Has anyone ever bought a commercial beer this this much yeast?

I picked up a bottle of local craft beer (won't name names) -- a beer I've had probably 20-30 bottles of in the past month -- and when I poured, it had an incredible amount of suspended sediment. It looked to me almost like the "egg drop" hot break you get with Whirlfloc. It tastes very puckeringly astringent (the classic overbrewed black tea flavour) and is definitely not something I wanted to drink.

I reached out to the brewery, and was put through to the brewmaster; after sending off photos, I received the response that it was "more than normal, but just yeast" and that "because the beer is so popular, we've had to shorten the aging time so the yeast doesn't settle out as much." Apparently they're looking to switch to a different yeast to accomodate this. That was it. (EDIT: rereading the email, it sound almost like they're going to use the same strain, but culture a population that's more powdery than the existing population)

I will admit I'm a bit turned off -- does this look like what you would expect out out of a commercial bottle from an established craft brewer? Has anyone had a similar experience? I will admit I'm a bit annoyed they didn't even offer to replace the bottle

Photos below.

Uh, yeah, their response was...interesting. People really like the beer so they're now cutting corners to get it out quicker?!!? Maybe I'll be odd man out here, but what you have in your glass is unacceptable.

I wouldn't be buying that brand again. The brewmaster's response is a load of c*@p. There are simply too many other well made beers out there to spend money on. Bummer.

Let me ask this though, what style of beer is this and did you agitate the beer or pour too aggressively?

I would steer clear of the brewery from now on based on the brewmaster's response. He told you in no uncertain terms that they're cutting corners and more interested in moving product quickly than in moving quality product. I would get back to him and say that whether he thinks it's normal or not, it does not meet your standards and ask for a refund on the product. I've never seen any commercial beer look like that (haven't ever seen a homebrew look like that either) and I can only imagine what the average consumer would think of pouring a beer that looked like that. Their first thought wouldn't be "yeast" it would be "mold" or something similar.

If they are cutting corners with time who knows what else they are cutting corners with. Sanitation? Ingredients?

That's such an inappropriate response that I don't even believe it. I think he just didn't want to be bothered. Either way, I wouldn't buy their beer again.

No. That's not normal. That is the opposite of normal. That is a mistake.

"Our beer with blobs of gross gunk in it is so popular we're looking for ways to eliminate the gross gunk. But the gross gunk is completely normal."

No.

This looks like a year old unfiltered wheat beer. I used to have to stock up on Bell's Oberon since it is seasonal. I once had a few that got lost in the beer fridge for a year. That's exactly what it looked like.

SledgeH said:

This looks like a year old unfiltered wheat beer. I used to have to stock up on Bell's Oberon since it is seasonal. I once had a few that got lost in the beer fridge for a year. That's exactly what it looked like.

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I just had a few Bell's Oberon this past week. They definitely had sediment that got stirred up pretty easily, but nothing as bad a what the OP is showing.

Me too...it's now refered to as Bells Chuncky Monkey at my house.

BeardedIdiot said:

I just had a few Bell's Oberon this past week. They definitely had sediment that got stirred up pretty easily, but nothing as bad a what the OP is showing.

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Geordan said:

I received the response that it was "normal" and that "because the beer is so popular, we've had to shorten the aging time so the yeast doesn't settle out as much."

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Sorry, I have to come back to this and really stress what a horrible business practice this is. When your product is so popular you can't keep it stocked you find ways to expand your capacity, you don't lessen the quality of your product. I predict they'll be more readily able to keep their beers in stock when everyone stops buying it because they don't want gross white stuff floating in it.

I once had a ton of sediment (not quite *this* bad) in some Rogue Mocha Porter six pack due to mishandling after the beer left the breweries hands.

I shot them an email, and not only did they respond with an apology and explanation as to what it was, they sent me a handwritten letter and 3 bombers. Very classy.


As for the OP, I'd stop buying from this brewery. As others have mentioned, they are obviously more concerned with quantity over quality, and to get such a response from them just shows that they're really not concerned with your business.

Nope nope nope

Actually, yes - that doesn't look far off from Sterkens Dubbel, which has a ton of chunky yeast (and tastes pretty great). However, the response you got from the brewers isn't encouraging.

