As brewers, we are used to dealing with sulfur, especially in our lagers. While a small amount can be desirable, nobody wants their nose near a tank that’s producing too much—let alone a finished beer that smells like rotten eggs.
However, as brewers increasingly go beyond beer, we’re learning that we also have to grapple with sulfur as an off-flavor in other beverages. Hard seltzers in particular—along with similarly produced flavored malt beverages (FMBs)—are extremely susceptible to sulfur during fermentation, with a risk of it lingering into the packaged product.
Here, I discuss ways to avoid stressing your yeast and, thus, avoid sulfur in your beer, seltzer, or other beverages.
