Has anyone heard of this additive, "Beano"? First I've heard of it.
Somebody has obviously spammed Wikipedia well with it:
Use in the brewing of beerSimple sugars are also produced as a consequence of the malting process that eventually produces beer. The complex sugars are not broken down by the yeast, and are eventually consumed by the beer drinker, possibly causing flatulence. Homebrewers have found that it is possible to add Beano to their brew to produce a beer that causes less flatulence. The Beano breaks the complex sugars into simple sugars, and these simple sugars are consumed by the yeast, producing alcohol (or some acetic acid in the aerobic reactions in early fermentation).
The addition of Beano to the brew reduces the complex sugar content of the final product, thereby reducing the carbohydrate content of the beer, and also slightly increasing the alcohol content of the beer. A disadvantage of the addition of Beano to homebrew is that the lower carbohydrates lead to less head retention of the beer, the loss of the sugars results in a less sweet flavour of the final product, and fewer of the malty flavours are conveyed since some of those flavours are from the complex sugars that are affected.
The addition of Beano to homebrew beer (at a rate of about four tablets per 5 gallon brew) gives a low flatulence, low carbohydrate beer (about half the carbohydrates that it would otherwise have), but also alters some of the flavours of the beer. The loss of flavour is less apparent the darker the beer is, and the higher the alcohol content of the beer (since the alcohol numbs the tastebuds somewhat). Consequently it is suggested that a dark ale or a stout would be the best candidates for the use of Beano with minimal effect on the final taste of the beer.
http://
[edit] Caution
Homebrewers who add Beano to their beer fermentation should expect to see slightly lower final gravity readings than they are used to for a given recipe, so should wait until they get two identical hydrometer readings at 24 hours apart before deciding that the fermentation has finished. Not doing so may increase the risk of exploding beer bottles
????
Edit: sounds like some sort of dry enzyme perhaps.
Somebody has obviously spammed Wikipedia well with it:
Use in the brewing of beerSimple sugars are also produced as a consequence of the malting process that eventually produces beer. The complex sugars are not broken down by the yeast, and are eventually consumed by the beer drinker, possibly causing flatulence. Homebrewers have found that it is possible to add Beano to their brew to produce a beer that causes less flatulence. The Beano breaks the complex sugars into simple sugars, and these simple sugars are consumed by the yeast, producing alcohol (or some acetic acid in the aerobic reactions in early fermentation).
The addition of Beano to the brew reduces the complex sugar content of the final product, thereby reducing the carbohydrate content of the beer, and also slightly increasing the alcohol content of the beer. A disadvantage of the addition of Beano to homebrew is that the lower carbohydrates lead to less head retention of the beer, the loss of the sugars results in a less sweet flavour of the final product, and fewer of the malty flavours are conveyed since some of those flavours are from the complex sugars that are affected.
The addition of Beano to homebrew beer (at a rate of about four tablets per 5 gallon brew) gives a low flatulence, low carbohydrate beer (about half the carbohydrates that it would otherwise have), but also alters some of the flavours of the beer. The loss of flavour is less apparent the darker the beer is, and the higher the alcohol content of the beer (since the alcohol numbs the tastebuds somewhat). Consequently it is suggested that a dark ale or a stout would be the best candidates for the use of Beano with minimal effect on the final taste of the beer.
http://
[edit] Caution
Homebrewers who add Beano to their beer fermentation should expect to see slightly lower final gravity readings than they are used to for a given recipe, so should wait until they get two identical hydrometer readings at 24 hours apart before deciding that the fermentation has finished. Not doing so may increase the risk of exploding beer bottles
????
Edit: sounds like some sort of dry enzyme perhaps.