Will astringency go away with time?

My third batch of beer is undrinkable. I think the taste is better described as astringent rather than bitter. And I think the cause may be that I squeezed the grain steeping bag to save time (do not to that on two previous batches of acceptable beer).

Questions:
- If that's it, will the astringency mellow with age in the bottle?
- I live in a hot climate. Could this be caused by fermenting in a closet that is frequently more than 80 degrees?
- I don't think I had a sanitation problem, but if I did would I be getting this kind of taste? Or something else.

NorCalEd said:

And I think the cause may be that I squeezed the grain steeping bag

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I'm sure this is not your issue. I, and many others, have squeezed many a grain bag and made delicious beer.

NorCalEd said:

If that's it, will the astringency mellow with age in the bottle?

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There's really no way to tell except trying. I imagine it will improve with age, but it may never get good.

NorCalEd said:

Could this be caused by fermenting in a closet that is frequently more than 80 degrees?

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This will cause all manner of off flavors. This is most likely your culprit. You don't really want to ferment in an ambient space above 65F or so, to keep the temperature of the fermenting beer (which creates its own heat) below 70F. Some yeasts even get nasty in the high 60s.

NorCalEd said:

don't think I had a sanitation problem, but if I did would I be getting this kind of taste? Or something else.

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I agree that sanitation is probably not your issue, unless you could describe the flavor as sour. Most infections are taste noticeably "spoiled".

Not shure if astringency is the word you mean,but what yeast did you use and yeah usually 80 is too high when actuall fermentation can generate 5-10 deg more during fermentation. Ageing could improve it but may take some time and may never reallly mellow enough. As far as astringency I would think your water could have something to do with that. Do you mean estery and fruity? Squeezing the bag is not a problem unless your water ph is waaay off.
Harshness usually improves with age. Ive had one harsh brew which i considered astringent, and i think it was from using whole torrefied pastry wheat berries. That completly mellowed out. And turned into a well liked beer.
Almost sounds like a mineral problem with your water. Too much of the right minerals can effect your brew.

I doubt squeezing the grain bag is the issue. As noted by others, fermenting in an ambient air temp of 80F isn't going to lead to a good tasting beer.

I agree with KISS Brew! It's almost a guarantee to be your fermentation temp. The off flavors that come from that usually don't go away. It might mellow a little, but you're likely stuck with it..

Temp is for sure a problem. If you were at 80 then the wort was more like 85 or greater. A wet towel and fan will lower the temps 5 to 8 degrees.

Squeezing the bag is a big big mo no and would lead to so nasty tannins. Be gentle but not anal.

And no sadly if it's REAL bad it won't go away.

Grinder12000 said:

Squeezing the bag is a big big mo no and would lead to so nasty tannins. Be gentle but not anal..

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These days most people that do BIAB have concluded that this just isn't true. I've sqeezed my BIAB bag between two boards with clamps, and made some really tasty brews this way. You can squeeze the grain bag all you want. It won't extract tannins unless the pH is out of range...

green apple atstringency may lessen or go away during conditioning.

can't hurt to wait.

TimpanogosSlim said:

green apple atstringency may lessen or go away during conditioning.

can't hurt to wait.

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I wouldn't describe green apple as astringent. Green apple usually refers to "green" beer in general.

I do agree that the OP should wait it out, but IME most astringent flavors associated with malt in-balance, high ferm temps, or tannins doesn't go away.

Only time can tell...

Stauffbier said:

I wouldn't describe green apple as astringent. Green apple usually refers to "green" beer in general.

I do agree that the OP should wait it out, but IME most astringent flavors associated with malt in-balance, high ferm temps, or tannins doesn't go away.

Only time can tell...

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*shrug* I had a belgian strong golden that was a little underpitched that had a flavor similar to chewing on apple peels until it had aged longer than a few weeks.

Well don't throw it out yet, I've had beer that tasted gross at the 2 or 3 week mark, but 6 months later tasted amazing. Time does amazing things.

TimpanogosSlim said:

*shrug* I had a belgian strong golden that was a little underpitched that had a flavor similar to chewing on apple peels until it had aged longer than a few weeks.

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Exactly my point. Beer that hasn't been conditioned long enough can indeed have the "green apple" taste, which is what most new (impatient) brewers taste after they start drinking beer that's only been bottled for a week. 6 weeks is usually the sweet spot for most of my brews..

Andrew5329 said:

Well don't throw it out yet, I've had beer that tasted gross at the 2 or 3 week mark, but 6 months later tasted amazing. Time does amazing things.

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This can indeed be very true, but with that said, sometimes it tastes just as bad 6 months later as it did after 3 weeks in the bottle. That's the hard part about this hobby. It can definitely be a waiting game!

So to echo what everyone is saying, I agree that the OP should let it age and try a bottle every month to see if it's improving. If it doesn't improve, dump it or force yourself to drink it. I've gotten to where I have no problem dumping a batch if it doesn't come out right after time. Dump it, and move on! Life is too short to drink bad tasting beer IMO...

Stauffbier said:

I've gotten to where I have no problem dumping a batch if it doesn't come out right after time. Dump it, and move on! Life is too short to drink bad tasting beer IMO...

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Finish your beer! There's sober kids in India.

Andrew5329 said:

Finish your beer! There's sober kids in India.

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hell, the entire state of Gujarat is dry.

As the desis tell me, "The best place to have a beer in Gujarat is the next state"

If I've learned anything here, it is controlling fermentation temperatures. High temperatures, and large swings (from day to night) will make for unhappy yeast.