FREE BEER AT WORK!!! possibly expired?

[broadbill]

This site has gotten much less friendly the past couple of days.

Or filled with increasingly thin-skinned posters, depending on how you look at it.

It's a discussion board people. Don't be surprised when an actual discussion occurs....

 

[broadbill]

well now I am nervous about dying...

can I get a kit or something to test it for botulism? Then in the event that it has this stuff in it should I just pitch my fermenter and everything else that touched this stuff?

Getting it tested would be throwing good money after bad (I know it is free, but you get my point).

Pressurized cans don't sound good. I'd err on the side of caution on this one.

 

[DrunkleJon]

I think you are fine. See this link re:Botulism and ME. I trust BYO.

https://www.byo.com/stories/item/41...centrated-extract-with-its-high-sugar-content

Now with that out of the way let’s discuss why brewers do not to spend any time at all worrying about the growth of Clostridium botulinum in the malt extract. Malt extract, whether liquid or dry, is concentrated by removing water. One key attribute of food products used to gauge their susceptibility to spoilage is a property known as water activity or AW. Pure water has a water activity of 1.0 and as solids content increases the AW decreases. The definition of AW is not important here, but relates to equilibrium relative humidity. If you want to read more there is a bunch of information about water activity online and in food science books.

At any rate, Clostridium botulinum is not a problem in foods with an AW less than 0.93 because it doesn’t grow. The water activity of liquid malt extract (LME) is somewhere around 0.60 depending on its concentration. Honey has an AW between 0.55 and 0.60, so it stands to reason that liquid malt extract with a similar concentration is going to be in the same range. Dried malt extract has an AW of about 0.20 making it very shelf stable from a microbiological view. You are correct that liquid malt extract is not pressure canned because there is no safety concern requiring it to be.

 

[PorterGlenn]

DrunkleJon -- thanks for the info

I spoke with my father-in-law, who is a trama surgeon (not that he deals with alot of botulism cases, but I figure he knows more about it than me and my friends...) and he said, your probably fine, and if you do get it they have acure for it.

So I think I am going to try it, and inform my wife that if I get sick and begin to die tell the doctors to treat me for botulism. That should be good enough for me to live...? I gotta make sure thee old life insurance policy is paid up

Ill keep you guys updated!

 

[PorterGlenn]

on another note, I have been curious about how beer competitions work. I have heard that the same beer may get gold in one competition and dead last in another. ***I do not expect this beer to get any medals!!!

I wanted to send this to a few competitions just to see what the ratings are and read the judges comments, however after hearing the beer may be poisonous I cant in good concious let anyone drink it with out knowing the posible risks.

But.... If I drink it, and dont drop dead a week later, then would it be unethical/a jerk move to enter in a few competitions? Again I will drink it first and make sure it is safe for human consuption before letting anyone drink the beer. Also I am not planning on winning any competitions with a beer that was already called "a pitiful waste of raspberries" I am just curious about the different comments that can be received from the same beer in different competitions?

Is this a horrible idea? And if so why? (I am not concerend about the shipping cost on a beer I know will lose)

 

[BinghamtonEd]

Enter it, and when it gets a 50/50, tell them all what it really is. Or have it etched on their gravestones.