Isn't there anything else on earth than oxygen for the yeast to grow?

[Finlandbrews]

I have read about olive oil to be added before pitching instead of oxygen. New Belgium has experimented and the results were good.

My question is why oxygen for yeast? Couldn't there be substitute for it? Why olive oil works and not something else?

 

[GilaMinumBeer]

I have read about olive oil to be added before pitching instead of oxygen. New Belgium has experimented and the results were good.

My question is why oxygen for yeast? Couldn't there be substitute for it? Why olive oil works and not something else?

I forget the exact reasoning behind the EVOO but it has to do with Oleic Acid metabolism/synthesis of yeast.

 

[TheMadKing]

Oxygen is metabolized by the yeast to produce glycogen stores and make thicker cell walls. It's a necessary part of their metabolism and you can't really substitute for it. Olive oil will likely just kill your head retention and give you some funky flavors IMO.

 

[Finlandbrews]

New Belgium did a 170 000 litres batch with 300 ml olive oil and there was no problem. That is what I read. The question is did it help. Would be interesting to make a starter with olive oil in it... Also it would be interesting to check how it could work with a product like this:
[/URL]http://oxygensupercharger.com/[/URL]

I know it sounds a bit crazy but just as an experiment.

 

[TheMadKing]

New Belgium did a 170 000 litres batch with 300 ml olive oil and there was no problem. That is what I read. The question is did it help. Would be interesting to make a starter with olive oil in it... Also it would be interesting to check how it could work with a product like this:
[/URL]http://oxygensupercharger.com/[/URL]

I know it sounds a bit crazy but just as an experiment.

that's such a tiny amount in terms of volume percentage (.0017% ) that it's almost not there. For a 5 gallon batch it equates to .0088mL which is less than a single tiny drop. I suspect that New Belgium did it as a gimmick rather than for any actual benefit.

You could certainly try it, but what you are proposing is akin to designing an air substitute for people.

Are you concerned/don't want to hassle with oxygenating your wort?

I use the shake method to reach 8ppm oxygen in my worts and have never had an issue up to an OG of 1.088.

 

[cilestiok]

that's such a tiny amount in terms of volume percentage (.0017% ) that it's almost not there. For a 5 gallon batch it equates to .0088mL which is less than a single tiny drop. I suspect that New Belgium did it as a gimmick rather than for any actual benefit.



You could certainly try it, but what you are proposing is akin to designing an air substitute for people.



Are you concerned/don't want to hassle with oxygenating your wort?



I use the shake method to reach 8ppm oxygen in my worts and have never had an issue up to an OG of 1.088.

It could be argued that the amount of oxygen we add is so minuscule its "almost not there".

For the record though, I agree with you on all points provided.

 

[TheMadKing]

Fair enough, but even on that scale we are adding 8-12 ppm oxygen, and this would only add 1.7 ppm olive oil. So its pretty tiny by any standard.

 

[Qhrumphf]

If I recall correctly (purely off of memory), what the olive oil does is supply that the oleic acid that the yeast would normally use oxygen to create. It effectively cuts out the middle man. However, I also recall it being a matter of very precise dosing, and at the homebrew scale the measurements are so small that it's really not feasible to do. Dipping a toothpick in olive oil and then swirling it around isn't really precise enough for this procedure. The concentrations make sense, but getting the right ratio is very important. I think, again that's off of memory.

It's fascinating, that's for sure. But unless you're brewing a large enough batch where you can accurately measure it (or unless you have the appropriately precise/hi res tools to do so for a 5-10 gallon batch instead of a several hundred barrel batch), I would just stick to O2 like everyone else.

 

[Bellybuster]

Olive oil has been well tested and well documented by several authorities.
Here is the report from Grady Hull from New Belgium Brewing
There are many more reports on the net including a test by White Labs

http://www.brewcrazy.com/hull-olive-oil-thesis.pdf

 

[mikeasu]

If I recall correctly (purely off of memory), what the olive oil does is supply that the oleic acid that the yeast would normally use oxygen to create. It effectively cuts out the middle man. However, I also recall it being a matter of very precise dosing, and at the homebrew scale the measurements are so small that it's really not feasible to do. Dipping a toothpick in olive oil and then swirling it around isn't really precise enough for this procedure. The concentrations make sense, but getting the right ratio is very important. I think, again that's off of memory.

Exactly how I used to do it - 5 gal batches, used the toothpick, but I use O2 and a stone now. Don't know that the olive oil made much difference vs nothing, but didn't seem to hurt anything.

 

[DrunkleJon]

agree with the others. It uses O2 to build up the glycogen reserves in their cell walls. This allows them to be healthy even after all the reproducing they do (when yeast splits, half of its matter goes with it, that takes away much of its stored food/nutrients). Olive oil has been proved to be able to work for it, but it is a miniscule amount needed, and it is not really viable for homebrew applications when all you really need to do is shake the crap out of normal gravity worts or O2 stone with the imperial types. Using too much can affect head retention too.