Sam Fogel knows beer. But not so much in a palate-aroma-which-glass-is-best way. Instead, the Newton resident prefers to talk about the perfect anaerobic conditions, the right temperatures, and how stored carbohydrates are coaxed out of their endosperm to make lager or ale.

He’s a microbiologist, and it’s impossible for him to separate his scientific background from the search for a good-tasting brew. But his approach works because, it turns out, home brewing is one big science experiment.