All Grain Off Flavor

[michaelLDemory]

I failed at my first attempt at all grain brewing, I brewed a basic Pale Ale.

The taste is a soft round flavor , maybe what is described as bubble gum or sweet corn flavor, I am not sure if that is exactly it. After reading I believe it may have be caused by pitching the yeast at too high of a temp, it was just over 80 deg. f. I am working on improving my wort chiller.

It was my first batch so there is a great likely hood there could have been other errors. Am I on the right track, failure sucks.

 

[bottlebomber]

That's DMS. It means the beer wasn't boiled long enough. Easy fix. I always do a 90 minute boil myself.

 

[FATC1TY]

If you smell/taste the bubble gum type of off flavor, thats generally from esters produced from a higher temp of fermentation. You should make sure to control the temp, especially in the first 3-4 days of active fermentation.

The corn smell/taste is DMS. In all grain, and especially lighter beers, you want to make sure you boil vigorously, and with no lid on. Also, you'll notice that some of the all grain recipes, will call for a 90 minute boil. This will help drive off DMS better with a longer boil, if you can't get a rockin' boil going.

Good thing is, it's easily fixable for the future batches, and something simple that involves little to no more equipment!

 

[smokinj]

Fermentation temp is a likely culprit, but with out any information about everytning else(i.e. recipe, yeast type, age, etc) it is really hard to say. Could just be that it isn't ready to drink yet.

 

[BigEd]

The taste is a soft round flavor , maybe what is described as bubble gum or sweet corn flavor, I am not sure if that is exactly it. After reading I believe it may have be caused by pitching the yeast at too high of a temp, it was just over 80 deg. f. I am working on improving my wort chiller.

You cannot pitch yeast at that temp and expect the beer to be OK. At 80F you are going to be making Belgian beer regardless of the recipe. Please do yourself and your beer a favor and read up on the process & technique. Before brewing another batch get your chilling problem solved. Poor temperature control is a big reason for a lot of bad homebrew and it just doesn't have to be that way.

 

[Brulosopher]

As already mentioned, bubble gum is a result of too high I ferment temp and corn is DMS. Did you boil with your lid on the kettle? With most base malt, except Pils malt, a 60 min boil is more than sufficient, if you leave the lid off.

 

[michaelLDemory]

Fermenting temp is a very stable 67 degs. I will never pitch yeast above 75 deg. again, I had read a some advice about not waiting to long to pitch the yeast even if temp is not quite right. I will try a more robust boil and maybe a bit longer.

 

[RCCOLA]

Some good advice on here. Nice to see something other than "wait longer"

I routinely pitch after an overnight chilling during summer when my wort chiller stops at ~80F. If your sanitization is good, you will have no issues.

 

[FATC1TY]

Good point on pitching at a later time. We all rush to get the grain to the fermenter, and in the haste, we feel as thought we HAVE to pitch the yeast before we call it a day.

I've gotten to the point where I will brew, and put it in the fermenter, my tap water in the summer outside will only get me to roughly 70* at best, and that with moving the chiller around in the pot periodically, and creating a gentle whirlpool to get the cooler wort mixed in that is near the coils.

I will put my fermenter in the large bucket with some cold water and frozen bottles, until the temp is down in the 60's, and then pitch. At that point, it's already cool, and I can maintain it for a couple of days, until the krausen is falling, at which I will let it go, and keep the water around 68-70* until I remove it.

Patience goes beyond just waiting to drink it!

 

[el_horno]

Agreed Fatcity, patience is probably the most difficult part of home brewing, and at several stages throughout the process! Rushed beer yields rushed results.

 

[Brulosopher]

I occasionally pitch around 80F then put my fermenters into a very cold (52F) chamber. By the time the yeast takes off, the wort is usually about 65F. I really only do this in the Summer, when temp is 95F+... did it this afternoon, in fact. I've done the "wait until it's cool" method and it works just as good. Whatever, eh?

 

[landshark]

I do as Brulosopher does. I'll chill till around 80. Seems about as cool as my IC will cool during a normal summer day. Then sit the fermenter in my chamber I keep at whatever temperature I am looking at. By the time the yeast really gets going it is fine.

 

[Brulosopher]

I do as Brulosopher does. I'll chill till around 80. Seems about as cool as my IC will cool during a normal summer day. Then sit the fermenter in my chamber I keep at whatever temperature I am looking at. By the time the yeast really gets going it is fine.

It's my "summer secret."

 

[Bamsdealer]

I've actually been practicing a later pitch in most of my all grain brews with no I'll effect.... One because the wort chiller only works to 85 degrees... Two because it allows me to dilute a couple liters of wort to 1.04 with some di water and have a starter ready to pitch at high krausen in 12 hours. No more messing with starters beforehand or worrying about decanting first.