[gordonstrong]

Sulfur, and th time it takes to remove it, bothers me too, It is like you said not something that hits you in the face but something subtle that is best noticed in side-by-side taste comparisons. Do far I have not done anything special to reduce the sulfur. Just waiting has worked for me but I'm keeping my eyes open for ways to reduce or speed up the sulfur reduction. Gordan's tip with gas washing the beer is something I have come across before but it also means that I have to attend the beer more than I would normally do.

Kai

Actually, I'm not gas washing the beer; I'm talking about putting a pressure-relief attachment on the gas post and letting the excess pressure bleed off as it's produced.  It's better for the yeast not to have that excess pressure on it anyway.  Rocking the keg occasionally to knock some of the CO2 out of solution also helps.  I don't like attending to the beer much either, so I try to use alternatives where possible.

[James Lorden]

This is a paper written by Shea Comfort relating to the formation of sulpher by yeast in wine.  Under Oxygenating seems to be a major contributor (at least in wine).  I would think that could also apply to beer.


UPDATE TO INCLUDE LINK

http://www.yeastwhisperer.com/uploads/YeastWhisp_Oxy_Ferm_fin_.pdf

[Kaiser]

Actually, I'm not gas washing the beer; I'm talking about putting a pressure-relief attachment on the gas post and letting the excess pressure bleed off as it's produced.

That has been my process as well. But with this process you only get the washing action of the CO2 that is produced. The technique that I was referring to actually uses additional CO2 to wash the sulfur aroma out of the beer. I thought you referred to that.

Kai

[ipaguy]

This is a paper written by Shea Comfort relating to the formation of sulpher by yeast in wine.  Under Oxygenating seems to be a major contributor (at least in wine).  I would think that could also apply to beer.

Was there supposed to be a link for this?  I'm curious  about the mechanism here.  Obviously, no yeast is going to actually 'produce' sulfur.  Yeast are incapable of transmuting elements (like lead into gold).  It would be nice to know what sources of sulfur the yeast can use to produce H2S (rotten eggs) or SO2 (burnt match).  If sulfate is a possible source then water chemistry would be something to look at.  If sulfur containing proteins or amino acids are candidates it might be good to look at malt type, protein rest, and boil conditions.  I believe that you want to try to convert most of your organic sulfur compounds to DMS and drive that out in the boil.  I admit ignorance on these questions, but am really curious about the chemistry involved.

[gordonstrong]

Actually, I'm not gas washing the beer; I'm talking about putting a pressure-relief attachment on the gas post and letting the excess pressure bleed off as it's produced.

That has been my process as well. But with this process you only get the washing action of the CO2 that is produced. The technique that I was referring to actually uses additional CO2 to wash the sulfur aroma out of the beer. I thought you referred to that.

Kai

Right; I figured that's what you meant.  I don't really know how to do that without carbonating the beer; it must be something that is done after lagering is done.  Otherwise, by adding CO2 while the beer is cold would increase carbonation and stress the yeast more.  Or would you do that at a warmer temperature to encourage the CO2 to stay out of solution?

[James Lorden]

This is a paper written by Shea Comfort relating to the formation of sulpher by yeast in wine.  Under Oxygenating seems to be a major contributor (at least in wine).  I would think that could also apply to beer.

Was there supposed to be a link for this?

Yes, sorry

http://www.yeastwhisperer.com/uploads/YeastWhisp_Oxy_Ferm_fin_.pdf

[wingnut]

Hmm.... Looks like I will try a bit more O2 on this next batch.   I have been aerating with an aquarium pump and stone up until now, perhapse I will take the dive into O2 injection for the next batch as the process point I am changing and see how big a difference it makes.

Thanks everyone for the info