Trying for that sulphur smell/taste

[bramswell]

How can i get that sulphur smell and taste that Marston get in their beers
is it down to Burtonising the water or is it the yeast.

what can i do to get that in my brew

[Parp]

I've found that sadly lacking in Marston's beers for a long time.

I remember my first pints of Pedigree and the then Bass owned 'Bass' back when I was 17 years old (1987) and thinking "Farts in a Glass?"

But they were amazing.

The yeast does make a difference.

The most sulphur I've ever noticed in any of my brews has come about using a mix of Nottingham and S-04.

One was over-farty, so may have been some other organism - who knows!

[adm]

Higher sulphate water?

i.e. Use more Calcium Sulphate as opposed to Calcium Chloride for water treatment?

I know bugger all about chemistry, so this is just a wild guess. Chris or Graham probably know the correct answer, plus the theory behind it.....

[bramswell]

I have had a fiddle with the calc and when i select the burton profile is suggests adding less gypsum than if i choose the bitter profile???

may be i'm not reading the water report correctly or even using the calc right,

the last 3 brews i have treated my water and the results have been reasonably good.

but now looking at it i'm not sure i'm getting it right.

[bramswell]

My water here is very hard and going by the alk figure of 231as HCo3 i have to add about 0.9ml of crs per lt of water, so 36ml per 40lts.
the last brew i did i put 1 tsp gypsum in the mash and 1tsp in the treatment before mashing, i did notice more aroma from the fermented batch.

may be i should treat the water as per the calculator first,.. campden, crs then salts
then add 1 tsp gypsum to the mash
and then 1 tsp to the boil
does that sound ok.

[EccentricDyslexic]

Been researchin this sulphurous nose/taste and saw recently brewlabs do a Burton yeast slope that specificaly notes it has sulphuriness. I will be getting some of this, i wonder if it is the same yeast as the one used for Pedigree and for Bass...they both have the same nose to me so i suspect so.

Where do brewerys get their yeast from?

Steve

[coatesg]

Where do brewerys get their yeast from?

A lot of the smaller ones use dries S04 or Nottingham. Others keep their own yeast banks, and harvest wash and repitch their strains.

Brakspear definitely does have the sulphurous nose - though it will depend on how long you keep it before drinking - on cask, a fresh batch will be strongly sulphurous, whereas it will fade away as it ages.

[Dr. Dextrin]

Getting a sulphur taste to match commercial brews is actually much easier than you might think. Just add a few Campden tablets (which produce sulphur dioxide) at the end of fermentation before you keg your beer. I think some brewers add sulphur dioxide to inhibit oxidation in the cask. I've experimented with it, and it does seem to work to slow down oxidation, but more importantly you'll immediately recognise that sulphur twang you get in a few pub beers.

I use Campden tablets regularly in wine making, where they're pretty undetectable. For some reason, however, they seem to add a flavour to beer. You need to get the dose right, though. Once you've over-dosed on sulphur you won't ever want to use it again. I'm still re-adjusting to it after a bad experience with some eggs about 18 months ago.

I suggest starting with about 2 Campden tablets per 5 galls. If you really like your sulphur, you might go up to 5 per 5 gall, but I think that's about the limit. It may depend on the type of beer, of course.

[WishboneBrewery]

The Whitelabs Burton Ale yeast I made into splits smelt nice and sulphurous when fermenting the large starter but when brewing a full batch I never detected any sulphur

[clogwog]

I don't understand why you wish to encourage a characteristic which most beer judges would consider a fault?

Am I missing something?

[EccentricDyslexic]

To me its not about wanting the sulphur taste or smell, (to me its a faint sulphurous wiff in pedi and Bass) its more about getting close to cloning the cask original from me local. If this yeast from brewlab with its stated sulphur character (2556 Burton 1) is close to the one used for pedi and bass, im happy.

steve

[DarloDave]

I don't understand why you wish to encourage a characteristic which most beer judges would consider a fault?

Am I missing something?

If you enjoy the taste of it, and its not going to be judged, why not try and get a certain characteristic?

[unclepumble]

Pedi and Bass will smell and taste similar, as far as I know they use the same yeast, and are brewed in the same place Marstons
Only the Bass name changed brewery's, the original Bass yeast didn't as far as I am aware.

UP

[OldSpeckledBadger]

Pedi and Bass will smell and taste similar, as far as I know they use the same yeast, and are brewed in the same place Marstons
Only the Bass name changed brewery's, the original Bass yeast didn't as far as I am aware.

UP

Marston's do indeed brew Bass for Interbrew (who only seem capable of brewing chav juice). Whether they use the original Bass yeast or they own yeast I don't know. I suspect they use their own yeast to avoid problems of cross-contamination.

[Brotherton Lad]

There's a natural sulphur spring between the Strid and Bolton Abbey. Perhaps stick half a pint of that in for the real rotten egg experience. Sulphur water has been used for centuries in spas for drinking and bathing. Stinks to high heaven though.