Just cracked my 1st 2 HB beers

[Fish826]

I'm hoping for some feedback to see if the beer is ready to put in rotation or if I should leave it a little longer.

Just a little backstory on the HB:

Hanks's Hefeweizen from Midwest Supplies. Brewed June 25. Spent 2 weeks in primary and bottled on July 9. OG = 1.050. FG = 1.010. Yeast = WL Hefe ale 300. Pitched at just under 80 Degrees. No starter. Ferment started between 24-36 hrs at 70 degrees.

I originally planned on leaving it alone for the 3 weeks in the bottles before I even put any in the fridge. On sunday, after 2 weeks bottle conditioning I thought better of it. I figured I can't get better at determining faults in my brew if I can't recognize the signs. So, I put 2 test bottles in the fridge thinking I would try one after 1 day and the other after 2 days of chilling. Here's what I found about each bottle:

Bottle 1 (1 day in fridge):

When opened I got a very disctinct gas release. When poured a very large, almost kraussen looking, head. Kind of just sat on top of the beer. Very few noticeable bubbles in the beer itself. As far as smell, it had a definite banana odor to it. Don't know if you would describe the taste as flat, but it did taste like I was drinking a flat beer. Flavor was what I expected with the banana odor. Not bad overall, just flat. Not too much of aftertaste, but was there.

Bottle 2 (2 days in fridge):

When opened there wasn't a noticable gas release at all. When poured I got less of head, but still a good size. It looked a little less heavy than the first bottle and dissipated a little faster. Very noticable bubbles in the beer that lasted until I drank the whole beer (which didn't take long after a 15 hr work day). Flatness wasn't there like the first bottle, but wasn't as carbonated as a lot of beers that I like. No aftertaste or coating left in mouth.


I'm now thinking I should've put a third bottle in, but oh well. Does this sound like a beer that is ready to drink with 3 days in the fridge or just leave to bottle condition some more?

Sorry about the long post, but I wanted to be as specific as possible. My frist baby. Any advice is appreciated as always.

 

[Kaz]

They may need another week of carbing, and then as you are finding, if you can leave them in the fridge a few days, the CO2 will dissolve better into the colder beer. How much sugar did you use when you primed and how did you add the sugar?

 

[phenry]

They say 3 weeks minimum for bottle conditioning, and there's a reason for that. I tried to test that rule with my last batch of stout, and it tasted phenomenally better at 3 weeks as opposed to 2.

Give it another week, and then start drinking. Mine tasted the same way yours did at 2 weeks, kinda thin and water, and a little harsh.

 

[Fish826]

They may need another week of carbing, and then as you are finding, if you can leave them in the fridge a few days, the CO2 will dissolve better into the colder beer. How much sugar did you use when you primed and how did you add the sugar?

I used the 5 oz packet of priming sugar that came with the kit. I followed the instructions for dissolving it and then poured half in my bottling bucket and racked on top of it. After half was racked I poured the rest in and racked the rest on top of that. Then I gave it a gentle stir.

 

[weirdboy]

Yeah they sound undercarbonated. Also, I would leave them in the fridge longer than one or two days before cracking them. When you change the temp, you also change the amount of CO2 that will be dissolved in the liquid. However, the change doesn't happen right away. Give them a week in the fridge and the carbonation will be balanced better.

 

[Fish826]

They say 3 weeks minimum for bottle conditioning, and there's a reason for that. I tried to test that rule with my last batch of stout, and it tasted phenomenally better at 3 weeks as opposed to 2.

Give it another week, and then start drinking. Mine tasted the same way yours did at 2 weeks, kinda thin and water, and a little harsh.

I wasn't so much testing the rule as much as I was trying to find out the reason behind the rules and the differences when you follow and don't follow those rules. I just don't have the experience yet to know if the differences between the two I drank were caused by not being conditioned enough yet or not chilled enough yet. Thanks for the help.

 

[PHillBrewCo]

I wasn't so much testing the rule as much as I was trying to find out the reason behind the rules and the differences when you follow and don't follow those rules. I just don't have the experience yet to know if the differences between the two I drank were caused by not being conditioned enough yet or not chilled enough yet. Thanks for the help.

No need to rush it. 2 weeks in primary and 2 weeks in the bottle is pretty fast. I did a watermelon weizen that I popped on 4th of July. I went with 2 weeks primary, 2 weeks secondary and 4 weeks in the bottle. Drank a couple after week 3 in the bottle, put them in the fridge for 48 hours. They were o.k. at 3 weeks but much better after 4.

 

[Fish826]

No need to rush it. 2 weeks in primary and 2 weeks in the bottle is pretty fast. I did a watermelon weizen that I popped on 4th of July. I went with 2 weeks primary, 2 weeks secondary and 4 weeks in the bottle. Drank a couple after week 3 in the bottle, put them in the fridge for 48 hours. They were o.k. at 3 weeks but much better after 4.

I was under the impression that a Hefeweizen was one that didn't take long to be ready. I know more time the better. Like I said, I was rushing these two beers on purpose so I could familiarize myself with the qualities of a "green" beer. I was really looking for answers as to whether these qualities was caused by not being refrigerated long enough or bottled long enough or both.

 

[Justibone]

The banana probably comes from your fermentation temps. Wheat yeast can be either banana or clove, generally: banana at higher temps, clove at lower temps.

It sounds like the extra 24 hours let the not-quite-fully-carbed beer after two days absorb more CO2 than the one that was only one day in the fridge.

 

[HeyPaulie]

The banana probably comes from your fermentation temps. Wheat yeast can be either banana or clove, generally: banana at higher temps, clove at lower temps.

Oh, I didn't know that! I'm fermenting blood orange hefe right now and it has an awesome banana aroma coming out. I do like the clove taste in my hefe's though so may need to try this one again at a lower temp. Thanks for the info.

 

[Fish826]

The banana probably comes from your fermentation temps. Wheat yeast can be either banana or clove, generally: banana at higher temps, clove at lower temps.

It sounds like the extra 24 hours let the not-quite-fully-carbed beer after two days absorb more CO2 than the one that was only one day in the fridge.

Yeah I did have a couple days where the temp raised up due to our air conditioner going out. Just happened to be the two hottest days of the year.

 

[Justibone]

All beer yeast tend to create different flavors if you have different fermentation temps. In some cases that's a good thing (German wheat beer yeast), and in others a very bad thing (Nottingham rotten egg flavor).

The only ones you might actually *want* to do warm are hefeweizen yeast and certain Belgian strains.

 

[blackbear219]

OP, I know the feeling of wanting to try your brew to see where it stands!

I bottled my first batch, a "Belgian Golden" ale, on Sunday. I took a peek at one of the bottles yesterday. I used mostly brown glass but I had a couple Corona bottles laying around so a few are clear glass.

I could NOT believe how clear my brew is. 3 days in the bottle and it is already clearer then I ever could have imagined from my first batch, and my taste tests were very promising...so I can't wait for the next few weeks to fly by so I can DRINK IT!!!

 

[joeldp144]

Give it some time. I have had them seem flat for over 4 weeks but then turn out fine. Let one sit in the fridge for at least 2 weeks.