Stainless Scrubbie on Dip Tube - Ruined Beer?

So one of my tea balls I was dry hopping with opened up inside my keg and clogged the dip tube. I fixed the clog and put a stainless steel scrubbie on the end of the dip tube to try to keep any more hop chunks out. Beer tasted fine last night. Today I tried a sample and the beer REEKED of metal and tasted like sucking on a penny. I can't imagine I can save this batch can I? I was so excited about this beer!

To make matters worse: I tried to get the scrubbie off the end of the dip tube. It fell off and now lives at the bottom of the keg. SWMBO says to dump it...

If the metallic flavor was from that scrubby, I'd say the odds it was actually stainless steel seem pretty long.

It's a bit early to call it a dumper, imo. Fish the scrubby out somehow - sanitized a friggin' coat hanger if that's all you have - then give the beer a few days of good ignoring before sampling it again...

Cheers!

The scrubby may not have been stainless, but possibly some sort of coated copper. It still may not have changed the taste of the beer that quickly (24 hours).

How is the carbonation level? I have had over carbonated beer that had a metallic taste probably from the carbonic acid that resulted from over carbonating a keg.

Scrubbies are cheap. So it most likely not food grade stainless.

I ended up dumping...gave it a chance but it was toast. Tasted like biting tinfoil. Reeked like metal. My basement smells like metal from dumping it. It wasn't carbed so that isn't it. Lesson learned

'Twas my first dumped beer. Mayyyyybe could have aged it for a few months to see if it got better, but this was a hoppy wheat...meant to be drank as young as possible. Oh well on to pumpkin beer!

Well. This is my rule on brewing equipment: Only use items design for the intended purpose.


We like to think outside the box on many things, sometimes we rationalize ideas waaay to much.

Crito said:

Well. This is my rule on brewing equipment: Only use items design for the intended purpose.

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That sounds like a pretty expensive rule that takes all the DIY fun out of brewing. So you wouldn't use a cooler as a mash tun? Or a chest freezer as a kegerator?

Glad I read this one, I was thinking of dry hopping in a keg. I'll just stick with doing it in the fermenter! Thanks OP! Better days ahead...

Ive seen things such as this which look helpful. some are a bit more robust and have a screw on cap so you can just have it off to the side of the dip tube and fill it up (makes clean up easier)

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Homebrew-Ho...e-Filter-Dry-Hopping-/300919815583#vi-content

drop a magnet in the keg?

zachattack said:

That sounds like a pretty expensive rule that takes all the DIY fun out of brewing. So you wouldn't use a cooler as a mash tun? Or a chest freezer as a kegerator?

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I do have a nice SS mash tun. I tried the cooler mashtun twice to see if I liked all grain then ordered a SS mashtun soon after. The cooler I had had food grade inside. I forgot what the temp max was on it.

All I am saying is that I try to use items that are in contact with food that were intended to be used in a similar manner. A SS scrubbie in my opinion wasn't meant to be used in long term food contact.

Its my just personal opinion. (Even if everyone thinks my way if thinking is wrong, which most of my homebrew friends think my way of thinking is wrong)

brent77 said:

Ive seen things such as this which look helpful. some are a bit more robust and have a screw on cap so you can just have it off to the side of the dip tube and fill it up (makes clean up easier)

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Homebrew-Ho...e-Filter-Dry-Hopping-/300919815583#vi-content

Click to expand...

Thanks, this looks pretty darn useful!

BeerGrylls said:

drop a magnet in the keg?

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jonathanchapman1 said:

Thanks, this looks pretty darn useful!

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I have seen this online at midway and Austin. Another member recommend boiling them before use due to the folding of the metal. (To kill any bugs)

Never heard of anyone complaining about them

hey this happened to me recently as well. when i first went to tap the IIPA it immediately clogged up from some pellets that got transferred from primary. i bought "stainless steel" scrubbies at the hardware store, and it immediately solved the clogging issue. had some friends over a few days later, and luckily we drank most of the keg without noticing any metallic flavors.

about a week later, however, i started to notice a harsh, astringent, metallic bite on the finish that never went away until the keg kicked soon after. glad to find some affirmation that it was likely the scrubbies' fault and not some flaw in the rest of my process.

i wonder if boiling the scrubby would rid it of those flavors, but next time i'll probably just do a closed transfer to a new keg.