Bad tasting beer

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biZurk

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So i made a batch of hefenwizen and its in its bottling state right now. after being bottled for 7 days i took one of them and threw it in the frig overnight, the next day when i tried it it tasted pretty bad. It is now been 14 days since bottling, and im pretty scared to try another bottle. How much longer should I keep them before giving up? This IS my first batch, and it was a very simple. But it seems like everyone messes up their first batch of beer. Anyway, the color of the beer looks amazing, looks spot on to haywire. :tank:
 
Hardly anyone messes up their first batch of beer, they just think they do.
How long was your fermentation? You might as well give us the recipe and the starting and finishing gravity readings if you want an educated response.
You never give up on beer, time is your friend and so is abundant patience.
 
7lbs. Wheat Malt Extract
8 oz Wheat Malt, milled
8 oz Vienna malt, milled
1 oz Hallertau hop pellets for bittering
Hefeweizen Yeast (White Labs #WLP300 & WLP380

I fermented for 14 days

Targeted :
O.G = 1.046 - 1.048
F.G. = 1.008 - 1.010
ABV = 4.9%

Before pitching = 1.050
Right before bottleing = 1.015
 
What is the "pretty bad" taste? Other than low attenuation, I see no glaring problems, you may want to ferment a little longer next time.
 
Well I couldn't drink it, as in my taste buds rejected it, hah. Since im such a noob at this, theres no way i can explain what the flavor is.. Do you think i should try another one see how its been 1 week since i tried the first one?
 
I can't taste through your taste buds, so, next time you do taste it you might have a commercial sample of the same style to sample with it, take notice of the differences between them. Take note of any other flavors, strong or subtle, is it sour, is it sweet, is it carbonated, is there a strong alcoholic bite, is it smooth, etc, etc. This is how we learn. Do the same thing in another week.

Wheat beers usually do not take months to become drinkeable, however I haven't tried any that have not been fermented for 3 weeks min. and bottled for two.
 
Well I couldn't drink it, as in my taste buds rejected it, hah. Since im such a noob at this, theres no way i can explain what the flavor is..
I did some searching, but can't find it right now... There's a great "off-taste aid" on this site which gives you an idea of how to explain how your brew tastes. I wanna say YooperBrew posted it recently, but I've been wrong before.

Take a look at these links, which do a pretty good job of teaching you how to explain yourself when talking about off flavors:

Fermentarium.com - "Why does my beer taste bad?" (Part 1) (Part 2) (Part 3)

That, plus the Palmer link above, should give you an idea of how to explain yourself on this site. That chart I'm looking for, though, that has a TON of flavor hints! Can't believe I can't Google it... :mad:
 
You drank green beer......at only a week, most people find their beer tastes pretty nasty...I betcha did nothing wrong....ANd even more that if you wait antoher 2-3 weeks when your beer has finished conditioning it will taste great....

I don't recommend anyone stress about any tastes they find until it's even been 6 weeks in the bottle...The beer has a big journey to go through still, it's called bottle conditioning.

I have a pretty detailed blog about this here; Revvy's Blog; Of Patience and Bottle Conditioning.

After the beer passes a window of at least 3 weeks (since yours is a hefe) but about 6 for stronger ales, THEN if the flavor has not goen away or re-ceeded, THEN we can look to see what caused the off flavor, using a flavor wheel or a chart...but while the beer is green, it can mimic many of those off flavors....except if it is green, they fade away.

You also asked about when you give up on a beer? I say not for several months...read the stories in here and you'll get the idea..https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/ne...virtue-time-heals-all-things-even-beer-73254/

But seriously, I bet that in 3 weeks you'll come back and say "Wow, did I jump the gun, this tastes awesome."

:mug:
 
Damn guys, I was really taken back by the dedication you all have to this website, and it means a lot that you all took the time to write be back with some great responses. I will research the bad taste and also keep this thread updated within the next few weeks. Hopefully my brew is green!
 
Well, hopefully it "ripens" and smooths out nicely for you. :)

Yeah, I felt the same way about HBT visiting here the first few times. Very dedicated people.

