Botulism

[bhob12]

Hello everyone.

I need some veteran assurance.

I recently brewed an American Pale Ale from a Brewers Best kit, but I spiced it up with cinnamon and honey and ginger; it's for a makeshift Christmas ale. I added the honey at 15min remaining. I also used LME. I'm just freaking out about botulism, and don't want to get f***ed up. The OG was 1.05 and I noticed visible fermentation at 24 hours (and could have been earlier). It is now the third day of the wort fermenting and it is still in a boiling phase (the trub is mixing into the wort and its aggressively stirring). I read that Botulism spores can begin reproducing at three days and the toxin created... but I know that <4.5 ph will stop this from happening.

Does anyone have any reassurance or tips to ensure I don't die? (Excuse my drama)

Thanks

 

[Qhrumphf]

You'll be fine. Botulism can grow in canned wort theoretically (say if you were saving starters for later) though there are no reports of anyone ever contracting botulism poisoning this way).

Botulism cannot grow in fermented/fermenting beer.

 

[bracconiere]

i think botulism is most assosiated with preserved meat? not presserved but like, mason jar pressure cooked stuff....

 

[Qhrumphf]

It's typically higher pH canned goods. Canned veggies often fit the bill (low-pH ones like tomatoes obviously excepted) in addition to meat. Cooked properly in a pressure cooker would kill the spores and render it safe. Cooking by just boiling to seal the jar won't kill the spores.

The combo of low pH and ethanol (and potentially hops, though that's a hypothesis and and nothing more) prevent it in beer.

 

[GreenEnvy22]

Even in canning foods ( which my wife and I do a LOT of), botulism is incredibly rare, like you have way better odds of winning the lotto.
There won't be any in your beer

 

[Dinadan]

Bhob - you understand that there is a built in bias in the replies you receive, right? Anyone who died of botulism from their beer will not be replying ...

 

[passedpawn]

Hello everyone.

I need some veteran assurance.

I recently brewed an American Pale Ale from a Brewers Best kit, but I spiced it up with cinnamon and honey and ginger; it's for a makeshift Christmas ale. I added the honey at 15min remaining. I also used LME. I'm just freaking out about botulism, and don't want to get f***ed up. The OG was 1.05 and I noticed visible fermentation at 24 hours (and could have been earlier). It is now the third day of the wort fermenting and it is still in a boiling phase (the trub is mixing into the wort and its aggressively stirring). I read that Botulism spores can begin reproducing at three days and the toxin created... but I know that <4.5 ph will stop this from happening.

Does anyone have any reassurance or tips to ensure I don't die? (Excuse my drama)

Thanks

I guarantee you'll be ok. The conditions under which the toxin forms are not present in normal brewing.

Now, IMO adding cinnamon and ginger to a pale ale, that might not be a good idea.

 

[bracconiere]

Anyone who died of botulism from their beer will not be replying ...

i've been drinking it for 16 years....

 

[BigDave1303]

Now, IMO adding cinnamon and ginger to a pale ale, that might not be a good idea.

I love ginger beer & used to buy the Coopers kits which they no longer sell.
So I now make my own by adding ginger to either a lager or pale ale kit. I've also experimented with adding cinnamon, cloves, star anise. Need to be very careful not to add too much of the last two as they are very strong and you don't want your beer tasting like medicine.

 

[passedpawn]

I love ginger beer & used to buy the Coopers kits which they no longer sell.
So I now make my own by adding ginger to either a lager or pale ale kit. I've also experimented with adding cinnamon, cloves, star anise. Need to be very careful not to add too much of the last two as they are very strong and you don't want your beer tasting like medicine.

I've made a ginger saison twice. IT was barely OK, but nobody else would drink it. If I bottled it would have been a better situation, but having a 5g keg of it was an issue. I used candied ginger and just tossed them into the fermentor.

 

[bhob12]

Bhob - you understand that there is a built in bias in the replies you receive, right? Anyone who died of botulism from their beer will not be replying ...

Haha this is a legend comment

 

[Vale71]

Even in canning foods ( which my wife and I do a LOT of), botulism is incredibly rare, like you have way better odds of winning the lotto.
There won't be any in your beer

The difference being by winning the lotto you become rich, by eating botox you become dead so even low odds are unacceptable.

To the OP: as long as you don't do anything that would raise your beer's PH above 4.5 you're fine.

 

[JoeMamasIPA]

Bhob - you understand that there is a built in bias in the replies you receive, right? Anyone who died of botulism from their beer will not be replying ...

Sounds like a good Brulosophy experiment.... "While 14 of 20 tasters would have to identify the beer fermented with botulism only 11 tasters did, indicating that they could not reliably tell the difference between the botulism beer and one without!"

Comments section:

"Good to know because I always brew with botulism and wondered if affected the final quality of the beer"

"Just because you let botulism fester in the mash doesn't mean it's a good brewing practice. Jamil et al says botulism...."

 

[BrewZer]

Any botulism in your beer will probably help smooth out those wrinkles in your forehead.

Just be advised: you might get a sudden urge to run for Congress.