Advertise Here
Main · BrewSpace · Recipes · Wiki · Groups · Clubs · Gallery · Reviews · Video · Blogs · Store

FREE Shipping!!!All Keg Kits on Sale!Ultra Portable Kits - $74.95, Kegconnection.com
Go Back   Home Brew Forums > Home Brewing Beer > General Beer Discussion



Reply
 
LinkBack Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 04-11-2009, 04:25 PM   #1
Senior Member
Recipes 
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Santa Rosa, CA
Posts: 2,024
Default Diacetyl in Commercial Beers

Last night I went out to a show and ordered a Lost Coast White Ale. First thing I smelled was buttered popcorn. I unhappily finished it and ordered up an under carbed Sierra Pale. Then I ordered a Blue Moon, buttered popcorn. The bar seemed rather blah on their care for the beer, but I didn't think that would make a beer taste of D.

Is wit or american wit a style that is supposed to have buttered popcorn? I was not being over critical either, I asked a couple other people what they tasted in it and they said movie theater.

Could diacetyl be something that came in post fermentation? I have had it in my beer and it is because of a short cool fermentation. I would assume that commercial people strive to attain a beer sans diacetyl.

I couldn't believe it either time, but man oh man was it awful to have to choke down two beers with buttered popcorn


__________________
New and improved signature.
Matt Up North is offline Reply With Quote
Old 04-11-2009, 04:41 PM   #2
Post Hoc Ergo Propter Hoc
 
Revvy's Avatar
Recipes 
 
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: "Detroitish" Michigan
Posts: 36,050
Blog Entries: 6
Default

Was it on tap? It's very possible that in that case diacetyl was a result of an infection...from dirty lines.

I've gotten it in bars serving Killian's on occasion...I've also got killians on tap at places that was close to truning to vinegar.

Quote:
One possible source of diacetyl is bacterial infection. Pediococcus and Lactobacillus are notoriously prodigious producers of diacetyl.
I recently got a six pack of Rogue Dead guy that was almost pure butterscotch as well...i usually by it on bombers. It was a surprise that every bottle in the six was buttery.
__________________

Revvy's one of the cool reverends. He has a Harley and a t-shirt that says on the back "If you can read this, the bitch was Raptured. - Madman

I gotta tell ya, just between us girls, that Revvy is HOT. Very tall, gorgeous grey hair and a terrific smile. He's very good looking in person, with a charismatic personality... he drives like a ****ing maniac! - YooperBrew
Revvy is online now Reply With Quote
Old 04-11-2009, 05:57 PM   #3
Senior Member
Recipes 
 
Join Date: Jul 2008
Location: Santa Rosa, CA
Posts: 2,024
Default

It was on tap, though I didn't think that Diacetyl is an infection...
__________________
New and improved signature.
Matt Up North is offline Reply With Quote
Old 04-11-2009, 06:00 PM   #4
Post Hoc Ergo Propter Hoc
 
Revvy's Avatar
Recipes 
 
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: "Detroitish" Michigan
Posts: 36,050
Blog Entries: 6
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Matt Up North View Post
It was on tap, though I didn't think that Diacetyl is an infection...
Like I quoted above,, in some cases it is...
__________________

Revvy's one of the cool reverends. He has a Harley and a t-shirt that says on the back "If you can read this, the bitch was Raptured. - Madman

I gotta tell ya, just between us girls, that Revvy is HOT. Very tall, gorgeous grey hair and a terrific smile. He's very good looking in person, with a charismatic personality... he drives like a ****ing maniac! - YooperBrew
Revvy is online now Reply With Quote
Old 04-11-2009, 08:55 PM   #5
Senior Member
 
Cpt_Kirks's Avatar
Recipes 
 
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: Lakeland TN
Posts: 3,524
Default

I have detected it in Dos Equis Amber on tap at Dead Lobster.

Funny thing was, I had the same issue (diacetyl infection in the keg) in my Dos Equis Amber clone.
Cpt_Kirks is offline Reply With Quote
Old 04-11-2009, 09:42 PM   #6
Senior Member
Recipes 
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Anchorage, AK
Posts: 415
Default

Yea i had a Sam Adams at a meat market bar with my wife that was so bad it was the first and only beer i have ever not finished. It was straight up nasty sour (and i really like gueze). Damn dirty meat market beer lines.
__________________
Zombie Brewing Co.

