4 Batchs - Same "off" taste - Help!

barkscruff · 01-05-2012, 01:53 PM

I have been doing extract (w/ specialty grains) for a about 2 years...I have probably done about 4 batches. I have not been completely happy with my results so far. The end product is decent, and I will happily drink it all up, but all of my brews have a bit of an "off" taste to them. I have made 2 cream ale batches, 1 breakfast stout, and 1 IPA. The last batch was the 2nd cream ale, and for this one I was very careful with my fermentation temps. Up until this last batch, I had always fermented in an empty cabinet in my kitchen, which would get very hot at times (especially when cooking). This last batch I bought a stick on thermometer and put the fermentation bucket in a water tub with the temperature controlled by an aquarium heater - set for 68 degrees. The fermentation bucket temp always ready between 68-70.

I thought this last batch was going to be great, I tasted a bottle after 1 week of conditioning and was happy. Now its been bottle conditioned for 3 weeks now, and that same taste is back. Its not awful, but its present. I have tasted other extract home brews and they didn't have this taste.

Could it be the water I am using? I am using regular tap water (NYC - Queens), and when I fill the bucket to the 5 gallon mark after pouring wort in - Its straight from the tap.

Help!

kh54s10 · 01-05-2012, 02:02 PM

It would be very easy to find out if it is your water. Just do a batch with bottled spring water.

Also try fermenting in the low to mid sixties. If you start at 70 degrees your temperature might rise to near 80 degrees at the height of fermentation. When I use my swamp cooler I often rotated 2 bottles of ice for the first few days to keep the temperature down then, after fermentation slows it only takes one bottle.

Look at the yeasts optimum temperature range and go for the colder end.

**DamageCT** · 01-05-2012, 02:48 PM

I have always had an "off" taste for most of my extract brews, once I switched over to all grain the taste never came back.

Other things that helped was oxygenating using an oxygen tank and williams oxygenation wand.
Another thing could be that you would want to atleast filter the water from tap (NYC chloronates their water form what I can tell, so the chlorine may be killing off your yeast or throwing off flavors). MoreBeer.com has a nice carbon filter kit for pretty cheap (I used it on my last batch and I am close to you waterwise, I will let you know how it comes out)

**Bsquared** · 01-05-2012, 02:59 PM

Check this site out with the beer flavor wheel, and try to identify this "off" flavor. This will help with the trouble shooting process.

Tasting Beer

cm02WS6 · 01-05-2012, 04:28 PM

What is the rest of your process? Boil size? Late extract addition? Yeast starter? Yeast type (sounds like it got hot)? Fermentation schedule?

fastenova · 01-05-2012, 05:05 PM

If you don't want to deal with buying spring water, just boil your tap water for 10-15 min and the chlorine will evaporate out, then, pour into a sterilized bucket. As it cools the minerals should precipitate out - you can make the call whether you want them in there or not. If you don't, cool it before you add to the wort. If you do, add it to your wort then cool it. Some people say these minerals are what give unique flavor to certain breweries' beers.