Beginner with a Q concerning after taste

Hello all.

New to brewing...started a few months ago. Prefer hefeweizen style, so that is what I've started out with.
My first batch was a BSG kit. I tried some right away, as expected it was undercarbonated, but I felt the flavor was great.
Bottled.
Tried one after about a week. I noticed it was still a bit undercarbonated and...for lack of a better description...the flavor that I really liked had turned to a bit of a wine after taste flavor.
Tried one again at the 18 day mark. The wine after taste was still there...although not as prominent...with a bit of a bitter flavor taking over.

I thought...maybe I'd done something wrong...until the next batch...a Brewer's Best kit...had a similar result.

Both kits I followed the directions to a "T"...and the gravities were spot on with what the instructions said they would be.

Being new...I'm not quite sure what to attribute the "wine" after taste to. If its the fact Im using a kit...liquid extract...dry yeast...etc? Temps? Fermenting temp...I made a swamp cooler for the bucket...and the water temp it was in stayed steady at 65°F. Once bottled, I kept them in a dark...65°-68°F range.

Any information/tips would be greatly appreciated! I'm enjoying the hobby immensly...and despite not getting "exactly" the results I've been shooting for...have been drinking my beer none the less...and loving it.

Thanks in advance.

First off, you're trying the beers too early... 2-3 weeks minimum when bottle conditioning. That's likely why you're experiencing under carbonation. As for the wine taste, could you describe it better? Sherry-like? Estery (fruity)? Alcoholic? The more specific you are, the more experienced brewers can help you figure out the possible issue/causes.

The under carbonation I was expecting. I was just sampling a bottle at those points to see what sort of flavor was developing.

The "wine" taste...I don't drink a lot of wine...but I have at special occasions...and it's that dry...alcohol...type of a taste.
I wish I could describe it better. It's just the first thing that popped in to my head after taking a drink. Like I just taken a swig of wine.

Cool. What were your gravities? OG and FG? What were the ingredients/fermentables in this recipe? What yeast strain? Did you make a yeast starter?

Looked up the BSG Select Bavarian Hefeweizen Kit to find the recipe instructions and ingredients. Instructions for brewing aren't posted. That is one expensive kit.
Need more information like NordeastBrewer77 asks.

Here is an "Off Flavor Guide" from MoreBeer.com

http://morebeer.com/content/homebrew-off-flavors

Thanks for all the replies!

BSG:
Fermentis WB-06
OG - 1.050
FG - 1.010

Brewer's Best:
Danstar Munich Wheat Beer Yeast
OG - 1.050
FG - 1.013

The closest thing I can come up with from the link geoffm33 posted is oxidation. But...the descriptions on how it occurs doesn't sound like anything I did.

Hmmm, so maybe sherry-like? But with such a young beer I doubt that kind of oxidation has occurred. Could you be tasting the more pronounced fruitiness of bavarian wheat beer yeast? both those strains can kick some very noticeable fruity (banana, pear, etc.) esters. With such a young beer, those could be very prevalent. Just thoughts, but could be it.

Yeah...I'm not totally sold based on the descriptions. I transfer using a siphon...being very careful not to splash.
Bottles I filled to 1/2" or so.

I've made sure to take very specific notes. To use when comparing outcomes.
Maybe I just need more batches under my belt.
Wish I'd of caught on sooner. Having a blast. Even though I haven't nailed down exactly what I'm after yet...they still taste great cause I made em myself.

Could the taste be "hot"? From fermenting at a too-warm temperature maybe?

Not sure on the taste but you are bottle conditioning a little on the cold side and that will make it take longer to carb and condition. Put those bottles somewhere at 70f or a little warmer and check again in a week or so.

Yooper said:

Could the taste be "hot"? From fermenting at a too-warm temperature maybe?

Click to expand...

I wondered that too, but 65º ambient shouldn't be too warm for those yeasts.

Yooper said:

Could the taste be "hot"? From fermenting at a too-warm temperature maybe?

Click to expand...

That is what I think. When I made my first batches, I would have described the green taste as "wine"
Sharp alcohol and yeast bite.

65 degree ambient temp could be closer to 70+ internal temps.

brewkinger said:

That is what I think. When I made my first batches, I would have described the green taste as "wine"
Sharp alcohol and yeast bite.

65 degree ambient temp could be closer to 70+ internal temps.

Click to expand...

Hey folks, clear something up for me please. The OP is using a swamp cooler. So, shouldn't the temp of the water bath surrounding the bucket/carboy be the same as the temp of the liquid within the container? I'm thinking of the thermal mass of all the water surrounding. I hope I'm right because I rely on swamp coolers/thermal mass to moderate all my temps- fermentation, cold crashing, lagering.

JimRausch said:

Hey folks, clear something up for me please. The OP is using a swamp cooler. So, shouldn't the temp of the water bath surrounding the bucket/carboy be the same as the temp of the liquid within the container? I'm thinking of the thermal mass of all the water surrounding. I hope I'm right because I rely on swamp coolers/thermal mass to moderate all my temps- fermentation, cold crashing, lagering.

Click to expand...

You are right. I must have missed that when I read the posts.
I do think that the plastic bucket must provide a small insulating effect though, so internal temps could be a degree or two higher.
I think I even read once that internal temps at center of wort mass can be higher than perimeter.

Yeah...I was checking the water temps pretty religiously the first few days and was pretty impressed with how well it was holding the temp I was shooting for. I figured 65F...allowing for 5 degrees or so internal...not putting me much over 70F.
I've got a batch I was going to brew this weekend...I'll try 5 degrees cooler on this one...compare the results.

What struck me a bit odd was...when I tried one after 3 days...it was perfect. That flavor didn't show up till I tried the 2nd one at the 10 day point.

My first beer did that too. First couple of beers were good then got a bite to it after another week or so. I found out my water co uses chloromine and started treating it with campden tabs my 4th batch and been great since. The first 3 batches (all untreated) all had an off flavor to varying degrees.