Using beer that didn't turn out.

Unless your beer got infected in a really bad way, and turned out absolutely disgusting there's always ways to use it up without dumping it and wasting the money and time put into it. I'm very much anti waste, so the thought of dumping $30-60 of beer down the drain makes me cringe.


Here's some of the ways I've used up a recent batch of hefeweizen that was bottled too early, got sulfury and eventually mostly aged out with most of the good flavors. It was drinkable but just barely.

#1: margaritas. This is a good choice for any lighter beers. Especially anything that's a bit fruity. I keep my recipe simple usually and get a can of limeade. Replace the water in the instructions with 1 part water, one part OJ, 2 parts gin, and a bottle of beer. Serve over ice or blended with ice. Careful, this is deceptively strong. You can barely taste the alcohol.


#2: beer bread. This can really work with just about any style of beer. And if you save your grains, dry them and freeze them, then you can mill that for the flour. I've yet to do that but there's plenty of information out there on it.


#3: make a stew, sauce, marinade etc with it. Depending on the style, the flavor you're going for and what's wrong with the beer, you can make some amazing dishes doing this. It's a great way to use up beer you won't drink.


Those are my ideas, and things I've done in the past that turned out well. I'm sure there are a ton more ideas from other people, more talented and creative than I.


Got any ideas to add? Comment below, I'd love to hear them.

I tried a farmhouse a years ago. Let it ferment in the garage and the temps were way too high. It tasted horrible and was loaded with fusels.

I went away for a weekend and my roommate helped himself to it. He assumed it was supposed to taste like that and just used a lemon.

He drank 4 liters of it. Couldn't get out of bed the next day. That was the last time he ever raided my stash. Worst/best batch ever.

arturo7 said:

I tried a farmhouse a years ago. Let it ferment in the garage and the temps were way too high. It tasted horrible and was loaded with fusels.

I went away for a weekend and my roommate helped himself to it. He assumed it was supposed to taste like that and just used a lemon.

He drank 4 liters of it. Couldn't get out of bed the next day. That was the last time he ever raided my stash. Worst/best batch ever.

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Haha definitely a worthwhile use of a bad brew. One of my first brews ever was loaded with fusels and my brother law insisted that it wasn't that bad. He got drunk one time lol now he takes my word for it.

arturo7 said:

I tried a farmhouse a years ago. Let it ferment in the garage and the temps were way too high. It tasted horrible and was loaded with fusels.

I went away for a weekend and my roommate helped himself to it. He assumed it was supposed to taste like that and just used a lemon.

He drank 4 liters of it. Couldn't get out of bed the next day. That was the last time he ever raided my stash. Worst/best batch ever.

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LOL! That's awesome!

Garden slug repellent. Seriously.

GHBWNY said:

Garden slug repellent. Seriously.

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Really?? That's one thing I never thought it could be used for... Does it attract other bugs though? I know I left a ferment bucket outside once after bottling and forgot to clean it and it was full of wasps. Mostly dead from presumed alcohol poisoning lol

BrewingTravisty said:

Really?? That's one thing I never thought it could be used for... Does it attract other bugs though? I know I left a ferment bucket outside once after bottling and forgot to clean it and it was full of wasps. Mostly dead from presumed alcohol poisoning lol

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Dead? Or just a good "buzz"?

When I first started brewing I listened to the " Belgian yeasts like it hot" so I brewed a BDSA and started at 75 and it went much higher as it started fermenting. Total fusel bomb.

But the good thing is that I have been using it to cook with. The best is braised duck legs, thighs with leeks and dried cherries. A bottle or two of thw BDSA and it is great.

Make a braggot. Blending can hide a lot of flaws.

Pour it in compost.

GHBWNY said:

Dead? Or just a good "buzz"?

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Haha some were buzzing a bit but most were dead xP

beergolf said:

When I first started brewing I listened to the " Belgian yeasts like it hot" so I brewed a BDSA and started at 75 and it went much higher as it started fermenting. Total fusel bomb.

But the good thing is that I have been using it to cook with. The best is braised duck legs, thighs with leeks and dried cherries. A bottle or two of thw BDSA and it is great.

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that sounds delicious. I'll have to try that at some point.

Curtis2010 said:

Make a braggot. Blending can hide a lot of flaws.

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oh yeah, I didn't think of that. I've never made a braggot but I did start brewing mead a bit recently.

Zuljin said:

Pour it in compost.

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Does that do a whole lot for the compost?

I've been using bottles from a sub-par batch of a cream ale to make batter for frying fish! Not very tasty to drink but makes great beer batter.

dsaavedra said:

I've been using bottles from a sub-par batch of a cream ale to make batter for frying fish! Not very tasty to drink but makes great beer batter.

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That's a good use for cream ale! I've actually got some in primary right now that I need to keg. It's the lightest beer I've ever made so I'm hoping it turns out. I had a sample and its fairly bland. But then again that's the style and I made it for bmc drinkers.

