blueberry cream ale problem

hi i wonder if anyone can tell what i might have done wrong i made a cream ale with blueberries that i let sit in primary a 2 day before i pitched the yeast (1056) let it do the primary with no bluerries then moved it to secondary i then put in 2.5 lbs for a week i filtered the junk out a couple of times. bottled it normally and after 2 weeks in the bottle it has a nice red tint very bubbly but it smells and tastes horrid... im waiting amonth before i send it to the garden
what could be the problem???? any help would be appreciated.

You waited two days before you pitched your yeast? That's a long time in homebrewer years. How long did it sit after you pitched your yeast? How did you get the "junk" out? There are too many unknowns here to pinpoint the problem. Can you post the recipe and further details?

The longer you wait to pitch your yeast the more susceptible your wort is to contamination. Also if you didnt sanitize or just mishandled the blueberries, they could have contaminated your batch. Next time I would pitch the yeast as soon as the wort is within the appropriate temperature zone and let the yeasties convert the wort to beer. After they do that the chances for contamination more slim than before. After the primary fermentation is complete then add the sanitized blueberries to the secondary and rack the beer onto them or just add the berries to the primary fermenter. When you say you filtered the junk out it worries me. Depending on you filtering method you may have oxidized the crap out of your beer. Im picturing beer being poured through a strainer. IMO the best way to filter out the junk from the fermenters is simply using a racking cane to siphon the beer to another container and leave the sediment and junk on the bottom of the fermenter. There are many ways to craft a beer and your on the right track by experimenting with blueberries.

thanks i let it sit in primary for a week then moved it to secondary skimmed out the junk with a strainer,,, we had to move twice sooo i suspect youre right that i oxidized my beer.
what off flavors would i getfrom oxidation? i like to filter through a cheese cloth and wondered what damage i may be doing by using that method.
i guess my garden get a boost

Gotta agree, sounds like there are all sorts of potential oxidation and contamination issues here. Have you tried making the cream ale without the blueberries?

eyebrau said:

Gotta agree, sounds like there are all sorts of potential oxidation and contamination issues here. Have you tried making the cream ale without the blueberries?

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Exactly what I was wondering.

Rick

yes i made it before by the numbers at it was great.... was trying to experiment and had to wait because of an accident with the yeast so had to wait to to buy more... i will trying to do this again soon this time i will be starting fermentation right off then aading the blueberries in the secondary
any advice on this?

The only cream ale I have crafted (the word "made" sounds so... barbaric) when I transfered it to the secondary I dry hopped it with sanitised sliced jalapenos. AMAZING beer. It had a green jalapeno flavor, not the hot heat jalepeno. It went great with mexican food. Here is a list of off flavors http://www.howtobrew.com/section4/chapter21-2.html. I dont filter my beer at all, no strainer, no cheese cloth, nothing. When I transfer my wort from the primary to the secondary I siphon it and leave the last little bit in the bottom. This last beer I made I added geletin to the secondary to help clarify it, then when I racked it to the secondary I once again siphoned it and left the sediment behind. I personaly dont worry about "filtering" it because when it sits in the bottle in the fridge for a week or so a lot of the extra stuff with settle to the bottom. I am going to start trying what everyone is telling me. Forget the secondary and let it sit in the primary for 21 days or so. Just be carefull when you move it so you dont kick up the sediment.

im gonna try an american light kit next try to get my process revamped to make sure my process isnt flawed... this is my first bad batch in 2 years of brewing.

So since nobody else actually gave you any advice like you requested... for adding the blueberries, first smash and then freeze the berries (bursts the cell walls, makes it easier to pull the flavor into the beer), then when you're wanting to put them into the fermenter, put them in a bit of water and bring it all up to about 170 degrees to sanitize, then add to the fermenter. Up to you whether you want to add all that water or not, but if you decide not to, make sure whatever spoon or tool you use is sanitized. Watch for additional krausen, depending on what your fermenter is, make sure there's headspace to avoid a messy blowout. when going to bottle, just rack the beer off leaving the trub in place and letting the fruit layer (which should probably be floating at the top) just drop slowly with the beer and avoid getting it into the bottling.

That would be my suggestion.

Cheers.

To add to that, my sincere guesses as to the source of the awful taste and smell is due to infection that either took place:
1) before you pitched the yeast into the wort (2 days at room temperature left to its own devices - near certain infection with all that delicious sugar the bugs love so much)
2) by adding in blueberries that weren't sanitized into a low ABV brew. If you were brewing something that would be over 5% ABV at the point of the fruit addition, you probably wouldn't have to worry too much about infection. Since you were brewing a smaller beer, it's more of a concern.

At any rate, those are two fairly easy fixes that should help avoid the bad flavors next time around.

Though - very curious about what you meant by filtering the "junk" out - what did it look like?

thank you very much for the advice i will try that on the next brew of this beer.. what i wondered about was the beer tasted and smelled good upon bottling... im sure you are right it was infection or over oxidation.
the junk was stuff was a light tan to white skimmed it out a couple of times

eyebrau said:

So since nobody else actually gave you any advice like you requested...

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The OP asked "what could be the problem" to which questions were asked and thoughts given. It's kind of you to offer up your advice, but I don't think it's necessary to start with that.

is it possible that this beer needs to age? im gonna keep it for a month and see before i let anyone else tries it, but so far im taking this as a learning experience and gonna try one again soon thank u all for the ideas on what to do and what my mistake was. i really want a good lighter fruit beer i do well with the heavy beers just want to try the light stuff now.

vikingbrewer70 said:

i will trying to do this again soon this time i will be starting fermentation right off then aading the blueberries in the secondary
any advice on this?

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This is what I was responding to. I had waited about a day and a half for somebody more knowledgeable to answer, but nobody did so I responded. That wasn't a knock at anybody else, more of a "well, here's what I have, whatever it may be worth."

vikingbrewer70 said:

is it possible that this beer needs to age? im gonna keep it for a month and see before i let anyone else tries it, but so far im taking this as a learning experience and gonna try one again soon thank u all for the ideas on what to do and what my mistake was. i really want a good lighter fruit beer i do well with the heavy beers just want to try the light stuff now.

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I certainly don't think there could be any harm in aging, but if the flavor is that strong it probably won't fade. If you have the patience, the space, and the extra bottles, I'd say go for it.

Unless you are inherently opposed to it, you could always try using a blueberry extract rather than actual blueberries. Might get more of what you're going for with less potential chance for infection. And depending on where you live and the season, it might be cheaper also.

That wasn't a knock at anybody else, more of a "well, here's what I have, whatever it may be worth."

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My mistake - I misunderstood.