the pro file
Graduated
THE WORLD OF HEINEKEN
We all know the wine experts. The people who can
practically taste how many hours of sunlight the grapes
had before they were harvested. But did you know the
brewing industry has similar experts? People who know
just about everything there is to know about
beer? Heineken has quite a few of these biérologues.
People like Hervé Marziou and Dennis Keller, who are
taking beer to the Michelin star dining table
Think that a beer is just a beer? Think again: alhough brewed from just
four ingredients (malted grain, water, yeast and hops), beer is a complex
product. Beer experts know just about everything there is to know about
beer. To them, almost every bubble holds a secret. And for the beer
companies lucky enough to employ them, 'biérologues' are walking in-
house encyclopaedias.
Some people have even studied to learn everything about the
complexities of the brewing process. A number of institutions provide an
advanced education in biérology. Part of the Heriot-Watt University School
of Life Science in Edinburgh, the International Centre of Brewing and
Distilling (ICBD) offers both Honours and Masters degrees in Brewing and
Distilling. The Chair of Brewing Science, housed in the Technical University
of Berlin's Institute of Fermentation and Biotechnology, promotes research
and education in brewing science and technology. And, of course, there is
the Heineken School of Brewing in Zoeterwoude the Netherlands, where
brewers from all over the world come together to pool their knowledge of
beer and exchange their newest insights into the brewing phenomenon.
Hervé Marziou (59) is considered to be the official biérologue of France.
He can answer just about any question concerning the beers in the large
Heineken France portfolio. Marziou joined the company in 1973 and has
had a remarkable career since. He started out as a Legal Advisor for the
Commercial Department and was Manager of Human Resources for 10
years.
But Marziou was always fascinated by the product of beer; for many
years, he had been a member of the taste panel for Heineken France, and
was interested in the history, as well as the taste, of the product. As
Marziou explains, "It is the oldest drink developed by man in history. It is
even older than wine. At a certain moment, I wanted to extend my
knowledge of beer and so I started a high-level, four-year education at
university studying gastronomy and beverages." Marziou graduated from
this programme, and is now an official biérologue within the Corporate
Relations Department of Heineken France. Both within the company and to
the outside world, he gives lectures, teaches and promotes the responsible
consumption of beer. "In the last decade, we have seen a decline in beer
consumption in France. In my view, that is because the French do not fully
appreciate the product and they do not realise how big the variety of beer
actually is."
Text: Jan Kroese
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