Tasting Vs. Drinking?

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5 Is Not Enough

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Yeah, we all taste the fermented wort (uncarbonated beer) when racking and bottling, but at what point do you step back and accept the fact that you just *DRANK* a fairly large amount of green, unprimed beer complete with floating trub/sediment.

I guess for me it was when I filled my empty mug after racking, because - well, it was just tasting THAT GOOD... (well maybe it was the 6HBs Id had before that, but it really was going down SMOOTH).

I've heard rumors that ingesting excessive amounts of yeast sediment can cause some stomach problems, flatulence... I've read a few threads indicating probably more of a complex sugars issue, but anybody have any insight? (of course I could probably just fill my mug at the beginning of the racking instead of the end.
 
5isnotenough said:
Yeah, we all taste the fermented wort (uncarbonated beer) when racking and bottling, but at what point do you step back and accept the fact that you just *DRANK* a fairly large amount of green, unprimed beer complete with floating trub/sediment.
I just taste at this stage, I don't "drink." Generally, I'll just pour my hydrometer sample into a small glass and place it in the fridge while I finish up the transferring/bottling/kegging process. Then I'll have a few sips, before tossing the remainder. If I happen to have a previous (well conditioned) batch of the same recipe available on tap, I'll also do a quick comparison.

Let's face it, beer simply doesn't taste good at this point. I'm just checking, to verify that nothing has gone horribly awry and that my brew is on track.
 
BlindLemonLars said:
Let's face it, beer simply doesn't taste good at this point.
I know a few of my brew buddies would argue that fact...
"Beer does not taste AS good at this point" - that I would agree with...

I enjoy some thorough tasting at every point of the brew process.
I really like tasting the wort right before finish hopping and then right before racking, I feel like it helps me notice the subtle differences. It's also interesting to ~try~ to recall changes in the flavor between wort, rackings, and at several different stages of aging.
I've noticed a tiny sip does not tell the full story. And I've never tried a (uninfected) beer at any stage and thought, wow this tastes like crap...
 
I used to chug whatever was in my sample cylinder. Now I take3 or 4 sips to try and get a good idea for the taste profile and I dump the rest after I get SWMBO to try it too. I love seeing her make those "OMG this is disgusting but I don't want him to know that I hate it" faces.

I guess I'm just getting old.
 
I only taste the sample I take for FG. That's the only time I taste the beer until I'm tapping the keg. Whenever I do taste, I only drink like 1/3rd of the hydro sample. Its really just wasted beer IMO until its carbonated and conditioned...
 
I have drank a considerable amout of uncarbonated, 65F beer since I"ve started homebrewing. The first batch I made, I had friends over while bottling. We drank a six pack of it. Since then I've toned it down, but as I'm racking, I will pour myself about 8 to 10 ounces to drink. Why not? I really like knowing how my beer changes throughout the whole process.

A little anectdote about this issue . . .
I recently bottled a Red Alem and while racking to the bottling bucket, I screwed up the vacuum and couldn't get it restarted. And, while in the process of trying to get it rolling again I stirred up a bunch of yeast. So after I bottled what I could, I racked myself a glass and then the remaining amount into a growler (got a half gallon). I put that in the fridge and drank it over the next couple of days. It was delicious.

Cheers,
 
ohiobrewtus said:
I love seeing her make those "OMG this is disgusting but I don't want him to know that I hate it" faces.


Wow...mine never has a problem telling me that she doesn't like it. My rationalization is that she doesn't like good beer anyways (she has made it to tasty lagers, but still doesn't like ales with tons of flavor).

I usually drink a good amount from the bottom of the bottling bucket...whatever I can't easily bottle. I see it as a good way to celebrate being basicly finished working on the batch (all you have to do after bottling is wait).
 
ohiobrewtus said:
I used to chug whatever was in my sample cylinder. Now I take3 or 4 sips to try and get a good idea for the taste profile and I dump the rest after I get SWMBO to try it too. I love seeing her make those "OMG this is disgusting but I don't want him to know that I hate it" faces.