You need to write them back and ask for a refund. If they refuse, name them so we can drag their name through the coals!

I've had beers with about 1/2'' of sediment at the bottom. They were Belgians aged for a couple years in the bottle. Normal.

Never had a fresh beer like the OP. No excuse for that.

Shooter said:

Let me ask this though, what style of beer is this and did you agitate the beer or pour too aggressively?

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This and name names....I don't see why you are protecting a company that wont stand behind their product and treat their consumers with more respect

I understand why you might not want to mention the name of the beer and the brewery.

With that said, please mention the name of the beer and the brewery.

Interesting...
I had a bottle of Bell's Amber Ale Friday evening that looked JUST like that!
The previous 5 were not like that. It tasted OK...

It was the last bottle from a variety pack case purchased in (maybe??) February.
I thought maybe it was something I did, but it sat with all my other beers in a 65 degree dark basement
before it was put in the fridge for a couple days to a week. I never had a problem with keeping them there.

Its possible you got a bottle right from the end of a tank. Was this a single, or a sixer, and if it was a sixer, did you check the others? I've seen hef's from the end of a tank pour with a solid inch of yeast/trub in the glass.

Wait...a craft brewery served one bad beer out of 30 ?

Time for a boycott!

Geordan said:

it was "normal" and that "because the beer is so popular, we've had to shorten the aging time so the yeast doesn't settle out as much."

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Have they not heard of filtration?

Heck, even if they want to bottle condition, they can bottle condition with a much smaller amount of yeast in the bottle and add it separately after filtering.

Yikes- I have never seen a beer with that much crap in it. Regardless of what the brewer intended (I don't know any brewers that would let a bottle out of their sight looking like that), he should know that that is going to put a lot of people off of drinking the beer. I know exactly what's in it, and if I poured that beer I wouldn't drink it. If someone served it to me at a bar, I'd send it back.

I agree with the people who want to know what beer and the brewery who claims it. Also, where do you find a glass that thick?

MisterTipsy said:

Wait...a craft brewery served one bad beer out of 30 ?

Time for a boycott!

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The issue for me is the response, not the actual beer.

MisterTipsy said:

Wait...a craft brewery served one bad beer out of 30 ?

Time for a boycott!

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How do you know it was 1 out of 30?

I think he insinuated 1 out of the 20-30 bottles he's consumed had the floaties. Otherwise why would he wait until beer 30 to mention it, or buy it again. Still the brewer's answer is garbage.

evrose said:

How do you know it was 1 out of 30?

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I read the OP. :cross:

Geordan said:

I picked up a bottle of local craft beer (won't name names) -- a beer I've had probably 20-30 bottles of in the past month

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MisterTipsy said:

Wait...a craft brewery served one bad beer out of 30 ?

Time for a boycott!

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And when asked about it the brewmaster said it was normal because he was cutting corners to speed up production. Everything that happened prior to that doesn't matter.

MisterTipsy said:

I read the OP. :cross:

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Okay, so 1 out of 30 that HE opened was bad... which doesn't mean that 1 out of 30 that the brewery is selling is bad. It could be more, it could be less.

Regardless, the bigger issue is the response by the master brewer... which I think we all agree is not satisfactory.

evrose said:

Okay, so 1 out of 30 that HE opened was bad... which doesn't mean that 1 out of 30 that the brewery is selling is bad. It could be more, it could be less.

Regardless, the bigger issue is the response by the master brewer... which I think we all agree is not satisfactory.

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I'm not arguing.

I've already boycotted this brewery. Since the OP won't tell us who it is I'll have to boycott all Canadian breweries. :rockin:

I don't agree with the tone of their response but it isn't necessarily a sign of poor brewing practices. A lot of breweries don't filter their beer and rely on time to flock the yeast out. Sometimes if they are at capacity and up against time to free up space for the next batch you have to bottle the beer and move on. It could be the difference between a couple imperfect bottles slipping through or losing thousands of dollars while your bottling line sits idle.

They should have just offered to replace the beer though.

