My question is, what minerals/vitamins or any other nutrient makes its way into the final product? How do these nutrients make their way into the final product? What variables affect this process? Temperature, time etc.
I was told by an employee at a brew shop that most of the nutrient remains in the sediment. I have been unable to confirm the validity of this statement.
If this is the case would it be possible to expose certain nutrient to my beer after racking to a secondary?
There is nutrient in the sediment, but even clear wort, post boil, has enough nutrient for the yeast. Dumping everything in can lead to off flavors, let it settle post-boil and try to keep most of that crap out of the fermenter.
You want to be sure you have at least 50 PPM calcium which most municipal tap water has. Zinc and nitrogen also help. Something as simple as 1/2 teaspoon of yeast nutrient at the end of the boil into your 5-6 gallon is enough, but I’m not 100% convinced it does anything, to be honest.
Are you speaking in terms of dietary nutrients?
It’s been said in different publication (men’s health etc) that dark beers have the same cancer fighting properties as red wines.
What else is in beer for nutrients I’m not sure.
[quote=“Nighthawk”]Are you speaking in terms of dietary nutrients?
It’s been said in different publication (men’s health etc) that dark beers have the same cancer fighting properties as red wines.
What else is in beer for nutrients I’m not sure.[/quote]
Yes, dietary nutrients.
It is true that darker beers have more beneficial health properties than their lighter counterparts. However, the darker beers usually have more calories than the lighter beers. Another note is that the health benefits exhibited by darker beers (or any beer for that matter) exist on degree of consumption. The majority of health benefits are reported when only 1 beer a day is consumed, suggesting that over-consumption does not increase health benefits. It in fact reverses any health benefits that may have been obtained otherwise due to dehydration associated with over-consumption and the subsequent loss of water and nutrients the body needs to maintain homeostasis and function normally.
In general, beer contains certain levels of calories, protein, carbohydrates, calcium, magnesium, phosphorous, potassium, sodium, zinc, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, pantothenic acid and vitamin B6. Of course, these nutrients are beneficial to the human body when consumed within levels that support healthy function.
To revise my original question, I guess I would like to know how to increase levels of potassium, sodium, zinc and vitamin B6. My goal is to take the healthy properties of a dark beer and apply it to a light beer while keeping caloric levels low.
i wash down a multi vitamin with my beer from time to time
Who says a dark beer has to be high in calories?
Yeah, isn’t caloric content more a factor of gravity than color?
[quote=“ickyfoot”]Yeah, isn’t caloric content more a factor of gravity than color?[/quote]Yep, OG and FG determine calorie content. Dark beers often are higher on both ends, so have more calories.
For vitamins in the beer, +1 to just taking a multi along with the beer. Anything else is just going to be guesswork.
There are B vitamins and trace minerals from the small amount of yeast in beer, as well as protein from yeast and malt. Residual carbohydrate and ethanol both contribute calories although I wouldn’t really call those nutrients per se. I don’t think the colored components in beer are likely to have nutrient properties since they’re derived from kilning/roasting rather than being natural compounds like the pigments in red wine.
Who says a dark beer has to be high in calories?[/quote]
A medical study done on the health benefits of beer suggested that most darker beers contain more calories. Unfortunately, I cannot find the study I read to link to it.
[quote=“lopezmr22”]A medical study done on the health benefits of beer suggested that most darker beers contain more calories.[/quote]That may be true, but it’s not a rule - you can make a dry, lower-calorie dark beer if you choose.
Right Guinness stout is fairly low carb and low in calories as a result.
+1 It may be true that most darker beers contain more calories than their lighter colored counterparts but the fact is it really has nothing to do with the color of the beer, it’s just that a lot of darker beers tend to be bigger beers. The same can be said for light colored beers, there’s no reason you can’t make a really big, highly caloric yellow beer.
If I’m not mistaken I believe Guinness has fewer calories than a standard American lager(Bud, Coors etc), and not much more than their “light” versions.
Good to know, thanks for the posts!
Beer is a significant source of dietary silicon, a key ingredient for increasing bone mineral density.
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/ ... 020310.php