potassium metabisulfite

[derekcw83]

I have been fighting oxidation in ipas for years now. And I currently try really hard to drink them within a couple weeks, with the first week being by far the most enjoyable. I even began kegging in an attempt to limit oxidation effects. I came accross an article discussing potassium metabisulfite being used in breweries to prevent oxidation in finished product and avoid infections as well.

Is it possible that its really as simple as adding a campden tablet to a newly kegged beer to avoid oxidation and thus prolong hop aroma and flavor???

 

[ccous]

I add a pinch of K meta to my kegs, and my ipas are staying very fresh for the duration they are on tap. Even tho I don’t closed transfer. I think I read comments on here saying not to use it for various reasons, gotta make sure people aren’t allergic to sulphites. Anyways, a pinch works well for me for that window during transfer and before purging.

 

[RPh_Guy]

I've also been wondering why sulfite isn't used... I think maybe because the pH of beer is relatively high that you need to add a lot of it to reach appropriate free SO2 levels.

I've also heard of using a pinch of cinnamon in the mash to prevent oxidation. Not sure if it works. Could be something to try.

Brettanomyces (primary) is great for preventing oxidation since it scavenges oxygen.

Looking at your keg purging process, closed transfer, and spunding are all further things to consider.

Hope this helps. Cheers.

 

[derekcw83]

https://beerandbrewing.com/dictionary/icjVak6iZV/potassium-metabisulfite/

 

[LittleRiver]

I react to sulfites. If I drink wine I get joint pain almost immediately. Some commercial beers will also bother me. It's one of the reasons I home brew.

 

[flars]

There is something going on in your brewing process if you have continuous oxidation problems. Detailing one of your brews that you bottled and had it turned out oxidized within two weeks would be helpful.

 

[derekcw83]

There's not alot to detail,as I've gone up and down the whole process to eliminate oxygen, short of going for the "LODO" process. All my other styles are lasting a month to 2 months with good flavor and aroma. Ipa's last about 3 weeks from pitching, before starting to develop oxidation effects. I've done closed transfers, and now I even transfer to a keg including sugar to stimulate further fermentation and oxygen absorption, this has yielded the best results. But I still detect a quick change over the course of a few weeks.