Autolysis

I have seen this come up in beers as young as 6 weeks in smaller fermenters and it is VERY strain dependent. And yes, soy, savory characteristics are most certainly the number 1 associated aroma in beers, especially one’s with darker malts and higher alcohol levels.

-Time
-Temperature
-Yeast strain
-Alcohol content
-Yeast health
-Hydrostatic pressure

These are the major factors in autolysis. What we have found, and yes this is in larger fermenters, is that once a beer is done fermenting, there is nothing to be gained by keeping it on the lees for any longer than a couple of days. Once diacetyl and acetaldehyde are reduced, there is nothing good that comes of keeping it warm.

Originally posted by SarkyNorthener
If we had a Ratebeerian homebrewer award, Gareth would win it.

Originally posted by GarethYoung
So, as long as you brewed your beer in fairly normal circumstances and aged it for a normal amount of time, I think it’s quite unlikely to be autolysis. It’s more likely to be oxidation, which produces flavours that are close enough that people sometimes confuse the two. It could be something else though.

Originally posted by HornyDevil

Originally posted by GarethYoung
So, as long as you brewed your beer in fairly normal circumstances and aged it for a normal amount of time, I think it’s quite unlikely to be autolysis. It’s more likely to be oxidation, which produces flavours that are close enough that people sometimes confuse the two. It could be something else though.

Would completely agree with this assessment. It would, however, be useful to have a recipe and technique to look at to see what we’re dealing with here.