Alcohol-y taste. What causes it?

[Sneaker]

I tried my Holiday Ale for the first time yesterday. Brewed from a Brewer's Best extract kit. It sat in the primary for about 7 days, then in secondary for a couple of weeks, then in bottles for the full 21 days. The recipe kit contained corn sugar, as an alcohol booster.

The beer has what I can only describe as an "alcohol" taste. Kind of a sharp taste and a burning-in-your-nose sensation. I drink high-alcohol beers frequently, and none of them have this taste, so it's not just the high AVB, cause I'm used to that.

What could cause this phenomenon?

 

[CDbrews]

that taste should mellow with age

 

[Sneaker]

that taste should mellow with age

That's good to know, but is it preventable? What causes it? (my original question) And how long will it take to mellow? I am giving some as gifts, so what do I tell people — don't drink this until … ?

 

[Grizzlybrew]

Corn sugar is definitely going to produce more alcohol and as CDbrews said, higher ABV beers require more time for flavors to blend and the alcohol to become subdued.

Think about Whiskeys - the longer they age, the smoother they become.

 

[squeekysheep]

will depend on how high of abv and the temp it is kept at

 

[beerthirty]

What temp did you ferment at? Lower temps produce less fussel alcohols and help improve the flavor of the brew. I generally ferment ales at 66* to reduce fussels.

 

[Coastarine]

Lower fermentation temperatures will help to control this. Yeast produce more fusel alcohols at higher temperature, and they contribute significantly to a hot or alcoholic flavor and aroma. As others have said, once they are there the only thing to do is let it mellow with age.

Any high alcohol beer will have this to some degree even with careful temperature control.

I like 68*F for US-05 and S-04, and 64-66 for pacman and nottingham.

 

[Revvy]

Sounds like it's still green and hotly alcoholic, it will mellow with age.

 

[Sneaker]

What temp did you ferment at?

It was in the corner of the coldest room in the house. I was actually afraid it was too cool there. I'd say the room temperature was 60-65.

Thanks for the info, everyone

 

[bull8042]

Ferm temps are normally the most likely culprit as has been mentioned. But I would also like to add that your beer would be better served if you were to shy away from the use of table sugar and go with light DME or LME instead. Sucrose is not the best choice for beer production in general.

 

[FlyGuy]

Just to add to the good advice already provided, pitching less than the required amount of yeast or under-oxygenating will also contribute to fusel production, ESPECIALLY if the fermentation is too warm. And even if the ambient temperature is below 70F, the fermentation temperature can exceed 75 F simply because of the heat generated during the fermentation process.

Fortunately, the beer will mellow with time, so hopefully it is a beer that will age well.

 

[rico567]

Given the time frame you mention for fermentation, days in bottle, etc......more time will be your friend. Can't rush these things.