First batch of beer, slight off taste if not ice cold?

BrewSwag 728
Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
T

t_money662

New Member
Joined
Jun 2, 2011
Messages
4
Reaction score
0
Location
Daytona Beach
Hi everyone..this is my first post here, and my first batch as well.
I tried an Autumn Amber Recipe kit from Midwest Supplies, with the dry yeast option (Muntons). I used the bucket "beginner's kit", even did the better bottle secondary/clarifying step.
I followed the instructions pretty darn good I would say, everything seemed to go well and I was super excited about trying this batch...waited about 3 weeks before bottling (when the SG was not changing anymore), let it carbonate for another 3-4 weeks.
It was carbonated perfectly, had a good head, but honestly I was a little disappointed...It had a slightly off flavor, almost like a hint of bananas or something. The color is perfect.
I tried a second one a week later, this time out of a frozen mug (first time it was a room temp mug). It definitely tasted much better ice cold..no banana taste. Is it possible that the lower temperature (damn near ice cold) made it taste better, or masked the banana flavor?, or could that off taste just go away after a week?
I guess I could drink another one out of a room temperature mug again and see if there is a difference, but thought I would ask first. I bought another Liberty ALe kit for round 2, so if there is anyone who might have an idea of where that banana taste came from and how not to do that again, I'm all ears.
Thanks!
 
What temperature did you ferment at? It sounds like you could have fermented at too warm of a temperature. Give the beer some time and it should improve a bit as it ages.
 
Ice cold beer is beer you don't want to taste (think BMC). The banana taste is from warm fermentation most likely, as was stated. Try it again and upgrade to liquid yeast with a starter. Also, try to keep the fermentation in the recommended fermentation temps and you will experience a HUGE improvement in your brews. Have fun with this hobby, its great.
 
Liquid yeast is a waste of time and money unless you need a special strain for Belgians, Weizens, etc. For standard Amercian/Brittish ales, use S-05, S-04, or Nottigham and ferment in the mid-60's, and you'll get a clean, fully attenuated beer.
 
g-star said:
Liquid yeast is a waste of time and money unless you need a special strain for Belgians, Weizens, etc. For standard Amercian/Brittish ales, use S-05, S-04, or Nottigham and ferment in the mid-60's, and you'll get a clean, fully attenuated beer.
Click to expand...

I disagree. Liquid Yeast isn't needed for all beers, and dry yeast makes great beer. Liquid yeast gives you far more options than dry and is a far cry from 'a waste of time', IMO. But the OP was asking about off flavors, not our opinions on dry vs. liquid yeast. There's another thread for that.

To the OP, some of those off flavors will mellow with time. I've also noticed drinking any beer ice cold limits the esters that you perceive while drinking. Next time, make sure you pitch enough yeast, dry or liquid, and stay within the lower half of that strains temp range to limit off flavors such as esters and phenols.
 
Well that stinks!...I think you guys nailed it on the head-I fermented somewhere in the low to mid-seventies, maybe that was not cool enough?
I live in Florida, and my thermostat is set around 76 at the lowest. By the way I love how the how to videos say to "keep it out in the garage" or in the house where most temperatures around 68 or so will be perfect... My garage is around 90+ this time of year.I don't know how I could keep my beer any colder without investing in some type of modified freezer or 2nd fridge ($$). I even highjacked my second bathroom closest to the AC closet, blacked out the windows with posterboard, and kept the door closed most of the time. This kept it colder in there, but never below 70. Maybe a solid 73 most of the time.
So this banana flavor may go away with age? I still have about 36 beers up in a closet of a spare bedroom, and that is not as cold as the quarantined bathroom was.Is this hurting the flavor, even after the main fermentation is complete? Should I make room in the fridge for all 40 or so bottles and keep them there for awhile?
For my 2nd batch I bought the next level up version of dry yeast (11.5g, "Fermentis Safale US-05"). Is my 70-75 degree "fermenting room" to hot for those as well? If so, are there any of warmer temperature-friendly yeasts that I should try?

Thanks Again

Edit: I just noticed g-star's post stating mid-60 degrees...how the heck are you guys keeping your beer at that temp? Does everyone have a 2nd fridge?
 
You can fill a spare trash can with some water and maybe some ice and leave your carboy in it, that can keep it cooler and consistent.

Another option is covering your primary with a wet towel or t-shirt. The evaporation takes away a lot of heat.
 
You will see a huge, HUGE, improvement in flavor if you do keep your fermentation temperature ranges at the lower end of the recommended range for the yeast you're using. Keep in mind that yeast are exothermic too, so they generate additional heat making your fermenting beer warmer than ambient. You can use a fridge, but it's not necessary. My method is one I learned here, look up swamp cooler for more info, but I use a cooler. I have a wheeled 60 qt Igloo Ice Cube and keep a carboy in a water bath, and swap out frozen water bottles to keep the temperatures down. I've even fermented lagers in the low 50's doing this (one won silver in this years' NHC finals). For my environment (low 70's in the house) if I swap out a half liter bottle of ice every 12 hours, it stays pretty well in the mid 60s - this is after getting it down to that temp in the first place. For lagers, I have to swap out a 2 liter every 12 hours at least (and then some usually). Again, you will see the biggest improvement in your beer by some sort of temperature control.

