Worst batch of beer you ever brewed?

[gnr9933]

My brewing buddy Dave was telling me about some of the bad batches he's had, and what he thinks went wrong with each one.

What's the worst batch you ever made? What kind of beer was it? What do you think went wrong (recipe, infection, other)?

 

[JonM]

I brewed a batch of Biermuncher's Centennial Blonde using City of Milwaukee tap water. I hated it, SWMBO hated it, it was awful. That was my motivation to start adjusting water. I have made many very similar recipes since then using RO water and appropriate minerals and they've all been great.

 

[MindenMan]

The worst batch I ever did was an apricot ale I got in a hurry with. Granted, I was a new brewer and didn't have a real idea of what could happen. I added the priming sugar to the fruit in the secondary and I didn't want to wait two more weeks to bottle. Never again. No bottle bombs luckily.

 

[IanJ]

A recent batch with some cultured yeast from an Ommegang Witte bottle... it just didn't work. Don't know if it was wild yeast, bacteria or bad fermentation temps, either way it turned out awful.

 

[Billy-Klubb]

BL clone. it came out just like the real stuff.

 

[hunter_le five]

My first two Pilsner attempts, which unfortunately were subsequent batches and resulted in the Great Drought of 2012.

First one, the o-ring on the keg busted and leaked out into the interior of my kegerator, and promptly began to grow mold. I never actually got to taste it, but I suspect it did not taste all that great considering what I just said,

Second batch was a huge DMS bomb. Now I make damn sure to get a strong rolling boil on all my beers, and do a 90 minute boil for anything with
Pilsner malt in it.


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[day_trippr]

BL clone. it came out just like the real stuff.

LOL!

I did a Blue Moon clone for the spousal unit that had waaaay too much orange.

The worst part about that is she liked it

Cheers!

 

[stevo4361]

"The great drought of 2012" had me really laugh out loud.
Worst batch for me was a "b grade IPA" from Ritebrew, old hops and unknown breed of hops(which they advertised up front, not their fault). Had a weird flavor I hated. Powered through and drank them during a garage into living room project, but did not enjoy it. Lesson learned don't use skanky hops.

 

[av8er79]

In my early days I brewed an extract IIPA that ended with a stuck fermentation. I never realized it since it was like the 4th beer I had brewed. it is still in bottles several years later. I need to dump that crap!

 

[firerat]

Pumpkin Ale with sweet potatoes.....

I don't want to talk about it.....

 

[Hamaki]

Mugwort ale. An ounce of mugwort leaves instead of hops. The Mrs. kinda liked it and youngest son would drink it once in awhile and said it gave him lucid dreams or something like that.

 

[stevo4361]

"The great drought of 2012" had me really laugh out loud.
Worst batch for me was a "b grade IPA" from Ritebrew, old hops and unknown breed of hops(which they advertised up front, not their fault). Had a weird flavor I hated. Powered through and drank them during a garage into living room project, but did not enjoy it. Lesson learned don't use skanky hops.

 

[brewbama]

Roeselare Red. Nothing wrong with it per se. I just found out I don't like sours. Lesson Learned.


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[JonM]

I take back my earlier post about the Centennial Blonde. Last winter I made my first attempt at a lager - a simple 1.048 Helles. I stepped up a starter to the right size, had the water chemistry down, hit all the numbers, oxygenated before pitching, fermented at 49F, diacetyl rest, the whole bit.

It was an undrinkable acetaldehyde-laden mess that got stuck around 1.025. The only thing it was good for was practicing with my counterpressure filler. I dumped the rest. At least I drank the Centennial Blonde.

 

[jspangler1110]

Coffee stout, I put a third of a pound of coffee beans in my secondary fermentor for about 6 days. The whole thing smelled like rotten stale coffee. The keg sat around for 2 months just got around to dumping it today yuck!

 

[Billy-Klubb]

Coffee stout, I put a third of a pound of coffee beans in my secondary fermentor for about 6 days. The whole thing smelled like rotten stale coffee. The keg sat around for 2 months just got around to dumping it today yuck!

when I brewed with extract, I used to make a mean coffee sweet stout. I used to make 3 gallons of really strong Highlander Grogg and use that as top off water. I haven't attempted one since I went AG though.

 

[stevo4361]

What is this highlander grogg that you speak of?

 

[captjpr]

Never brewed a batch I couldn't drink . They're ALL good. Some are just better than others!

 

[liquidlunch]

I tried to lager before I knew how to and it came out awful. That's the only batch I had to dump. Still have nightmares about it

 

[Zepth]

I can't think of a worst batch at this particular point in time. Though a hugely disappointing batch is as follows:
-find 5 gal recipe, sounds good.
-make it
-love it
-try to increase to 10 gallon size
-???
-fail

Not that it is bad, but it is a huge disappointment based on the success of the original 5 gal batch. Add that on top of the fact that I now have double the quantity of something I didn't want in the first place! Next time around, 5 gal batch.

 

[Chadwick]

My worse batches:

1) BMC clone - I really didn't give it attention and allowed the airlock to dry out. At some point between that and bottling day there was a gnat invasion in the house....enough said.

