18th Day sample is harsh

[dmaxdmax]

I can't exactly describe it but it's just pretty dreadful. Rough enough around the edges that I'm not sure there are any edges there. My main fear (as expressed elsewhere) was that it had become contaminated and at least that did not come to pass.

What I'm wondering now is how long to let it age (mellow, I hope) in the primary before going to the bottle. Do I wait until I think it's getting close and then bottle to achieve carbonation? There must be some tipping point beyond which primary fermentation has gone too far and it's too late to bottle.

I know, I know...just relax and have a beer.

 

[jaytizzle]

What did you make? What was the OG? What is the gravity now? What is the expected FG?

 

[Brewham]

You're only 18 days into the primary? Sampling it now is the equivalent of tasting a pancake after it has been cooking 18 seconds. It just isn't done. Two weeks primary, two weeks secondary, then two weeks in the bottle - minimum for each step. And then, depending on what you brewed it might still not be ready.

Within reason, you can wait a long time to bottle. The yeast in suspension will still carbonate the beer. And by "within reason," I am talking months not weeks.

The way you are thinking, you are in danger of bottling too early and ending up with bottle bombs. That is why you need to know your expected final gravity and you need to measure it so it stays steady for 3 days before you bottle. And, if it is too high, gently stir and move to a warmer place for a week or so to see if the yeast will ferment down farther. Don't rush it!

 

[dmaxdmax]

It's an extract Belgian Wit. It has absolutely none of the flavors from spices or citrus but I guess they will poke through eventually.

I'm not planning on a secondary since a glass carboy seems like a disaster waiting to happen. I'm a klutz and not in a hurry to start batch #2 - an extra week or two won't bother me. Since it's a Wit I'm not too worked up over clarity.

 

[MacGruber]

What was/is your fermentation temp? That is extremely important with Wit stains of yeast.

 

[jaytizzle]

What was the OG? What's the gravity now? Did you get a hydrometer to measure gravity?

 

[jonmohno]

More conditioning room temp and or cold conditioning. Cold conditioning can round out some harsh flavors as well as room temp conditoning.
I just had this happen with my Irish Amber Red, i had one before and it was harsh so i skipped having it on Pattys day, because i only wanted a few of my other older cold conditioned irish beers and wasnt looking forward to drinking the Red yet,had one today though and it was not harsh and was very good,so much better than it being the beer i thought it was and just going to plain suck because of my experience with it a week ago.
I usually check one every week,any batches i see overcarbonated- i keep my eye on and check often and maybe decide to stick them in the fridge if im unshure. Im talking months and months of conditoning also.Havent gotten any gushers ,some foaming a little though due to too much priming sugar ocasionally and i have a few bottles of each batch at least to keep close to a year maybe more.Just had a few year old irish beers.

 

[drathbone]

Not to mention that carbonation by itself can drastically change how a brew tastes.

 

[dmaxdmax]

Digital thermometer sitting on top of the pail has read between 65-68 every time I've checked. The lid has been on the whole time except for this test and a I-can't-help-myself peek on day 3.

Didn't have much foam (klausen?) at the start nor did I see much evidence at the 3 or 18 day peeks. I did have good airlock activity

I wrote the initial gravity on the kit instruction sheet which is now AWOL. I know the actual was lower than the target but I don't know by how much. Reading now is about 1.012

 

[dmaxdmax]

Oops - Krausen

 

[icanbenchurcat]

I would think that it tastes pretty bad at this point - but it shouldn't be AWFUL. Maybe like slightly sweet, non-carbonated beer that has a piece of bread floating in it? Not terribly appetizing, but it should taste a little like beer by now.

The temp is a little low - might not be done yet. If the FG stays steady for a few days, though, go ahead and bottle it up.

The carbonation will add some bitterness and counteract some sweetness, and time will allow any alcohol-y or harsh flavors to dissipate. If it is a weiz, they sometimes come off a bit too yeasty for me. Is that the flavor you could be tasting? Bottling will allow the yeast to settle and it will taste much better.

 

[dmaxdmax]

No, it doesn't taste *awful* and it does taste like beer, it just tastes bitter without any yeasty flavors that I could discern and certainly not sweet. It was a partial boil so I'm surprised at the bitterness. It sat in the fridge for an hour or so before I tasted so it was chilled and flat.

 

[dmaxdmax]

Now that I think about it the weakest part of my brew process was probably anemic aeration. Could it be that the yeast had enough activity to produce co2 but not enough to impart its flavor or create new ones? Will extra time help?

 

[GASoline71]

I just did a Belgin Wit (Blue Moon Clone) for my girlfriend... and tasted it each time I took a gravity reading. It didn't taste all that great. I had it in a Primary for 15 days, and secondary for about a week. It still tasted "goofy" the day I put it in the keg. After conditioning and full carbonation... it turned out better than the beer I was cloning.

Give 'er time mang!

Gary

 

[dmaxdmax]

@Gas- "goofy" how?

 

[GASoline71]

Just not much flavor, and kinda had a weird aftertaste.

But not anymore...

Gary

 

[drathbone]

Update us after some conditioning and carbing. I've had beer taste like absolute balls on bottling day. Then after a few weeks aging and carbing it really mellowed out and tasted great.

 

[dmaxdmax]

If Absolute Balls is a kind of vodka I do not want to see the print ad nor know how they infuse it.

 

[MuchoGusto]

Declaring a brew undrinkable (assuming no infection) when moved from a primary to a secondary is like slicing into a half-baked (raw) turkey 2 hours before Thanksgiving dinner and commenting "this is crap". Let's all go out for dinner.

It's not done, till it's done. Brewing requires patience, patience and more patience.

I made this comment in another thread... the same thing applies here.

 

[dross2]

I’m still trying to work out how the off flavors I always taste during my SG checks relate to the generally delicious final product. So far it seems that it's probably not gross to it's cold, bubbly, and gross.

 

[CPFITNESS]

honestly, I'm a total newb with 4 5 gallon all grain batches under my belt and pretty much they all taste like crap until I drink em. don't sweat it. if your gravity readings are steady, go ahead and bottle. let em do their thing for a couple weeks in the bottle then throw a couple in the fridge and see how they are.