Made my 8th lager, this time sulfer smell wont dissipate

[brewd00d]

So i have my 8th lager Ive done, lagering in my kegerator. Every one ive done so far, i get the sulfur smell while its fermenting, just like usual, and then go away usually after i condition it. i have also done a diacytl rest for all of them too.

this batch was no different, except this time, 2 weeks into cold storage, it still has a sulfurish smell to it. i don't know what to expect this time. im thinking since it hasn't gone away yet, perhaps it will stay. i tasted it and it has a slight sulfur taste.

any advice on this weird dilemma?

 

[kharper6]

fermentation schedule?

 

[brewd00d]

11 days to ferment out at 54 deg F, put into secondary for 7 days, diacytl rest for 24 hours at 68 deg. F, then into the kegerator at 36 deg. F for cold storage.

i have followed this the same as all the rest, and i dont get it, but im no stranger to knowing that with beer, sometimes weird crap happens and you cant explain it.

 

[showcow]

I would suggest a longer primary and/or doing the diacetyl rest in primary. All that yeast you leave behind when you transfer you NEED, because they are the ones who will be cleaning up the diacetyl and the sulphur and other undesirables. 11 days isn't even enough time for an ale primary if the gravity is above ~1.055 or so. I would do a 3-week primary wih a diacetyl rest at some point, then transfer for lagering. That should help out a lot.

 

[kharper6]

I would do a slightly lower/longer primary. diacetyl until completion, then back to lagering temps.

 

[BigFloyd]

11 days to ferment out at 54 deg F, put into secondary for 7 days, diacytl rest for 24 hours at 68 deg. F, then into the kegerator at 36 deg. F for cold storage.

i have followed this the same as all the rest, and i dont get it, but im no stranger to knowing that with beer, sometimes weird crap happens and you cant explain it.

It sounds like you're trying to do the d-rest after racking it to a secondary. You may want to try leaving it in the primary and ramping it up for the d-rest once it hits 75-80% of the way from OG to expected FG. Finish fermenting in the primary then cold crash it for a week. If you keg, rack and lager in the keg one week or more for every 10 gravity points (1.050 beer = 5 weeks). Or, you can either lager in secondary or bottles.

For the current batch, it's possible for at least some, perhaps all, of that sulfur character to fade with time. Depending on the strain, 54*F may be just a little warm. Is that your beer temp or air? At what temp do you pitch? What's your pitch rate?

 

[dryboroughbrewing]

Sometimes you can reduce the delightful aroma of sulphur by purging your keg a number of times after you put it on the gas.

 

[brewd00d]

i did indeed to the diacytl rest before i racked to secondary, i mistyped in my first post. meant to say i did the rest BEFORE secondary. My OG was only 1.038

Used Saflager-S23. i pitched at about 60 deg, but i figured by the time the yeast gets started the basement temp would have dropped the wort down to about 55 deg. I know its a tad high for S-23, but this is all i used in the past and within the same temp.

is there anything at this point in can do to get rid of the smell or should i just let it sit for a few months and see how it goes?

 

[jhoneycutt]

Sulphur smell? You sir have a beer demon. Give Sam and Dean Winchester a call I'm sure they can fix it up.

 

[brewd00d]

Sulphur smell? You sir have a beer demon. Give Sam and Dean Winchester a call I'm sure they can fix it up.

yeah, i just tried them, seems that the line is busy!

 

[jhoneycutt]

yeah, i just tried them, seems that the line is busy!

Probably should shoot it with a shell loaded with rock salt then encircle the fermentir with more salty so it can't get back in. That's all I got tho

 

[pjj2ba]

I would suggest a longer primary and/or doing the diacetyl rest in primary. All that yeast you leave behind when you transfer you NEED, because they are the ones who will be cleaning up the diacetyl and the sulphur and other undesirables. 11 days isn't even enough time for an ale primary if the gravity is above ~1.055 or so. I would do a 3-week primary wih a diacetyl rest at some point, then transfer for lagering. That should help out a lot.

You do not need the yeast in the cake for clean up! Those yeast have gone dormant, and settled out. It is the active yeast still in suspension that do the clean up. And that may be your problem. 1.012 is a little high FG for a 1.038 OG beer. I'm suspicious that the yeast weren't quite done yet.

Maybe bring it back out of the cold for a bit. Unfortunately you'll need a way to let any CO2 out (along with the sulfur compounds), otherwise it won't help. As dryboroughbrewing said, you can purge with CO2. Hook it up to the beer out post and bubble it through the beer (with the release valve open of course). Keep bubbling until the sulfur smell goes away.