Loss of flavor in beer sample

[BigLoad]

Hello, I am in the middle of my first batch of beer. It is an Irish Red Ale Extract Kit. I took a gravity sample on day 11 of primary fermentation (1.014) and the beer amazing taste and aroma to it. I couldn't believe I had actually made delicious beer! So stoked! Now just tonight, on day 14 in the primary, I racked it to a secondary as the instructions "highly recommended" and took another reading (1.01) and tasted it...it was slightly watery and did not have the flavors it did 3 days ago. Kind of bland actually. Did I infect it or let too much oxygen get to it? Can I fix it? Not sure what I did but I was super stoked for this beer 3 days ago, now I feel like I've been kicked in the nuts.

 

[philipCT]

Hello, I am in the middle of my first batch of beer. It is an Irish Red Ale Extract Kit. I took a gravity sample on day 11 of primary fermentation (1.014) and the beer amazing taste and aroma to it. I couldn't believe I had actually made delicious beer! So stoked! Now just tonight, on day 14 in the primary, I racked it to a secondary as the instructions "highly recommended" and took another reading (1.01) and tasted it...it was slightly watery and did not have the flavors it did 3 days ago. Kind of bland actually. Did I infect it or let too much oxygen get to it? Can I fix it? Not sure what I did but I was super stoked for this beer 3 days ago, now I feel like I've been kicked in the nuts.

So a few things...

First of all, you have made beer. Welcome to the obsession

Not to doubt you, but perhaps you should double check that last reading. 1.01 is extremely low. The only yeast I've ever used that fermented down that low was a Saison yeast.

What was your OG? You can just say what the OG was listed as in the recipe, since that's dependable in extract brewing.

What was your batch size? Did you brew full batch size or partial and then add top-off water? If you used top-off water, was that boiled to sanitize it and then chilled before adding?

What yeast did you use, how much, and how did you prepare it before pitching?

What was your fermentation temperature?

What did you ferment it in? A carboy - a bucket? Did you use an airlock with sanitizer in it?

How is solid is your cleaning and sanitation routine? It's ---possible--- that your batch may have become infected and the bugs are continuing to ferment your beer. If you feel your practices are solid, you're probably good on that front.

How did you chill the batch?

If the yeast really fermented down that low, it has certainly "dried out" the beer, which would lead to a thinner, more watery beer at this point.

My suggestion would be to let it condition in secondary for another 15 days. Take another reading. If it's stable, bottle it (assuming you are bottling). Then let it condition at room temperature for another three weeks. Now chill one, open it and taste. You may find the flavors have melded a bit. If you still don't like it, let it sit for another three weeks. Try it again.

That's likely to be as good as it gets right there. If you still don't like it you need to figure out what to do differently next time. The answers to the questions above will help.

 

[balrog]

I was thinking 1.01 was not that bad of a FG (usually written as 1.010).
Now 1.001 is a different matter entirely, unless you're making EdWort's ApfelWein.

 

[Sir-Hops-A-Lot]

Irish Red is a pretty dry style
Perhaps you like a little sweeter beer and so you liked it more before it was fully fermented.
What was the yeast?

 

[flars]

Your first taste still contained some unfermented malt sugars, hence the gravity of 1.014 and a little sweeter with more body. I brewed an Irish Red Ale once. Wasn't to impressed. Was a little light in taste and body, but a nice color. I might possibly add some malto-dextrine or caramel 60 if I were to brew the same recipe again.

 

[BigLoad]

my OG was 1.04, the kit said It was supposed to be 1.042. It was a 5 gallon batch. I only brewed 3.5 gallons, then added distilled water after to bring it up to the 5 gallon mark. I did not boil the distilled water though. Pitched yeast at 78 degrees( got impatient). I chilled using an Ice bath,took about 25-30 min to cool it down. I believe it was an American ale yeast, smack pak. Guess I need to take better notes next time. And I fermented it in a plastic 6 gallon bottling bucket. Had airlock activity within 24 hours, airlock stopped within 72 hours but had about an inch and half of krausen on top. The fermenter has a seal on the lid an airlock hole with a seal on it. Cleaned and sanitized the hell outta everything with PBW cleaner and star san sanitizer.

I just thought of something. The first 11 days my temp read 20-22 C and then it got kind of cold up here (minnesota) and the last 2 days it has been between 18-20 C. The yeast pack recommended 70-75 F fermentation. So maybe It is due to the cooler temp?

 

[flars]

Looks like you did everything right. Cooler temps at end wouldn't have affected the final product. time to look at additoons, or change in yeast, for the next time you brew the same recipe.

Someone here at HBT may have the recipe you are looking for.

 

[BlueHouseBrewhaus]

BigLoad, don't sweat the flavor right now. The yeast still have some cleanup work to do. You may want to warm it up for the last few days to help them finish up before bottling. Then everything changes and develops once the beer is bottled and carbed. After you bottle, let it sit in a nice warm place (70-ish) for 3 weeks. I think you will be pleasantly surprised when you try it. The full favor will develop and get better over time. Enjoy!

 

[BigLoad]

Thanks so much for all the replies I sure do appreciate it. It's really nice to have a place to ask questions of veteran brewers. Cheers! Slainte! Prost!