My son-in-law's father keeps a case a Hamms beer around to mix with a bad batch. I guess he figures if you mix a bad beer with another bad beer they cancel each other out. I bottle the bad stuff and give it for gifts. Most people are afraid to admit it tastes bad. They think it makes them look unsophisticated.

idiotsinc said:

I bottle the bad stuff and give it for gifts. Most people are afraid to admit it tastes bad. They think it makes them look unsophisticated.

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I'm afraid I'll ruin my (admittedly made-up) credibility as a brewer if I give out bad beers. I only share my best beers (which sucks because they always go so fast!).

Everything in beer is good for compost. Maybe not so much the alcohol, but it's plant juice.

dsaavedra said:

I'm afraid I'll ruin my (admittedly made-up) credibility as a brewer if I give out bad beers. I only share my best beers (which sucks because they always go so fast!).

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I find a happy medium lol my absolutely best stuff is only shared with people I really like but if I make a bad beer no one is drinking it lol unless I do. Usually I find alternate methods. I've yet to make a beer bad enough to dump though.

Zuljin said:

Everything in beer is good for compost. Maybe not so much the alcohol, but it's plant juice.

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That's good to know, I'll remember that for when I make a beer that's not good for consumption of any type lol

BrewingTravisty said:

I find a happy medium lol my absolutely best stuff is only shared with people I really like but if I make a bad beer no one is drinking it lol unless I do. Usually I find alternate methods. I've yet to make a beer bad enough to dump though.

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Keep trying. You'll eventually stumble upon a list of ingredients that should never be combined. That shouldn't even be sold together. On that day, you will be a grocery store homebrewer, and wear the plastic bag crown.

Zuljin said:

Keep trying. You'll eventually stumble upon a list of ingredients that should never be combined. That shouldn't even be sold together. On that day, you will be a grocery store homebrewer, and wear the plastic bag crown.

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That's an accomplishment worth achieving xP

The one thing that I brewed that I wasn't sure if would turn out but actually turned out amazing was a rum oak, root beer barrel aged RIS. The root beer part was unintentional until I tried an ipa that I conditioned in a 5l virgil's root beer keg and it had a hint of foot beer to it. Not so great in an IPA, magical in an RIS.

idiotsinc said:

My son-in-law's father keeps a case a Hamms beer around to mix with a bad batch. I guess he figures if you mix a bad beer with another bad beer they cancel each other out.

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I like this theory. If you make a bad beer, add someone else's bad beer to it, then you have someone else to share the blame with. Speaking of Hamm's --- true story --- many years ago when my brother was stationed in Sacramento, he and his buddy bought some Hamm's to take fishing with them. After taking a sip, his buddy nearly hurled... there was the tip of a finger in his beer.

EDIT: which is another use for bad beer --- a way to dispose of unwanted body parts.

Foot beer? You are fast approaching nirvana.

Zuljin said:

Everything in beer is good for compost. Maybe not so much the alcohol, but it's plant juice.

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Any chance that the alcohol would have a negative impact on the bugs and enzymes doing all the dirty work in the compost?

I save old/not-so-good beer for pre-cooking sausages before tossing them on the grill. Chop up an onion or two, crush a handful of garlic cloves, toss them in a pot with a dozen brats (or any other fresh sausages) and half a gallon of beer and then simmer or gently boil for 20 minutes. Now the sausages are completely cooked so you only need to brown them to your liking over fire. This reduces the need to blacken your sausages to ensure that they are fully cooked and it adds another tasty element to the meat.

edit: I guess I should mention that I have never used horrible beer for this. It's usually just old and oxidized.

TheCrackpot said:

Any chance that the alcohol would have a negative impact on the bugs and enzymes doing all the dirty work in the compost?

I save old/not-so-good beer for pre-cooking sausages before tossing them on the grill. Chop up an onion or two, crush a handful of garlic cloves, toss them in a pot with a dozen brats (or any other fresh sausages) and half a gallon of beer and then simmer or gently boil for 20 minutes. Now the sausages are completely cooked so you only need to brown them to your liking over fire. This reduces the need to blacken your sausages to ensure that they are fully cooked and it adds another tasty element to the meat.

edit: I guess I should mention that I have never used horrible beer for this. It's usually just old and oxidized.

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This is a good use for beer too, I've never used a really good beer to do it since that's a waste imo. If I don't have a bad/old beer to use then I'll go out and buy a cheap beer to use.

GHBWNY said:

I like this theory. If you make a bad beer, add someone else's bad beer to it, then you have someone else to share the blame with. Speaking of Hamm's --- true story --- many years ago when my brother was stationed in Sacramento, he and his buddy bought some Hamm's to take fishing with them. After taking a sip, his buddy nearly hurled... there was the tip of a finger in his beer.

EDIT: which is another use for bad beer --- a way to dispose of unwanted body parts.

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Someone was just trying to improve the beer xP