# Addition of Industrial Hemp (_Cannabis sativa_ L.) Dry Inflorescence in Beer Production
## 1 Introduction  
Beer is the most consumed alcoholic beverage in the world and has a long history of use. Due to its composition, it enables many experiments during production. Industrial hemp can be added to change the aroma profile, taste, and even color of the beer. Hemp was used for various purposes in the past, but over time, due to its phytochemical content such as CBD (cannabidiol) and TCH (\(\Delta\)9-tetrahydrocannabinol), it began to be abused, which led to a legal ban on its cultivation and use [1]. The potential benefits of this plant have been recently recognized and thus involved in the legislation of most countries. In the European Union, the levels of THC in industrial hemp are regulated and set to be under 0.2% [2].  
Industrial hemp (IH) is grown primarily because of its stems, which have been used since ancient times for fiber production. Hemp seeds are also a high-value dietary product for both humans and animals [3]. Industrial hemp infloresences (IHFs) are, on the other hand, considered purely as a crop residue despite them being a potential source of value-added products, essential oil, and beverage flavoring agents [4]. Industrial hemp is well adapted to climatic conditions and shows a robust insensitivity to abrupt climatic changes. It is a close relative to hops (_Humulus lapulus_), which is an important plant for the pharmaceutical, agricultural, and other industries [5; 6; 7]. Thus, in recent years, cannabis has found its place in the food and beverages industry. Cannabis-enriched foods and beverages are gaining popularity as a promising alternative utilizing dietary and medicinal benefits for consumers [8]. This is mainly rooted not only in the health benefits that attract the consumers but also in the idea of sustainability and reducing the influence on climatic change, the carbon footprint, and general ecological awareness. These are the facts that push industrial hemp as one of the sustainable solutions [9].  
This stimulated scholars to experiment with the addition of hemp infloresences to beer. There are several studies that investigated the addition of industrial hemp infloresence or other parts of the plant, or essential oil extracts to the beer [4; 7; 10; 11]. In some studies, they even used hemp classified as marijuana (_C. indica_ with higher levels of THC) [12]. In that case, the produced beer cannot contain over 0.5% alcohol [6]. Beers produced with industrial hemp are allowed to have 10 mg of CBD and alcohol concentration between 3.5 and 6% \(v/v\). While consuming beer with CBD, consumers reported sensations such as \"elevating\" and \"naturally calming\". Beers with THC reportedly enhance intoxication, euphoria, lethargy, and, cravings [13].  
Considering the above, this paper aimed to combine the pleasant effects of CBD and beer. Brewing beer commonly starts with word production which is the extraction of soluble compounds such as fermentable sugars via the decoction process. Plant materials usually respond to this kind of extraction [14] where most of the water-soluble components transfer to the solution. Thus, the combination of an industrial hemp infloresence (IHF) during boiling with hops could result in beer with enhanced aromatic notes reminiscing of hemp. Dry hopping is a usual method in brewing that ensures the extraction of aromatic compounds from hops to beer [15]. Adding dry industrial hemp infloresence into the fermenter after the fermentation is finished could result with pleasant aromatic notes of hemp infloresence. Also, this beer could contain a higher content of polyphenols. This paper aimed to characterize the physical-chemical properties of beers produced with IHF and IHE and to evaluate the sensory acceptance of both beers in regard to the control beer.