Oh, and for that US-05, I'd recommend mid 60s.
 
mid 70's is way too warm. Getting the fermenter in some sort of water/ice bath should help. Gotta keep the temp down or wait till cooler weather to brew again
 
take this batch and store it away for a few months and move on with the next batch using temperature control, come back to it and see what it tastes like later. there is no way at all to know if it will improve or not but give it time. my second batch tasted like puke but after 3 months it was great, really great.
 
t_money662 said:
Well that stinks!...I think you guys nailed it on the head-I fermented somewhere in the low to mid-seventies, maybe that was not cool enough?
I live in Florida, and my thermostat is set around 76 at the lowest. By the way I love how the how to videos say to "keep it out in the garage" or in the house where most temperatures around 68 or so will be perfect... My garage is around 90+ this time of year.I don't know how I could keep my beer any colder without investing in some type of modified freezer or 2nd fridge ($$). I even highjacked my second bathroom closest to the AC closet, blacked out the windows with posterboard, and kept the door closed most of the time. This kept it colder in there, but never below 70. Maybe a solid 73 most of the time.
So this banana flavor may go away with age? I still have about 36 beers up in a closet of a spare bedroom, and that is not as cold as the quarantined bathroom was.Is this hurting the flavor, even after the main fermentation is complete? Should I make room in the fridge for all 40 or so bottles and keep them there for awhile?
For my 2nd batch I bought the next level up version of dry yeast (11.5g, "Fermentis Safale US-05"). Is my 70-75 degree "fermenting room" to hot for those as well? If so, are there any of warmer temperature-friendly yeasts that I should try?

Thanks Again

Edit: I just noticed g-star's post stating mid-60 degrees...how the heck are you guys keeping your beer at that temp? Does everyone have a 2nd fridge?
Click to expand...

Do you have a basement, thats where i keep mine and its a constant 64 degrees even in the summer...Check out graigslist for a cheap fridge, gotta keep the temp low.
 
He's in Daytona, so the basement is unlikely. If you go the swamp cooler route, I'd recommend this cooler instead of another container (a Rubbermaid tub for instance). Use a carboy or a bucket without a spigot (don't think I'd trust a submerged bucket with spigot). The insulation keeps condensation down. I didn't modify mine so I get to have a nice rolling cooler when I'm not fermenting in it. Put a few splashes of bleach in your water so it doesn't get nasty, and put some salt in your frozen bottles of water. Works like a charm.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
t_money662 said:
are there any of warmer temperature-friendly yeasts
Click to expand...

Sure there are. If you make a Belgian beer, like a tripel, Wyeast 3522 Belgian Ardennes is rated for a fermentation temperature range of 65-85* so that might be an avenue to look into. Many of the Saison yeasts are good to almost 90*!
 
eastoak said:
take this batch and store it away for a few months and move on with the next batch using temperature control, come back to it and see what it tastes like later. there is no way at all to know if it will improve or not but give it time. my second batch tasted like puke but after 3 months it was great, really great.
Click to expand...

I will definitely do that, but are those bottles "safe" in the closet where they are now, at a pretty constant 75(ish) degrees? Or do they have to be kept cooler/refrigerated?They went straight from bottling to the closet.

Thanks Again...Hopefully my next batch turns out much better (and cooler) and these funky ones will "age" those bad flavors away in a few months.
 
do not keep them cool or they will take forever to carbonate and the yeast won't work on the clean up of bad flavors. this is not guaranteed to work in your favor but there is no harm in trying.
 
t_money662 said:
Well that stinks!...I think you guys nailed it on the head-I fermented somewhere in the low to mid-seventies, maybe that was not cool enough?
I live in Florida, and my thermostat is set around 76 at the lowest. By the way I love how the how to videos say to "keep it out in the garage" or in the house where most temperatures around 68 or so will be perfect... My garage is around 90+ this time of year.I don't know how I could keep my beer any colder without investing in some type of modified freezer or 2nd fridge ($$). I even highjacked my second bathroom closest to the AC closet, blacked out the windows with posterboard, and kept the door closed most of the time. This kept it colder in there, but never below 70. Maybe a solid 73 most of the time.

Edit: I just noticed g-star's post stating mid-60 degrees...how the heck are you guys keeping your beer at that temp? Does everyone have a 2nd fridge?
Click to expand...

Hi t_money!!
I live in South Florida and I feel your pain! For our first batch (in May) we turned the thermostat down to 70. We did a lager so we picked up an old shot out fridge at a thrift store. I don't think we'll do a lager again for a while, so this fridge is home to our kegs. We thought it'd run warm for a fridge, but it has an awesome range.
Needless to say, my electric bill went from about $50/month to $118 this month!
I'm planning to build a fermentation chamber so I can warm the house back up.
Good Luck!
Sarah.
 

Similar threads

_Keven
Just tried my first ever home brew and it tasted great but had a slight bitter after taste
Replies
1
Views
764
RM-MN
R
sixstring
Hello, lurker with a first post - Just bottled my first brew
Replies
17
Views
430
mac_1103
mac_1103
N
My First Cider
Replies
5
Views
433
Knightshade
Knightshade
L
Slight Medicine or Band-Aid Flavor In Week Long Fermentation
2
Replies
40
Views
3K
mac_1103
mac_1103
F
my beer wont clear in the fermenter
Replies
11
Views
874
FloppyKnockers
FloppyKnockers
Yakima 300

Latest posts

Back
Top