A Kickstarter Campaign Wants To Map Beer DNA

In the vast, ever-expanding world of craft beers, things can get confusing for those who aren't self-acclaimed brew nerds. Luckily for the rest of us, the people behind BeerDeCoded are looking to make selecting a pint a science — literally.

As we know from 1997's Gattaca, a person's DNA is packed with all sorts of secret biological information. Based in Slovenia, BeerDeCoded believes that mapping out the genome of beer will help us figure out which IPA or lager is the match for each of our palates. BeerDeCoded does not analyze your tastes; you are able to do that on your own and discover your preferences. The group has launched a Kickstarter campaign that will help them fund their "simple citizen science project."

The DNA sequencing will come from all aspects of the beer, such as hops, yeast, grains and bacteria. The goal is to analyze 100 beers — 1,000 if the campaign is super-successful. If all 100 beers are sequenced, the group will have enough information to create a genomic tree that will map out all the different traits of the brew, like whether it's a lager or an ale. If all goes according to plan, an app that will tell you which brews are for you could eventually be created.

Backers get to nominate (a $5 pledge) or choose ($54 pledge) the beers they want to see sequenced — even home brews ($87 pledge) are allowed — and the more you pay, the more beers they'll work with.

The campaign ends in about two weeks and is only about $1,000 away from its goal. Check out the short video below.