Fixing Boulevard Wheat Diacetyl Bomb

[kdw2pd]

I've done a couple of AG beers with pretty good results (even a quasi-Duvel!), but managed to create a diacetyl bomb of a wheat beer.

I was trying to make a Boulevard Wheat clone. Malts were Rahr 2-row, Weyerman German wheat, flaked wheat, and some honey malt. I pitched 2L starter (no stir plate) of Wyeast 1010 American Wheat. Don't have notes, but OG = ~1.044, FG = 1.012. I rushed fermentation to get it out for my dad for Christmas, took it right off the yeast and bottled when it hit FG... Didn't know what diacetyl was, thought the butterscotch candy flavor would age out, and was terribly wrong.

I've got about 30 of these suckers left. Is it too late? Could I open them all, let them flatten out, pour them back in a fermenter, and try to krausen them and see if that helps? 'Cuz seriously, ick!

 

[Thunder_Chicken]

That would be about the only thing you could do at this point. It needs active yeast to reduce the diacetyl.

For the effort you might just want to try a fresh batch and chalk this one up as a learning lesson.

 

[helibrewer]

What was your fermentation temp? That combination of ingredients is not usually a diacetyl bomb. You might check into that yeast and see if it is known for diacetyl production.

 

[kdw2pd]

Saw a couple of references from other folks on HBT talking about diacetyl with the Wyeast 1010. Fermentation was about 65-67, meaning it could have reached the mid-70s during peak fermentation, but it definitely didn't stay that warm. Too warm to get a neutral clean finish, but thought I'd get some esters at worst. Interestingly, I did a brown ale with Safale 04 the same day, fermented in the same closet, bottled that at the same time, and it's fine.

I'll try re-fermenting it. I've got DME, some washed 1010, and far too many nigh-undrinkable beers. Thanks! Definitely chalk this up to a learning experience, particularly what diacetyl tastes like in a gravity sample.

 

[kdw2pd]

An update: I opened all 28 bottles and let them flatten out. Poured them into a fermenter (I use re-purposed icing buckets), and pitched a starter out of a 1/2 cup of Safale-05 slurry from a pseudo-lager BoPils type and a 1/2 liter of 1.04 wort. Gravity at re-pitch was 1.013. 3 days later, gravity is 1.011 and the diacetyl taste is almost non-existent in the gravity sample. A few more days, and this might be drinkable after all!

 

[sandyeggoxj]

Awesome. Sounds like a good learning experience!