Aeration Using Olive Oil, Anybody try this yet? Options

[ElDutcherino]

During a recent trip to my LHBS I was talking to one of the owners about oxygenating my chilled wort before pitching yeast. He highly recommended it. After further discussion, he mentioned that there was this new "aeration" technique using oilve oil whereby no oxygenation/aeration occurs at all. Instead a very small amount of olive oil is added instead. I decided I needed to know more...So I started searching on the web.

I found the following info in my search:
http://meeting.mbaa.com/cfa/ssPresentation...tionID=105& (anybody have access to the MMBA presentation files??)

http://www.babblebelt.com/newboard/thread....tpg=1&add=1

Anybody ever try this?

It seems logical from a chemistry perspective. I'm really curious to see if it's applicable to homebrewing or not.

-El Dutcherino

[drewbage]

Haven't done it yet. But that's largely because the amount of oil that we're talking about it really tiny for our size batches.

Plus, I dunno.. oil.. I'd feel better if I had some solid way of knowing that I could make it miscible, otherwise I'd fear it just floating on top of the krausen not really doing a damn thing.

[realbeerguy]

There has been talk about this on the Mead Lovers Digest, mead-request@talisman.com. Don't know if it would work for beer. The amount of olive oil is miniscule. You mmight be able to find some archives on this topic at http://www.gotmead.com/mldarchives.html

[Guest_Vagus_*]

During a recent trip to my LHBS I was talking to one of the owners about oxygenating my chilled wort before pitching yeast. He highly recommended it. After further discussion, he mentioned that there was this new "aeration" technique using oilve oil whereby no oxygenation/aeration occurs at all. Instead a very small amount of olive oil is added instead. I decided I needed to know more...So I started searching on the web.

I found the following info in my search:
http://meeting.mbaa.com/cfa/ssPresentation...tionID=105& (anybody have access to the MMBA presentation files??)

http://www.babblebelt.com/newboard/thread....tpg=1&add=1

Anybody ever try this?

It seems logical from a chemistry perspective. I'm really curious to see if it's applicable to homebrewing or not.

-El Dutcherino

Im thinkin the important part is to make sure you dont use more lipid than is necessary. The guys on the thread you posted seemed to have difficulty with the concept of a serial dilution. I may have to try this out.

[ElDutcherino]

There has been talk about this on the Mead Lovers Digest, mead-request@talisman.com. Don't know if it would work for beer. The amount of olive oil is miniscule. You mmight be able to find some archives on this topic at http://www.gotmead.com/mldarchives.html

RBG, thanks for the info, I found the following thread: http://www.gotmead.com/component/option,co...90/topic,5977.0

Doesn't look like anyones actually tried it though...

[stangbat]

Is there really any concern about a teeny tiny drop of olive oil hurting head retention? I don't think a small drop of oil is going to completely eliminate bubbles from forming and remaining in the glass, especially if the yeast are going to eat some of it when reproducing. Seems like the beer would only benefit if you would try this.

[Thirsty]

Now if someone were to try this on the 5g or 10g level, would they risk the batch and not aerate at all? If they did to be safe, how would we know if it will work? A split test batch would be in order. Does it matter if it is extra virgin or not?

[Lagerdemain]

I'm curious about this but of course have questions. For one, when should the olive oil be added? To the starter? Or to the wort? If to the wort, can it be added to during or prior to the boil or should it wait until after boil or even until after the wort is boiled and chilled? Will boiling help make the oil more available to the yeast? Does the amount of oil needed vary with the pitching rate?

[RommelMagic]

Until this becomes a tried and true way of aerating/oxygenating, I'll stick with my O2. Maybe even afterwards too...

This post has been edited by RommelMagic: Dec 4 2007, 04:38 PM

[DJ in KC]

I would have paid more attention during my biochem classes if I had known about this back then. (IMG:style_emoticons/brewboard/omg.gif)

Sounds as if they're cheating a little with the krebs cycle. It would be interesting to have a bit more info on this.

dj

[Mike H]

To do a serial dilution, you need to dilute the oil in something that it will dissolve in. You wouldn't want to use another oil, you couldn't use water, and I don't want to put an emulsifier in my beer.

And you need volumetric equipment.

What are we looking at? 83.3 nanoliters? Good luck.

mike

Im thinkin the important part is to make sure you dont use more lipid than is necessary. The guys on the thread you posted seemed to have difficulty with the concept of a serial dilution. I may have to try this out.

[BrewerGeorge]

How did I miss this in May?

Reading around a bit today it looks like the original article may be WAY off in terms of the amount of oil needed - by several orders of magnitude. Also seems that flaxseed oil may be much better. I'm researching...

[ElDutcherino]

How did I miss this in May?

Reading around a bit today it looks like the original article may be WAY off in terms of the amount of oil needed - by several orders of magnitude. Also seems that flaxseed oil may be much better. I'm researching...

It looks like calculations were done at the bottom of this thread showing a requirement of 0.05mL, or about one drop for a 1L starter used for a 5gal batch. They also referred to flax oil due to its higher conc. of Monounsaturated Fatty Acids.

But how to get the Olive Oil into the wort...why not put a drop into the boil. Or maybe on the bottom of the primary prior to racking of cool unfermented wort. Or, even better yet, why not put a drop in the yeast starter and mix it around...then the yeast could feast on it prior to pitching and worst comes to worst it gets mixed into the colled wort.

A split test batch would be in order.

I agree, I think the only way to know is through testing with a control group.

[SkiWithG]

The brewcrazy dot com podcast from 11/1 talked about using olive oil and New Belgian's experimentation.

Glenn

[dagomike]

Someone else do it and let me know. (IMG:style_emoticons/brewboard/wink.gif)

That's weird.