Rate My Professor Tom Shellhammer

Thomas H. Shellhammer, known professionally as Tom Shellhammer, is the Nor’Wester Professor of Fermentation Science and a Professor in the Department of Food Science and Technology at Oregon State University, where he has been on the faculty since 2001. Prior to his appointment at OSU, he served as an Assistant Professor of Food Science in the Department of Food Science and Food, Agricultural and Biological Engineering at The Ohio State University and worked as a brewing chemist. Shellhammer earned his B.S. in Fermentation Science in 1987, M.S. in Food Science in 1989, and Ph.D. in Food Engineering in 1996, all from the University of California, Davis. At Oregon State University, he leads the brewing science education and research programs, including oversight of the OSU Brewing Laboratory Sensory. His graduate students investigate topics such as the biotransformation of hop aroma compounds by brewing yeast and its sensory and chemical impact on beer quality, as well as the effects of smoke-affected hops on beer quality. Shellhammer's research centers on hops chemistry, the contribution of hops to beer flavor, foam, physical and flavor stability, beer quality, and the origins of hop aroma and flavor in beer, with current projects examining specific hop oil component contributions to hoppy aroma and flavor.

An internationally recognized expert in hops chemistry, Shellhammer teaches senior and graduate-level courses on brewing science and technology, as well as courses on the history, economics, technology, and culture of wines, beer, and spirits. He has held leadership positions including President of the American Society of Brewing Chemists and President of the District Northwest Master Brewers Association of the Americas. Since 2007, he has served on the Board of Examiners for the Institute of Brewing and Distilling in London, England. During the 2008-2009 academic year, Shellhammer conducted research and taught brewing science at the Technical University of Berlin as a Fulbright Scholar and Alexander von Humboldt Fellow. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Food Technologists and a Fellow of the Institute of Brewing and Distilling. His key publications include "Whey protein emulsion film performance as affected by lipid type and amount" (Journal of Food Science, 1997), "A discussion of polyphenols in beer physical and flavour stability" (Journal of the Institute of Brewing, 2010), "Isomerization and degradation kinetics of hop (Humulus lupulus) acids in a model wort-boiling system" (Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, 2005), and "Impact of harvest maturity on the aroma characteristics and chemistry of Cascade hops used for dry-hopping" (Food Chemistry, 2019).