Process of manufacturing a liquid beer concentrate

A process of manufacturing a liquid alcoholic beer concentrate, the process comprising obtaining a low alcohol beer having an ethanol content of 0-1% ABV, a free amino nitrogen content of 8-400 mg/L and having 0.1-4 g/L maltotriose and 0.5-6 g/L of maltotetraose by:

• (i) obtaining an alcoholic beer having an ethanol content of 3-12% ABV and an original extract of 7-14% (m/m);
• and
• (ii) removing ethanol from the beer by means of distillation at a temperature between 20-65° C. and a pressure between 1-200 mbar to produce a low alcohol beer and an ethanol-containing distillate;
• (iii) removing at least 70 wt. % of the water present in the low alcohol beer by membrane separation employing a pressure between 6 to 80 bars to produce a low alcohol beer concentrate, wherein the membrane separation is selected from nanofiltration, reverse osmosis and forward osmosis and using a membrane with a glucose rejection of 80-100% when measured using 2,000 mg/L aqueous glucose solution at 1.6 MPa, 25° C. and 15% recovery;
• (iv) combining 1 to 5 parts by weight of the low alcohol beer concentrate with 1 part by weight of alcoholic liquid having an ethanol content of at least 30 wt. % to produce a liquid alcoholic beer concentrate having an ethanol content of 10-60 wt. %;
• wherein the distillative removal of ethanol either yields a distillate with an ethanol content of 40-80 wt. % or a distillate with an ethanol content of 10-40 wt. % which is further concentrated to an ethanol content of 40-80 wt. %, and
• wherein the ethanol-containing distillate having an ethanol content of 40-80 wt. % is applied in the alcoholic liquid in an amount such that the alcoholic liquid contains 60-100 wt. % of the distillate.