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Date: 12 Aug 2006 15:24:25
From: Cathy Weeks
Subject: Sodium Benzoate in cider and cooking?
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So, I might have gotten a batch of cider that *was* preserved (don't
ask... long story involving employees who no longer work at the
orchard), and that might be why my second batch of cider isn't
fermenting.
I bought 2 gallon jugs, and two half gallon jugs and all but one don't
have labels (no labels is normal). One - to my surprise - had a label
saying it wasn't pasturized but was preserved with Benzoate of Soda
(AKA Sodium Benzoate).
They don't know, and I don't know if the entire 3 gallons I bought was
preserved or not. The only one that was marked that way I used in
applesauce making, so it just doesn't matter if it did have it.
But, that means the 2nd batch of hard cider might not be working (and
the orchard has promised me a free replacement if so), and it also
means that the cider I used to make the cider reduction might also have
it, which means I can't use it to sweeten a batch of cider prior to
fermenting, unless...
What happens to Sodium Benzoate when it's cooked? I'm not a chemist,
and don't remember much of my highschool chemistry. I know *salts*
don't get cooked off - they concentrate, and the "sodium" makes me
leary that this would be the same - that it would be concentrated in
the boiled cider, the same as any other type of salt.
It also says "benzoate of soda has been added at 1/10 of 1 percent to
preserve freshness" I don't have a feel for how much that is, and if it
will make a difference to the fermentation.
So now, I don't know when I can buy cider from them... they don't know
why some were preserved and some weren't. They know they *aren't* doing
it now. So I guess I have to wait until their frozen supply is sold
off, and get only newer stuff. I'm hoping that only the labeled one
did have it.
Grrrr....
Cathy Weeks
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Date: 13 Aug 2006 07:52:16
From: Larry Bristol
Subject: Re: Sodium Benzoate in cider and cooking?
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Cathy Weeks wrote:
> I bought 2 gallon jugs, and two half gallon jugs and all but one don't
> have labels (no labels is normal). One - to my surprise - had a label
> saying it wasn't pasturized but was preserved with Benzoate of Soda
> (AKA Sodium Benzoate).
That's even more potent as a preservative than the potassium sorbate I
mentioned earlier! If that is in the juice at a 0.1% concentration, it's
no wonder you cannot get it to ferment. :-(
> What happens to Sodium Benzoate when it's cooked?
It's the sodium salt made from benzoic acid. (Now *THERE* is a useful
tidbit of information!) I'm not chemist, either, but I don't think
temperatures you could produce in a kitchen would affect it in any way. If
you boil something containing it, you just increase its concentration.
> It also says "benzoate of soda has been added at 1/10 of 1 percent to
> preserve freshness" I don't have a feel for how much that is, and if it
> will make a difference to the fermentation.
A concentration of 0.1% (by weight) is the limit set by the FDA for use as a
preservative in the US. Yes, it will definitely make a difference in
fermentation. At that level, it will prevent growth of almost all
microorganisms, including yeast, bacteria, and fungi.
http://www.soybean.com/sb.htm
--
Larry Bristol --- The Double Luck
http://www.doubleluck.com
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