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It's never a good day when you lose a batch. What it sounds like your describing is a phenolic flavor in your beer. Some people get clove, medicinal, or other chemical notes depending on the phenol present. Your process looks solid, so maybe it would help to know the biggest sources of phenolic...

My experience with S-04 is that it starts fast, ferments like a beast, and then chugs FOREVER! That being said, I've never made a bad beer with it. When it seemingly looks like it's crapped out, its still working, just very slowly. We did a NEIPA with it earlier this fall and it did the same...

As long as they are kept cold and the kegs don't leak you should be able to leave them off the gas once you've established an equilibrium pressure. Basically, once you've used the chart above and calculated what your intended carb level is, you can pressurize the keg to that psi (usually around...

What sort of off flavors are you getting in the finished product?

Should you have washed it first? Probably. Will it be a disaster if you brew with that grain? Probably not. If it's food grade you know, at the very least, it won't hurt you. Worst case scenario I think it could possibly affect your head retention of the final product. And that is a VERY worst...

If it were me I'd tell my roommate to go kick rocks, and that we split the place so you have every right to brew if you want to! LOL! Honestly though, when I'm brewing beer I have to literally put my nose on the airlock to get a good smell of how it's progressing. Cider, wine, or mead is a...

^^ For sure check the cider recipe thread for ideas to try. I would avoid the secondary personally as the racking process just introduces opportunities for something to go wrong and the benefits do not outweigh the risks IMO. Some brewers swear by it, I do not.

Hydrogen Sulfide is the enemy here. Pure copper bonds with sulfur compounds so stirring with a copper tube would have likely pulled those compounds out. It's not uncommon for winemakers to employ the same tactic, though I've never thought to use it for beer! Awesome post!

Looks like pellicle to me. Potentially lactobacillus but I could be wrong. At any rate, I've had this happen to me more than I like to admit, and I've never been disappointed with the beer that results. There are very few bugs that can get into your fermenting wort that will actually make you...

The process that's given me the most success is using any quality city roast coffee. (The reason I use city roast is to prevent too much of the oil from the coffee messing up my head retention, but beware it will add a bit more acidity than a dark or espresso roast.) I grind the coffee and...

The above is true about the color change. However, I think the majority of the issue you are having has to do with the timing of your dry hop. My recommendation would be to wait until you have reached your final gravity before adding hops. Otherwise the escaping CO2 carries away the aroma in the...

What you have there is a wonderful thing. On the side of the glass is what is called "lacing." It means you have a combination of useful proteins in your beer and a very clean glass. The little pillows are just where the CO2 bubbles are streaming up from the bottom of the glass. If you're still...

1-Gallon kits are a blast. I have a 5-gallon set up, but I'll also do 1-gal brews if I'm trying something really out there from time to time. If I'm doing a super BIG beer I usually do a 1-3 gallon batch to keep the cost down. Hope it turns out well!