Ok folks what do you do with your batches that suck? i tend to leave them alone for a long time if that does not work i get piss drunk and add a lot of batches together in a 15 gallon dimijohn and put the sour bugs to them and let them go for a long time. ive done this and added to a existing batches and saved the little bit that lays on the yeast and added it to the dimijohm. i gotta say the bugs do good things
what do you do with your bad batches
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ThatOneGuy
Well-Known Member
Havent had an infection yet, but if aging didnt help, id most likely drink it anyway. Unless im ready to brew and its taking up keg space, then its down the drain.
Dirty25
Well-Known Member
I have had 2 "bad" batches out of probably 100. I just dump them no use drinking crapy beer and **** ain't worth m time to save I believe.
I typically will try to age it for a little bit longer, If the flavor does not improve I will just dump it.. Those kegs are better used for something that has great flavor.
I've only had to dump 2 batches so far out of around 50+ now.
I've only had to dump 2 batches so far out of around 50+ now.
I dump them the minute I would like to reuse the container(s) they're sitting in. I find that blending takes away from a perfectly good beer to make a mediocre one. I currently dump about half of what I make.
Kolsch_Meister
Well-Known Member
I currently have a batch that I really don't care for. I have been blending it with Bud Light Platinum and it goes down pretty well.
I am still a relatively new brewer at 2 years 4 months and have not had to make the decision on what to do. I have had beers that were not as good as others but even my worst was far better than BMC beers.
Hope my luck holds for a couple more decades.
Hope my luck holds for a couple more decades.
I tend to do pilot batches of about 1 gal before commiting to 5 gals. If the 1 gal goes south, I dump it. I have only had 1 5 gal go wrong due to a dropped hydrometer, and that one works really well for cooking with.
My wife makes beer battered fish, beer chicken (chicken roasted in a can of beer), bread, and pizza dough with it.
My wife makes beer battered fish, beer chicken (chicken roasted in a can of beer), bread, and pizza dough with it.
timrox1212
Well-Known Member
Only had one batch that I would consider a dumper, my buddy liked it ( he would probably drink fermented gasoline) so I gave him the remaining 40 bottles after I saved a six pack to age.
I'm a cheap skate and seldom let anything go to waste. I drink them.
Of course, I've never had an infected batch, and have always had pretty good luck brewing beer that tastes either really good, or at least drinkable. Even my "bad" batches are drinkable.
Of course, I've never had an infected batch, and have always had pretty good luck brewing beer that tastes either really good, or at least drinkable. Even my "bad" batches are drinkable.
do you brew a lot or not so much ?
I would be in tears if I had to dump 50% of what I brewed
or maybe you are brewing test stuff ?
all the best
S_M
reverendj1
Well-Known Member
I have 2 cases now of beer that is not so great. One was a watermelon wheat which tastes like watermelon rind. I scraped the watermelon meat out and juiced it. I must have gotten a little close to the rind or something. I usually keg half/bottle half of each batch (when I have a keg open). I sort of saved the kegged half by adding a little watermelon extract to it. It wasn't good, or something I'd share, but it was drinkable. But the bottles are pretty bad. I also have an amber that got an infection. It mellowed out in the keg (which I drank and actually turned out well), but the bottles are pretty nasty. I'm going to keep drinking them until I can't stand any more. I think forcing yourself to drink your mistakes makes you pay a little more attention so you don't make those mistakes again.
I am sure it does
chemman14
Well-Known Member
This is a time when a still would be nice... just sayin haha
scubasteve03
Well-Known Member
I have never had anything turn out right nasty. With that said I usually drink them anyway. If I did have something turn out disgusting I would probably dump it, tho I do like the idea of throwing it in another fermentor with some sour bugs.
feinbera
Well-Known Member
Only thing I've ever tossed is about half a batch where I failed to get the caps to correctly seal... just don't think there's much to be done with flat, oxidized beer.
ive often thought of freeze condensing but that would just condense the nasty. your idea would cure that im sure
Diaperload
Well-Known Member
My club gives bad batches to one of our members. He takes them home and "filters" them and brings back just the alcohol.
do you brew a lot or not so much ?
I would be in tears if I had to dump 50% of what I brewed
or maybe you are brewing test stuff ?
all the best
S_M
It was hard at first. It gets easier every time.
ATM I could dump 4 out of 5 kegs in the fridge. But just haven't had time to brew replacements. I'm no brewmaster...
corpsman619
Well-Known Member
So your saying that every other brew for you is a bad batch?? That is CRAZY!
I'm not saying they're all bad. Though last year was all bad batches due to tannins/bicarbonates issue.
There is various reasons this year. Like:
Thought I would dump the whole can of apricot puree in instead of wasting the other half.
2 kegs of kolsch where something weird happened and they never fully fermented and the yeast never settled. Wierd because same exact recipr made yeast cake and was delicious.
The keg of bcs hop hammer that tastes like cardboard.
The keg of Janet's brown that was scrumptious, but has taken months to kill and the hops have gone from sharp to dull and fruity.
I fell your pain
I am indeed no brewmaster nor will I very be and I have only been brewing since mid July this yearI just mashed in a second brew of a Vienna SMaSH which for me is 110 gallons and by the grace of God I have not had a batch that I would have even thought of dumping
all the best in your brewing
S_M
BrewinHooligan
Well-Known Member
I used to make myself drink my mistakes so I would learn. Now I am starting up a Nano and don't have the time or space for bad or even mediocre beer. If it is bad, it gets dumped but that is not something that happens often.
reverendj1
Well-Known Member
It helps me keep humble too.
Of course, I've only had a couple bad batches in ~40. A few more that weren't what I wanted, sure, but only a couple bad ones.The problem here was that you put watermelon in your beer!
Hey now. Nothing wrong with fruit beers. I'm going to do it again next year, but I'm just going to be a lot more careful and make sure I only use the middle meat. I actually had another one last night and it wasn't as bad as I remembered.
Depends on how bad is "bad." If, after giving it extra time to condition and it's still undrinkable, I pour it out. Nothing more I can do to fix it. I've given it enough attention and I can use the bottles for another batch. I've only done that once, last winter, with a batch of Irish red that turned out to be a butterbomb. I might be doing it again with a brown ale with a metallic/astringent flavor if it doesn't condition out in a few more months.
But if it's just so-so or not what I expected, but drinkable, I keep it for my personal, everyday stash in the fridge. I just won't serve it to guests.
But if it's just so-so or not what I expected, but drinkable, I keep it for my personal, everyday stash in the fridge. I just won't serve it to guests.
beersk
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Infected beers get dumped. Mediocre beers get dumped depending on if I have something I want to replace it with. I like to brew, so I don't like the same beer sitting around for more than about a month. Life is too short to drink bad beer.
NuclearRich
Well-Known Member
I like the idea of blending the crappier tasting beer with some bugs and letting it fly for a long time. Bugs tend to clean alot of off flavors, from what I have read. I have a summer wheat right now that is just plain meh. I will drink it but im not excited. Have been contemplating dumping it, but now.... I will hold onto the bottles. If they dont get better, they get used for some wild funk!
mikescooling
Well-Known Member
I brew, more or less the same beer over and over, just making little changes. If I have a beer I don't like, I give them to friends, non brewers can be stupid. I make a stoute that is mind blowing, they say Ewww "it's yeast'y"; then I make an IPA where the hops flavor just didn't come out at all, and their like "this is best beer I've ever had".
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