Soapy flavor in beer

[dsdrake219]

im going to try to keep this short.

Background: i have brewed well over 100 batches (most were successful). i have been brewing for about 7 years, its been on and off. one of my last batches i had brewed in my last period of brewing had a soapy flavor, it was a very hoppy ale that was racked onto a yeast cake and the soap did not age out and it was strong. i do not know why this happened, it was very oxygenated.

Recently i started back up(i have been busy but wanted to brew some more so for time sake i have been trying to develop a process of speeding the process up,

I have 4 batches as i have been improving the technique

the first was a coopers canned IPA aside from generally not being that great it had no off flavors.
the next was another ipa can with some boiled hop tea added and it was racked ontop of the yeast cake. this one has some soap flavor to it (note the first beer only fermented for 7 days.)
the next one was light dme and hop teas., it went onto the yeast cake (i had not tasted the soapy flavor at this point)
but after brew 4 on yet the same cake, (this was going to be the last beer on said cake)i have tasted brew #2 and its soapy..

my notes:
this has happened only when pitching onto the cake which i am sure to be generally safe
This has only happened with hoppy beers but i have never tasted it in hoppy beers before.. they are my favorite.
I DID stop smoking around the time of the first soapy batch and maybe i am now sensitive to soapy flavors from the hops.. (i still drink craft ipa's and they are fine (the homebrew is VERY young still while the 1st soapy batch aged for about 6 months in bottles and never went away.)

Sorry for rambling and run on sentences..

any help or input would be great, i have scoured the internet looking for answers and havnt had much luck

Its not old yeast.
There is plenty of oxygen
i can give more info about my process but i know many people will probably have issues with my methods. Like i said im trying to keep my brew days fast and cheap

Oh, and all of these last 4 batches have been OG 1.042 FG about 1.006

 

[McKnuckle]

If you google the words hoppy, soapy, gypsum you'll find some conversations on the phenomenon. Apparently, one reason hoppy beers get along well with gypsum is that the latter can enhance a crisp, fresh hop flavor and eliminate soapy elements.

How do you treat your water? A high bicarbonate content (residual alkalinity, high mash ph) can also cause a soap flavor.

 

[dsdrake219]

If you google the words hoppy, soapy, gypsum you'll find some conversations on the phenomenon. Apparently, one reason hoppy beers get along well with gypsum is that the latter can enhance a crisp, fresh hop flavor and eliminate soapy elements.

How do you treat your water? A high bicarbonate content (residual alkalinity, high mash ph) can also cause a soap flavor.

thanks for the info on gypsum, i'll look into that.

my water is just tap (Memphis, TN we have some very decent water here) and i havnt had any problems with any AG batches, the ones i have done lately have been only extract batches due to me trying to cut back on time

 

[sakariss]

Did you happen to use Centennial hops ?
I've gotten something that I perhaps could describe as "soapy" twice. And both times it has been a recipe that relies on Centennial hops.
Maby more like the synthetic lemon flavoring that they use in dish-washing liquid. But the off flavor was minimal, and I only got hints of that flavour.
Founders Centennial tastes like that too.
*Edit Bell's Two Hearted is very Centennial, and that's one of my favorite beers

 

[dsdrake219]

nothing like lemon dish soap, just soap. doesn't even taste like the soap we have here. im really hoping the gypsum will help, i bought a lb of it already...

i have noticed it more present in the yeast than in clear beer..

 

[McKnuckle]

You can add a teeny bit of gypsum to your finished beer in the glass to test the theory. It might not be the same test as troubleshooting a high pH issue during the mash (gypsum would lower pH), but it can help you evaluate any potential flavor change post-mash.

 

[Trillium]

I came across a Greg Noonan interview few months ago that mentioned that the soapy flavour is due to not having enough hardness in your brewing water. Try bumping up the hardness with Calcium Sulfate and see if the helps. For IPA Noonan recommended 700 hardness!

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showpost.php?p=7265539&postcount=3555

 

[dsdrake219]

the gypsum seemed to have helped quite a bit.

as for the mash, its extract. im doing so to save time, and to kinda be cheap (i know extract is more expensive.) im making low alcohol high hops light colored ales. just 4lb extract.. and sometimes some dextrose using a pressure cooker for bittering, and then doing a hop stand. the whole process takes about 50 min... and its not bad at all (now that the soap flavor is gone) coming in under $20 a batch