Accidentally introduced Sulfur Dioxide to my beer

Discussion in 'Homebrewing' started by Mongrel, Feb 19, 2015.

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  1. Mongrel

    Mongrel Initiate (0) Feb 14, 2013 Maryland

    Hey gang,
    I brewed a blonde ale a few weeks ago that I fermented with US-05. After a week I racked to secondary and pitched in .5 lb of dried apricots rehydrated in white grape juice, along with bottle dregs from a few Brett beers.

    I became concerned shortly after pitching, when I realized the dried apricots were preserved with sulfur dioxide. Still, the secondary fermentation seemed to take off quickly and after just two weeks of exposure, the beer has some definite Brett character.

    So my concern at this point is: when I bottle this beer in a couple months, will there be any viable yeast left for bottle conditioning, or will the sulfur dioxide (a preservative) effectively kill all yeast by this point? Any thoughts?
     
    #1 Mongrel, Feb 19, 2015
  2. Brew_Betty

    Brew_Betty Initiate (0) Jan 5, 2015 Wisconsin

    Although it isn't recommended, I've used dried fruit with preservatives and didn't have a problem with fermentation or bottle conditioning, but they weren't aged for several months.

    You can always add some yeast at bottling time for insurance.
     
    #2 Brew_Betty, Feb 19, 2015
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  3. billandsuz

    billandsuz Pooh-Bah (2,097) Sep 1, 2004 New York
    Pooh-Bah

    I don't think you have anything to worry about.
    All things being equal, the presence of sulfur dioxide on the fruit did not inhibit the re-fermentation. And it won't stop the yeast from bottle conditioning either.
    Cheers.
     
    #3 billandsuz, Feb 19, 2015
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