
InnovaPrep sample-preparation tools help laboratories concentrate biological targets from real-world liquid samples. For beverage QC teams, BeFlat™ degassing, CP Select™ concentration, and Wet Foam Elution™ can help bridge the gap between larger product samples and small-volume downstream assays.
Contact InnovaPrep to discuss workflow fit for your beverage matrix, target organism, and downstream detection method. Email customerservice@innovaprep.com