I had a green flash IPA that looked about that bad. I didn't think much of it...drank it and lived. Never had another bad one, love their beers. The master brewer's response is a bit irresponsible, I agree.

neophilus said:

They should have just offered to replace the beer though.

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That would have been the proper response. I still think that admitting you're allowing inferior product to go out the door to meet demand is a really stupid way to run a business, though.

breathe everyone! breathe!

There is no argument that the brewer's response was quite unsatisfactory. But did anyone consider that MAYBE the brewer has already received dozens or hundreds of emails similar to the OP's, already realized he made a mistake by "rushing" the beer, but does not have the finances to replace everyone's beer? After all, he MAY have rushed the beer to begin with because he was financially strapped and needed to continue to churn out his best seller to stay afloat.

Even if this is not the case (which is very well may not be), I still think some are too quite to pull the trigger based on a SIMPLE email response.

And props to the OP for not disclosing the brewery. We as homebrewers should be more supportive of the brewing industry, not calling for the heads of brewers who are living our dream! What happened to the www.supportyourlocalbrewery.org mentality?

kaz4121 said:

breathe everyone! breathe!

There is no argument that the brewer's response was quite unsatisfactory. But did anyone consider that MAYBE the brewer has already received dozens or hundreds of emails similar to the OP's, already realized he made a mistake by "rushing" the beer, but does not have the finances to replace everyone's beer. After all, he MAY have rushed the beer to begin with because he was financially strapped and needed to continue to churn out his best seller to stay afloat.

Even if this is not the case (which is very well may not be), I still think some are too quite to pull the trigger based on a SIMPLE email response.

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Seriously?! Yes maybe he doesn't have the funds right now but what about a coupon or voucher? I dont know now what brewery but I would not be giving them anymore of MY business, there are many breweries out there that would like my business and if they don't want to make good on their product I'll take my business else where.

Last winter I poured one of my favorite commercial beers just like I'd poured the dozens before it and my glass looked like this:



Looks like hop particles in the photo, but it was actually yeast. I got in touch with the brewer. He was extremely apologetic about the issue and told me it was due to an equipment malfunction and a few bad cases slipped through QA. He offered to send me some replacement beer which was on my doorstep 2 days later.

I can see how this brewer might have gotten slammed with complaints, but I'd be put off by that response, too. If that's the new "normal", I'd be finding a different brewery to support.

kaz4121 said:

breathe everyone! breathe!

There is no argument that the brewer's response was quite unsatisfactory. But did anyone consider that MAYBE the brewer has already received dozens or hundreds of emails similar to the OP's, already realized he made a mistake by "rushing" the beer, but does not have the finances to replace everyone's beer? After all, he MAY have rushed the beer to begin with because he was financially strapped and needed to continue to churn out his best seller to stay afloat.

Even if this is not the case (which is very well may not be), I still think some are too quite to pull the trigger based on a SIMPLE email response.

And props to the OP for not disclosing the brewery. We as homebrewers should be more supportive of the brewing industry, not calling for the heads of brewers who are living our dream! What happened to the www.supportyourlocalbrewery.org mentality?

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Sorry, man, but this is bunk. Allegedly, the brewery in question is a business. If any other business screws something up, we expect them to make it right - be that a restaurant, the tire shop, a software manufacturer... you nme it.

If a brewery is so financially strapped that cannot give consumers replacement product, then they have one foot in the grave already. ANY reputable business stands behind their product, period.

The "simple" response in question said they were cutting corners, and the OP would just have to deal with it. That's not cool, and they deserve to lose business for it.

Wow! I would never let anything like that out of my brewery much less acknowledge that you expect consumers to drink it. Plate filters aren't that damn expensive.

It strikes me as odd that they have the time and resources to start playing with culture populations when beer that looks like that is going out the door. Call Wyeast or White Labs and let them play microbiologist for the day while you (the brewery) should attempt to salvage their reputation.

No doubt in my mind that some BMC somewhere got a bottle like that and told all his buddies about that "craft beer crap", not the brewery, crafts in general.

If there is one thing I have learned in the last two years of working on going pro, is that you need the cash for everything right away.

Case. In. Point.