2,3-butanedione

130 µg

“Diacetyl, like butter, or butter popcorn”

Cider flavour standard used to train professional beer tasters to recognize and scale the intensity of diacetyl character. Butanedione is produced by yeast during fermentation. It imparts a buttery flavour to cider. High levels can be formed by malo-lactic bacteria.

Food grade | free from sensory impurities | extensively tested | safe to smell and taste.

  • Label image
  • Chemical structure

Flavour cards

Flavour standard information

Technical specification

Assessment
Without covering the glass, swirl the beer to release the aroma. Take a single short sniff. Repeat as necessary.
Amount of flavour per capsule
130 µg
Threshold
40 µg / l in cider
Origins
Produced in cider from a precursor formed by yeast during fermentation. Can also be formed by contaminant lactic acid bacteria including Lactobacillus and Pediococcus.
Importance
Desirable flavour in some ciders, off-flavour in others. Secondary fermentation of traditional ciders with malo-lactic bacteria can result in ciders with higher levels of 2,3-butanedione compared with those produced more rapidly.
CAS registry number
431-03-8
Other names
  • diacetyl
  • biacetyl
  • 2,3-butane dione
  • butane-2,3-dione
  • 2,3-diketobutane
  • dimethyl diketone
  • dimethyl glyoxal
  • 2,3-dioxobutane
Remarks
2,3-Butanedione is one of two vicinal diketones found in cider. The ratio of butanedione to pentanedione can be used as an indicator of the source of the diacetyl flavour.
Threshold distribution
Graph
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