2) Pumpkin Ale of Death - Adding 4X the amount of pumpkin spice deemed to already be too much pumpkin spice by most into a wort with an OG over 1.100 will yield a beer that will mildly poison you while getting you hammered and sick at your stomach at the same time. Not fun.

3) Peated Malt Vinegar beer - Because when the pressure is so strong it cracks the seal of your fermentation vessel despite having a blow-off connected you will get an infection if you don't notice it for two days.

 

[catdaddy66]

Recently had to dump my first and only sMasH beer as it got caught at a critical stage of fermentation when my a/c went out and the house got 88-90*. Beer was seriously sour and kinda greasy in texture. Yuck


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[Powhatan]

A Baltic Porter that fermented way to high in temperature. It had such a hot burn when drinking, it required chap stick before you let it touch your lips. It eventually got dumped.

 

[Sacchattack]

My girlfriend got me a double IPA kit when i was early into brewing for my birthday. I had taken a break for about 6 months while leaving some cleanser with some old brew in one of my plastic carboys. Smelled a little funky, but nbd. Used the carboy....

Went from banana --> Solvent --> to complete diacetyl bomb. Best part was i gave one to my college professor when i thought it was drinkable. 2 weeks later he started avoiding my hello's.

 

[Riot]

First time I tried making a strong Belgian ale. I read about how warm Belgian yeast likes it and took it at face value. Started at about 75, who knows what it topped at. Nothing but banana and acetone by the time it was finished

 

[Braufessor]

I brewed a "pumkin festbier" that was terrible...... Jameson Irish Whiskey Red was another really bad one..

I know I had one or two that were infected that were brutal.

I brewed an amber ale that I dumped 12 ounces of amarillo leaf hops in at flame out..... tasted like a bale of hay.

 

[grathan]

I've had a few worst beers.

Koslch 2565 that never cleared. I think I forgot calcium.

apricot begian wit, only needed 1/5th of the can of apricots, but figured why not dump it all in..

The 3 batches or so I did when I first started kegging and didn't know the gunk in the dip tube didn't come out with a simple rinse.

The duevel clone that stalled 30 points off.

The American Ale II that never took off and subsequent failed Notty packet and eventual old mason jar of 1056. Ended up lwith rubber taste

The 12 batches the year I started all grain and didn't know about bicarbonates and tannins.

The northern brewer kit I decided to ferment in a regular water carboy ended up with a slight growth on top.

The Headdy clone I tried in my new Speidel fermenter that oxidized horribly from large headspace extended cold crash.

The grassy Pliny clone that dry hopped too warm.

The wet hop experiment from 2 years ago.

There was also more than a few when I first started brewing 20 years ago, but that was expected.

 

[Weezy]

I made a rye PA that the mash temps got away from me. FG was 1.024...sweet but I drank...most of it.

But,
I can't make a cider to save my soul. Every harvest season I try one or two and they're all tannic or acidic. Blech. I'll blame Drew Beechum since his book didn't help

 

[hunter_le five]

I've had a few ....
Koslch 2565 ....
apricot Belgian wit...
3 batches or so I did when I first started kegging....
The duevel clone...
The American Ale II....
The 12 batches the year I started all grain....
The northern brewer kit....
The Headdy clone....
The grassy Pliny clone....
The wet hop experiment....

Holy $#!+, that's quite a list! Do you find time to make good batches during all that?


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[henchman24]

My worst was by far a cinnamon roll inspired beer that SWMBO decided would be a good idea. It was only my 2nd recipe I had devised, and I did not succeed. It was a conglomeration of ingredients that just didn't work well together, and I found out I am slightly allergic to cinnamon.

I don't remember the exact recipe (trying my hardest to forget this ever happened), but it was a light beer with oats, brown sugar, lactose, actual cinnamon rolls (should have just ate those and been happy), and cinnamon sticks (boil and dry). The first time I made it, I got through the whole process and while moving a hose from the chiller to not make my back porch an icy mess, my friend pulled over the whole pot. Never got to even have a sample to see it was bad. The 2nd time... I actually got the beer kegged, and I suffered through about 4 or 5 beers. Every time I drank one my throat would tighten and get scratchy. At first I thought it was seasonal allergies, so I waited a couple more weeks until those die down around me and tried another.... well, that ended in a bunch of benadryl and thoughts of using an epipen.

A couple friends liked the beer so I quickly bottled as much as they would take and dumped the rest. Only beer that I have thought was bad enough to dump.

My only other 'bad' beer was an ESB that fermented way too hot. Had all the typical off flavors, but it was my first batch and I wasn't about to let my ugly child go to waste.

 

[Einherjar]

I brewed a Vienna lager that ended up tasting like underripe granny smith apples, or a cider that hasn't had time to age and smooth out. Just overpowering acetaldehyde taste. I thought it might have been too green so I kept it around eight months, but the green apple persisted. It was my first attempt at a lager and I think I racked from the primary fermented way too early. Ended up dumping it in the bathtub. The smell of an orchard mingled with my tears and lingered in my apartment for hours. Haven't gotten up the nerve to try another lager yet, but since then I've tightened up my processes and I think I'll be more successful.