UNDEAD Dunkelweise
Baby Bryce Barleywine
1st Anniversary Ale (Imperial Porter)
Night of The Living Dead Ale (belgian porter) (DECEASED)
Dawn of The Dead Ale (Belgial IPA)(DECEASED)
The Omega Ale (Quad)(DECEASED)
Donthoseme is offline Reply With Quote
Old 04-11-2009, 09:56 PM   #7
Post Hoc Ergo Propter Hoc
 
Revvy's Avatar
Recipes 
 
Join Date: Dec 2007
Location: "Detroitish" Michigan
Posts: 36,050
Blog Entries: 6
Default

There's a couple threads over the while where other's have detected diacetyl in commercial products.

http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f5/does-anyone-else-detect-diacetyl-sam-adams-beers-102379/

http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f13/commercial-example-diacetyl-59586/

http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f13/commercial-examples-off-flavors-especially-diacetyl-18345/

I think as we brew we become more able to note and detect flaws in beers, not just our own...when I have had Killians that was ready to turn to vinegar, other people drinking the same thing thought I was nuts.
__________________

Revvy's one of the cool reverends. He has a Harley and a t-shirt that says on the back "If you can read this, the bitch was Raptured. - Madman

I gotta tell ya, just between us girls, that Revvy is HOT. Very tall, gorgeous grey hair and a terrific smile. He's very good looking in person, with a charismatic personality... he drives like a ****ing maniac! - YooperBrew
Revvy is online now Reply With Quote
Old 04-11-2009, 10:05 PM   #8
Senior Member
Recipes 
 
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Stevens Point, WI
Posts: 437
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Revvy View Post
I recently got a six pack of Rogue Dead guy that was almost pure butterscotch as well...i usually by it on bombers. It was a surprise that every bottle in the six was buttery.
I definitely hear you on this. I'm a big fan of Rogue beers and find that DGA does have just a slight naturally buttery flavor, but not anything to the extent you're speaking of. Recently I bought two growlers of DGA. I drank one and it was fine (Little less carbed but it was in a growler...), but the next one had that buttery flavor like you wouldn't believe. I had trouble putting down one glass of it. The rest of the growler's still in the fridge.

I figured it may have been my pallet being screwed up (I was drinking some kind of IPA before and I've found that hoppiness tends to mess w/ my pallet) so I just tried another sip after I read this post and I was definitely dead on. Something's different with this growler. I think it may have been sitting at the grocery store for a long time, so maybe that had something to do with it.
Dougan is offline Reply With Quote
Old 04-13-2009, 11:27 AM   #9
Junior Member
Recipes 
 
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Sacramento, CA
Posts: 3
Default

Most of the time, these problems are line related. If you are in a place that serves a lot of Bumco for the masses, it'll probably be worse.

Lines should be cleaned every 2 weeks in a bar setting. Low volume retailers (less than a keg a week) really don't seem to get much, if any, line cleaning service.

Another issue is keg age and storage. Oxidation can create diacetyl (the precursers are tasteless until oxidized) in the keg, especially if they're not refrigerated. I have one client who gets Lagunitas delivered by a distributor, only to have another distributor move them out into the hot pizza kitchen to put another product into the undersized walk-in.

I've often thought that a great homebrewer community effort would be to offer to line clean some of their favorite tap houses. Might even result in a few pints of gratitude.
brewfun is offline Reply With Quote
Old 04-13-2009, 12:38 PM   #10
Member
Recipes 
 
Join Date: Jan 2009
Location: Burlington
Posts: 33
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by Matt Up North View Post
Then I ordered a Blue Moon, buttered popcorn. The bar seemed rather blah on their care for the beer, but I didn't think that would make a beer taste of D.
To my tastebuds, Blue Moon has always tasted buttery (from bottles).
-Andy


Andreas is offline Reply With Quote
Reply
Thread Tools
Display Modes


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Diacetyl in beers Matt Up North General Techniques 7 02-19-2009 11:46 PM
Does anyone else detect diacetyl in Sam Adams beers? Zymurgrafi Commerical Brew Discussion 9 02-09-2009 05:46 PM
my own diacetyl and oxidation - in 2 beers! mandoman General Beer Discussion 12 11-13-2008 12:56 AM
Commercial example of diacetyl? maltMonkey General Techniques 38 04-07-2008 03:58 PM
Commercial Examples of Off-flavors (especially Diacetyl) DiegoProf General Techniques 5 12-30-2006 05:23 AM





Contact Us - Top - Privacy - All times are GMT. The time now is 02:25 AM.
Copyright © Group Builder, Inc - All Rights Reserved
Craft Beer & Brewery Forum