stephen115

Recipes 

I brewed some root beer the other day. Left it out in 2 liter bottles to carbonate for a couple of days till the bottle was firm. refrigerated, and then did a taste test. The root beer flavor is there but it has this yeasty flavor to it. also smells like yeast. anyone have a clue on why this is happening and how I can fix it? I followed the recipe. Also, I'm using Fleischmann's ActiveDry Yeast

thank you
SJ

progmac

Recipes 

you might have better luck with a neutral ale yeast like s-04 (youll need to go to a homebrew supply store for this). i think bread yeast has a more pronounced flavor. i made a ginger ale with 1056 (same/similar to s-04) and it turned out perfect.

before giving up on it, let it chill for another couple of days. a ton more yeast will drop out of suspension and that may also help the flavor.

Yooper

Recipes 

The yeasty taste comes from the yeast.

I'd use champagne yeast. It's super neutral and gives me the best soda flavor. It's also super cheap! Red Star Champagne yeast is about $.49 cents a pack, and you only need a portion of the pack.

A couple of other things- chill the soda well, and pour it in one pour so that you don't resuspend the yeast on the bottom of the container by pouring a bit, then some more. If you're got a 2L bottle, I'd pour the glasses in one motion one right after the other and not pour and put down. I started bottling my rootbeer in 16 ounce bottles so that I wouldn't mix up the yeast on the bottom when serving, as 16 ounces is a nice sized serving.

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stephen115

Recipes 

Thank you all! some really fast replies on this forum. I'll the champagne yeast, I looked for it at walmart but I couldn't find it. there is a brew shop close by so I might try there

david_42

Recipes 

Definitely a specialized item that Spralmart wouldn't have.

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stephen115

Recipes 

I got the recommend yeast from my local brewing store. I brewed it saturday around 1pm and today I went to feel the bottles. they were almost rock hard, is this normal? I've heard it takes 3-4 days? also, how long should I leave them in the refrigerator?

thanks
SJ

Yooper

Recipes 

It depends on the temperature- warmer temperatures mean it'll carb up faster. You can leave them in the fridge indefinitely.

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stephen115

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ok thank you. I'm going to do a taste tests and them I'll let you guys know

stephen115

Recipes 

so just cracked it open and poured into a cold mug. first thoughts: Good taste, smooth, good color. right foam, but there is still a yeasty flavor to it. not like the first batch, I can actually drink this batch. Am I always going to get this flavor when I use the yeast? should I look into force carbonation?

Yooper

Recipes 

You shouldn't get yeasty flavor. Try using less champagne yeast in the next batch, and then consider leaving it in the fridge a bit longer so that the yeast all settles on the bottom, and pour off carefully to avoid the yeast.

We made root beer (and ginger ale) for years this way, with good results!

Oh, one other thing- maybe think about using smaller bottles. You could still make up a 2L pitcher of the root beer, but then pour it into 12 oz or 16 oz soda bottles, so you could pour it into a mug in one pour without going up and down to resuspend the yeast that is at the bottom.

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