Will diacetyl clear in the bottle?

[spiffcow]

So I bottled my first lager last week. I did a diacetyl rest for a few days near the end of the primary, but I guess it wasn't long enough. I cracked one open yesterday (I know, too early.. but I was curious and out of beer). It had a VERY slight buttery flavor, but more importantly it had a slick mouthfeel that made it less than refreshing. What are my chances of having this diacetyl up?

 

[unionrdr]

They say that time heals all wounds. This is particularly true of beer. Give it 3-4 weeks to mature & carb up. You'll be surprised at how much better it is. I didn't get a lot of diacetyls in mine. But it did sit on the yeast cake in primary for 12 days total. Then 3 weeks & 3 days in bottles. Give it time...

 

[Clonefarmer]

IME once you have an off flavor such as Diacetyl it's there to stay . It may become more or less apparent as time goes by, but will most likely always be noticeable.

 

[Rhoobarb]

How long did it sit in primary on the yeast? If you did a D'rest and are still getting diacetyl, it's usually b/c you took it off the yeast too soon. Been there, done that, learned from my mistake. You can let it sit warm for awhile and see if that helps. But Clonefarmer is right, once you have it, it usually sticks around. Mine never cleared after weeks in a keg. I finally dumped it to make room for other beers.

 

[theredben]

Sorry, but no it will not. For next time, start your D-rest earlier. Starting the D-rest at 75% of your expected attenuation (that means 3/4 of your 70-85% normal). It may result in a small amount of ester production, but that is a small price to pay to avoid diacetyl. Which yeast did you use? Have you considered switching to a yeast that cleans up more of it diacetyl?

 

[Revvy]

I just read in zymurgy or in BYO this week (I bought both mags to read while recovering) that it is advisable to skip bulk lagering in asecondary all together and just lager in the bottle. Go straight from primary to bottle to fridge or chiller for lagering with a diacytal rest in between.

Also some argue that the fermentation of bottle carbing will clean up diacytel.

So either way we win.

 

[theredben]

That is a good point. The addition of a small amount of fermentables should help clean up a little. Wish I had thought of that before I started lagering 10 gallons of bock 2 weeks ago.

 

[spiffcow]

I just read in zymurgy or in BYO this week (I bought both mags to read while recovering) that it is advisable to skip bulk lagering in secondary all together and just lager in the bottle. Go straight from primary to bottle to fridge or chiller for lagering with a diacytal rest in between.

Also some argue that the fermentation of bottle carbing will clean up diacytel.

So either way we win.

Really? Can you give some specifics? That's awesome if that's true, and I'm not doubting you (you've been doing this WAY longer than I have), but that flies in the face of everything I've ever read on the subject of lagering.

 

[spiffcow]

Just wanted to update, the beer is extremely pleasant now. The diacetyl is barely noticable now. It's not completely crisp, but still very good. It actually tastes a lot like Stella, though maybe that's just because I used Belgian pilsner malt.

 

[smizak]

Good to hear.

I rushed an English IPA and it had a little diacetyl for the first week it was in bottles, but that disappeared after it was done carbing.

+1 to what Revvy says. I lager in the bottles straight from primary as well. You can read a newspaper through them.

 

[spiffcow]

+1 to what Revvy says. I lager in the bottles straight from primary as well. You can read a newspaper through them.

I'm curious about this.. Does the sulfur smell disappear over time? I tried some of my second lager yesterday (it's lagering now), and after a week and a half, it still smells and tastes like sulfur.

 

[smizak]

I'm curious about this.. Does the sulfur smell disappear over time? I tried some of my second lager yesterday (it's lagering now), and after a week and a half, it still smells and tastes like sulfur.

What yeast? My lagers only smell sulfury during active fermentation. They can have some residual sulfur character, but it's usually very light or absent completely. Could be your water too.

 

[spiffcow]

What yeast? My lagers only smell sulfury during active fermentation. They can have some residual sulfur character, but it's usually very light or absent completely. Could be your water too.

Saflager W34/70. It was there while the first batch was in the secondary also, otherwise I'd be pretty worried. Still, I guess I could have an infection.. The slurry did spend almost a month in my fridge.