Do bugs eat Splenda?

[blakelyc]

Hi! So I need to backsweeten a raspberry lambic made with roeselare, and I would prefer to do so without pasteurization. For meads, I have used Splenda. Does this work with bugs or do they have some mutant metabolism that allows them to consume even that?

Cheers,
-blake

 

[day_trippr]

Oh boy! Science Experiment!

But...no, yeast were invented way before Splenda, and I'm pretty sure they haven't acquired the knack of breaking that down yet.

That said, you could also use lactose...

Cheers!

 

[peanasky]

day_trippr has the right idea. The bugs probably don't have any way to break it down. Or if you feel like being really sure, you could just use lactose, though it might have a slightly different taste than the Splenda.

 

[MBTB]

From what I've been reading, Splenda contains 95% dextrose and maltodextrin with the remaining 5% being sucralose. I could not find the actual percentage of dextrose vs. maltodextrin. So some of the splenda will ferment and some will not. The sucralose is allegedly 100 times sweeter than sucrose and is not metabolized in the body which tells me it will not ferment. We all know maltodextrin is not fermentable by beer yeast. I believe for back sweetening, Splenda will probably work somewhat in any case.

 

[joseepulido]

MBTB: From what i understand the splenda you get in packets is cut with dextrose so that the sweetness per volume is similar to regular sugar. You can purchase splenda that is just maltodextrose and sucralose but that is 20x sweeter by volume than regular sugar.

Blakelyc: I am trying to do something similar and by my research Splenda will cause negligible fermentation, but be aware of how potent it is and which Splenda formulation. There is a baking splenda that is part normal sugar part splenda. There are the packets which are mostly dextrin. And they also sell normal Splenda which is usable. I would be interested to see what the recipe is and hear how it turns out. I have been thinking about doing something like this myself.

 

[blakelyc]

I have had success backsweetening ciders with splenda, but I wasn't sure if the additional organisms would do something different. anyways, I'm gonna give it a go... I may peel off a small bit and try it. After all, its a lambic... not like it is going anywhere in a hurry Will definitely report back results.