BTW, here's that chart I was talking about earlier. Assists with descriptions of tastes as well as odors, very helpful starting out. That, and you'll sound like a pro. :D J/K

Oh, and I know there's one thing that really helps me out on this forum, and that's when people who're having problems with their brews come back later to the thread and "finish it off" with either good or bad news. Otherwise, I don't know if anyone's help was worth diddly-squat. :)
 
Okay so I have come to the verdict that my beer is over carbonated, when you sip the beer, it is VERY fizzy when it hits the tongue. Also, after reading everything i could find about off flavors, im going to have to say the beer tastes yeasty. After the initial swallow, the flavor and smell seem to really come out my nose. So apparently my beer is just "green" and the yeast is still alittle active.

And just as a side note, i am very carefully pouring the beer into a glass, leaving about 1 inch of beer still in the bottle. So im not getting any sediment in the glass.
 
Okay so I have come to the verdict that my beer is over carbonated, when you sip the beer, it is VERY fizzy when it hits the tongue. Also, after reading everything i could find about off flavors, im going to have to say the beer tastes yeasty. After the initial swallow, the flavor and smell seem to really come out my nose. So apparently my beer is just "green" and the yeast is still alittle active.

And just as a side note, i am very carefully pouring the beer into a glass, leaving about 1 inch of beer still in the bottle. So im not getting any sediment in the glass.

Are you familiar with the taste of a commercial Hefeweizen? The style has dominant flavors from the yeast and is highly carbonated. You may have a great Hefe if you give it some time.
 
Yes I was going for a pyramid haywire. The yeast is just overbearing which im guessing means its a green beer. Ill let it sit for a few more weeks and will keep the thread updated.

Oh yes one more thing i noticed, normally the hefes i get are a bit cloudy, where as my brew has the right color but isn't very cloudy at all... does that mean anything to anyone?
 
You're actually going to want to pour the yeast right on in there to get the cloudiness. When you have about an inch of beer left in the bottle, instead of leaving it behind go ahead and swirl it up and pour it into the glass. The yeast are supposed to be consumed, thats the hefe part of a hefeweizen.
 
If it makes you feel better, (think I got this quote from someone on this site Ie. not claiming to have made it up but I love it...)

"There are no mistakes in brewing - there are only limited-edition specials".
 
If you have an iPhone I'd suggest getting an app called Brewpal. Not only infinitely handy at keeping records, fermentation timers, recipes, etc., it has a virtual flavor wheel which is fantastic when determining flavors.
 
A lot of new brewers come on this site and ask "what is the harm in drinking one of my first batch at one week in bottle?"

Thank you for answering this question absolutely perfectly.

When you drink a green beer it is very difficult to define what is wrong with the beer, mostly just that there is something wrong and the beer tastes bad. There is not much harm in tasting the beer or losing one to scientific exploration but the problem arises when you worry for the next week or two that your beer is terrible and undrinkable and a complete waste of time.

This is exactly why Revvy advises everyone (very strongly) who starts one of the threads I mentioned to WAIT for three weeks before even trying the beer.

Since you are talking about a hefe there is a good chance that it is already drinkable but even there I usually wait three weeks.

When this beer gets good you will wonder why you ever thought it was bad and why you worried about it.

Then you will be obsessed, just like the rest of us.
 
WOOOOOOOOOOOW So im really ****ing pissed. All my books and magazines had always told me to not drink the last inch of beer in my bottles because it was dead horrible yeast..... But today i said **** it and swirled it around and added it. ( My Extremly german boss told me if i didnt i was a ***** american ) And wow...... my beer is crazy amazing. The best beer i have ever had. I've never been so mad and happy about a beer at the same time...... Anyway, love you guys! :D
 
aaaaaaaaand biZurk is now adjusting his budget to accomodate his newfound obsession.
 
Oh my God dude.... its like you jumped into my head and pulled out what i was thinking. And i hate and love you at the same time. On my third bottle now, amazing.
 
You are supposed to swirl it up with a hefe. It is other beers that you want to leave the yeast behind. And one inch left behind is overkill. On a well aged bottle you should be able to leave just a few drops and the yeast cake will stay put in the bottle.
 
I'll be the guy on his other shoulder to balance things out.

Hardly anyone messes up their first batch of beer

HA - I messed up my 1st two batches. Tossed both!

False hope made me wait a long long time before I tossed 2 batches.

No one has asked at what temp they brew was fermented at.

I have found that if it tastes bad at bottling it will continue to taste bad.

He is saying his taste buds reject it. So it it gets 50% better it will be UP to bad beer.

Just wait it out and put it aside and plan on the next batch. I;ve had one batch that was really metallic but after 4 months that went away. I have also had a batch that tasted BAD. Never got better. So . . . you just have to wait it out
 
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