 

[ICWiener]

Shoot, let's see....

The first, and only, 3 batches I made with a Mr. Beer kit. Holy hell those were all awful.

My first 3 batches when I started extract brewing. They were all kits from the LHBS:
A Cali Common that came with Nottingham yeast(!).
A pale ale that came with 50% of the hops necessary to make a pale ale.
A wheat beer, to which I added apricot extract. Because I had no idea what I was doing, but I liked Pyramid's Apricot Ale at the time.

None of the kits came with fermentation temperature guidelines. Since I hadn't read any brewing books yet, I just let them ferment in the spare bathroom. Most of my beers came out tasting like they'd had a shot of cheap vodka added. Good times.

 

[Drizzt]

Dear beer gods I think this thread is for me. I started with an electric biab system and learned afterwards that I was not cleaning my elements correctly. I made 3 batches that ended up burnt. A bass ale clone, a Kolsch, and a pilsner. Pretty much everything that wasn't hopped up was horrible That may not be 100% on topic but I saved a few bottles and dumped the rest of all 3. I just tasted one bottle 18 months after brewing just to see. It might have gotten worse. I have since gone propane and so far so good.


I'm not sure if my the flavors in my beer are off or complex 😳

 

[CraigKing]

LOL at the Bud Light clone!


My worst batch was supposed to be a Belgian Trippel. But I used Safale 05, instead of a Belgian yeast. So I didn't get any of the 'Belgian' flavor I was hoping for. And since I had added orange and coriander into the boil, along with a lot of candy syrup, I ended up with a strong-orange-spice ale. It's my least favorite to date, but seems to be the favorite among most of my friends. It's still completely drinkable, just not what I had hoped for.

 

[keggert]

Went through a spell with English Ales where I was doing water adjustments. I get my water from one of the dispensing machines, so I made the assumption that I was using RO water. Later I found out they only use the machine for dispensing purposes, the water goes through a ro process and then they blend the water. Never try to adjust your water profile without knowing exactly what you are starting with. Dumped 4 batches. It was a sad time.

 

[Drizzt]

Went through a spell with English Ales where I was doing water adjustments. I get my water from one of the dispensing machines, so I made the assumption that I was using RO water. Later I found out they only use the machine for dispensing purposes, the water goes through a ro process and then they blend the water. Never try to adjust your water profile without knowing exactly what you are starting with. Dumped 4 batches. It was a sad time.

Sorry to hear that you topped me I only dumped 3 and I was very distraught.


I'm not sure if my the flavors in my beer are off or complex 😳

 

[Billy-Klubb]

What is this highlander grogg that you speak of?

it's a coffee with maple syrup notes to it. it worked great with lactose.

 

[Walzenbrew]

I had a brown ale that I was very excited about. It was my first all grain batch (BIAB). I put so much care and love into this damn bag of grain that I couldn't wait for it to be finished.

Fast forward 5 weeks. I bottle it and taste. It's sour, uh oh but no other signs of infection. It actually tastes kinda good. I'm excited.

Fast forward 3 weeks. It's done in the bottle. BLEHGHEG is the sound I make when I taste it. Nasty.

I gave it to friends and say it's a local beer. They all said, "welll.....", which is never a good sign.

Turns out it wasn't the infection. I forgot I used that carboy for apfelwein and it had leftover sharp flavor.

 

[celticinnbrewery]

Worst ever was a chocolate pomegranate hefeweisen I made as an experiment about a year ago. I actually did 4 one gallon batches with differences in each. Ends up they all turned out the same - crappy.

 

[Staylow]

My first batch was pretty bad. It was a Dry Irish Stout kit from TruBrew, which had probably been sitting on the shelf for a year or two, considering there really are not that many homebrewers around here, and the ones that are, more than likely order online. Didn't rehydrate the yeast, and fermentation took about 72 hours to kick off. Brewed in the middle of winter, and fermented in a part of my basement that rarely gets above 55 that time of year. But, at the time, I of course that it was awesome - I made friggin' beer!! So, it didn't go to waste.

The one I dumped was much more recently. Was supposed to be an American Wheat, with a little caramel wheat malt. Well, someone messed up, as I'm pretty sure they sent me Midnight Wheat instead of caramel wheat, as my color should have been 5 or 6 but came out more like a 20. Had a package of 1056 in the fridge that sat a little too long and swelled just enough that I couldn't break the smack pack, so I went to the LHBS (not so local) and thought I was picking up a vial of wlp001, but instead grabbed a wlp002. Brew day was also a nightmare as I tried to rush it after getting a late start, made tons of mistakes, missed targets, etc. In the end, the beer just sucked - I didn't like it, and neither did SWMBO. I didn't foresee us drinking it, so it just got dumped. In hindsight, all the mishaps probably clouded my judgement, coming in with a bad perspective. I should have bottled from the keg and let it sit. Lesson learned, I suppose.