Terpenes Restored Over 300% After Centrifugation in Award-Winning NA IPA

Evodia partnered with ÅBEN on a brewing trial to create a modern IPA with modest ABV and no compromise on flavor. The result won Best Non-Alcoholic Beer at the Danish Non-Alcoholic Beer Championship – 58 beers from 29 breweries.

GC-MS analysis showed that adding Yops® increased key terpene levels by over 300% compared to pre-centrifuge levels.

Y, Hoppy IPA (0.5%)

Y is a bright, refreshing, citrus-forward non-alcoholic IPA bursting with pink lemonade notes, creamy oats, and vibrant hop character. Brewed with water, barley, oats, hops, yeast, and Yops® (yeast-derived aroma), it delivers both freshness and depth.

During centrifugation, aroma can be lost but Yops® restores and enhances it, bringing fuller structure, more body, and a true beery mouthfeel, even at just 0.5% ABV. The result is a balanced, characterful IPA with the familiar taste of a great beer minus the alcohol.

This beer proves that alcohol-free brews can still be packed with flavor, complexity, and body.

We partnered with ÅBEN, to analyze samples from a 20hl production trial of a 0.5% ABV hoppy IPA. Key hop volatiles were tracked throughout fermentation and clarification using SPME-GC-MS. After dry hopping (pre-centrifugation), several terpene peaks are clearly present. Following centrifugation, many of these peaks are significantly reduced, reflecting substantial volatile loss during clarification.

After Yops® addition, the marked terpene peaks are restored and, in some cases, exceed their original intensities – demonstrating that post-clarification addition effectively rebuilds and enhances the hop aroma profile. See the gas chromatogram below which illustrates the distribution of key hop terpenes.

Terpenes Restored Over 300% After Centrifugation

This gas chromatogram shows the impact of centrifugation and Yops® addition on key hop terpenes in production samples, revealing substantial losses during processing: after centrifugation, four major hop terpenes dropped by 6% to as much as 89% compared to pre-centrifugation levels. While clarification is essential for shelf-life stability, it can reduce sensory quality.

Adding hop flavor after clarification avoids terpene loss from yeast adsorption. The result was striking: the terpene profile was not only restored but, in several cases, exceeded original dry-hopped levels. Certain terpenes rose to more than 300% of their pre-centrifuge concentrations, restoring the juicy, vibrant character that dry hopping alone could not achieve.

Any questions?

Bede is your contact. Feel free to reach out for the full case details and learn how Yops® opens new and unique ways to deliver great, consistent flavor across all styles and ABVs.