Ha! Ha! Me too. "Aw...come on! You need to drink more than that." :D
 
technically 'wort' is unfermented beer. un-carb'd beer is beer...that is flat.

as for the question at hand, its actually never bothered me. i made my first batch of mead at the tender age of 17 (I was in the SCA) with no airlock or any sanitation...and didn't age it at all...just poured it into another bottle and started drinking it. it was like apple flavored lighter fluid ;)

the guys at work, I showed them a video of a carboy that was very actively fermenting and they thought it was the grossest thing ever! "No way would I drink that!"....

they don't realize budweiser looks the same way before it hits the bottle.
 
malkore said:
the guys at work, I showed them a video of a carboy that was very actively fermenting and they thought it was the grossest thing ever! "No way would I drink that!"....

That's the difference between brewers and everyone else. The sight of beer fermenting got me all excited the first time I saw it, long before I ever brewed.

I also taste my beer whenever I rack it. It's quality control and educational.

If I have a new recipe, I'll also draw off several ounces to sample about once a week to see how it conditions. If it's an old recipe that I know well, I don't bother drawing anything off for at least a few weeks after kegging.


TL
 
I guess I have no problem with flat beer. I usually drink the leftovers from my bottling bucket after I fill the last bottle. This has resulted in as much as 16oz of beer in my mug, when bottling with 22oz bottles. If I kegged I probably would not sample more than the amount in my thief.
Craig
 
I regularly "taste" at most stages (back when I was new, I even tasted the concentrated hopped extract straight from the kit.... ONCE. *shivers*) Also, I occasionally do "drink" the green beer ... if it's been aging slightly cool it will generally be just slightly carbonated and drinkably cool. Definitely odd tasting if you are expecting finished beer, but I think it's pleasant and unique if you go into it expecting something different.

Once there were about 4 pints more in my secondary than would fit in my keg .... *sigh*


Keegan
 
I Always Taste My Brew Any Time I Get The Chance. Usually The Only Time Is At Bottling. When I Am Careful There Is Not Enough To Drink ,just Taste. M&m
 
M&M...I think you hold the record for low post count since joining.

Man of few words :D

I have too many finished beers on hand to just "drink" anything. I taste...that's it.

I'm at the point where I have to start thinking about what I'm going to drink tonight ahead of time. With 7 beers on tap and 120+ bottles of other asorted HB and 5 or 6 different commercial styles in the fridge...it's a tough decision. :D
 
BierMuncher said:
I'm at the point where I have to start thinking about what I'm going to drink tonight ahead of time. With 7 beers on tap and 120+ bottles of other asorted HB and 5 or 6 different commercial styles in the fridge...it's a tough decision. :D
A wonderful problem to have BierMuncher :mug:

Craig
 
I have a California Common in secondary right now - I drank the sample jar, and it was so good I drew off another half pint or so I could drink it while racking to secondary. I gave serious thought to bottling it (uncarbonated) that night. Then I racked it to secondary and backed away slowly....
 
Last week i checked the gravity of my first batch - a big belgian strong ale... after being surprised by how really good it tasted (still a bit rough, needs to age a while), i thought, "boy, this would taste really darn good if it was carbonated..."

so i mixed my sample with a bottle of La Fin du Monde.

That was one awesome tasting sample!

:D
 
Hilarious thread title.

The only time I taste uncarbonated/conditioned beer any longer is when I'm bottling and have a little bit left in the bucket that won't fill up my last bottle. It's always maltier/sweeter and the hops don't seem as assertive as after bottle-conditioning.
 
I not only enjoy the sample when I rack to the keg, I enjoy the sample pre-fermentation. When I put it in the keg, it is usually a decent temp for drinking (65) and is lightly carbonated. If it has been in the secondary for 3 weeks, it is quite good already.

BTW - I don't prime but I noticed that some said they were drinking the bottom of the bottling bucket. My guess is this would be a sweeter sample because of the dextrose that was added for priming.
 
I taste my brews at nearly every stage, I even taste it as I transfer to the primary. Never know what you might learn about your brew at each tasting.
 
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