Anyone else dealing with smell/taste loss from COVID?

[brianpablo]

I tested positive for COVID three weeks ago and fortunately didn't have any major symptoms, but I still haven't fully recovered taste and smell. Have any other homebrewers found ways to deal with this?

I've had plenty of beer since then, and it doesn't taste bad like it did at the start, but it's missing most of the subtlety that makes craft beer worth it. It pretty much all just tastes like ... beer? I can get hints of saison flavor and aroma, but the malt flavors are just plain missing. It means there's a lot of seltzer type sensations on the palate where the malt should be. I have some of NB's Smoke Bomb chipotle porter, and I can taste the heat and smoke, but not a whole lot else. I have an oaked Dubbel with cabernet, which gives me a hint of Belgian esters and a bit of grape flavor in the background - I can't say I really know what it tastes like. Hoppy beers still taste strange.

I know this can go on for months for some people and I'm happy to continue brewing since I've got all sorts of projects in the pipeline. Anyone have any specific strategies they've used to speed up recovery?

If it went on for months I'd probably eventually have to throw in the towel. I guess I could start learning to make homemade ... food?

 

[DuncB]

This programme might help if you can listen to it.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000s19t
Would be good to know your results from it.

 

[danimal92sport]

I had COVID back in November and my sense of taste and smell was about 95% back to normal after about 6 weeks. Unfortunately, the remaining 5% still has yet to, and probably will never, return. Certain foods taste like sunscreen (no, not just coconut; sunscreen) and I smell an odd burnt rubber/rancid meat smell from some plastics and (oddly) starsan. Luckily my ability to taste subtle notes in beer and coffee seems to be back - I was so worried that my two biggest loves / hobbies would be ruined.

Dan

 

[Kent88]

No personal experience. I've been reading about the loss of taste/smell, because if my spouse wanted to become a cheese grader she could probably send out resumes and get offers in a week. It's yet another thing we have to worry about, that her employment opportunities could become limited if she were infected.

It's a new disease, so there are still a lot of unknowns. Some of the first americans to be infected still haven't regained their taste and smell. I've read that it's pretty wearing on them. There are support groups, the ones I've heard about are online but I bet some are in person. I think there are also some special Covid recovery clinics around. I've read about people moving closer to them, because they're desperate for help recovering.

There are also some who are almost completely back to normal in 4-6 weeks.

I'm sorry, but it doesn't sound like there is much to do besides wait, hope, and keep a dialogue going with your doctor. They should have much better advice than a bunch of homebrewers on internet forums.

 

[Elric]

My grandmother lost her sense of taste and smell with an illness years and years ago. It took about four years before she started to slowly get it back. Hopefully it does eventually return for all those suffering it’s loss and the rest of the long term issues also go away.

 

[day_trippr]

fwiw, there have been some anecdotal reports of prolonged symptoms like anosmia resolving after the administration of the Covid-19 vaccine. Makes one wonder if there is such a thing as a residual "occult" infection that may not register on tests...

Cheers!

 

[DuncB]

there have been some anecdotal reports of prolonged symptoms like anosmia resolving

Cheers!

Who could forget that, ohh sorry that's amnesia and dyslexia working together.

 

[Kent88]

Oh good grief ^

 

[Kent88]

fwiw, there have been some anecdotal reports of prolonged symptoms like anosmia resolving after the administration of the Covid-19 vaccine. Makes one wonder if there is such a thing as a residual "occult" infection that may not register on tests...

Cheers!

That is news to me. That would be excellent. Do you have a source for it?

 

[DuncB]

Have a listen to the Inside health series of programs, another is about long covid and recovery, another talks about the vaccine and what it can do. Should get you well informed.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000t48vhttps://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000s7mzhttps://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m000rlpj
The doctor that hosts the program is still suffering from his infection last March.

It has info from lots of experts and is balanced listening not social media nonsense.

 

[Vale71]

For me, anosmia only lasted about 20 days and then fully resolved by itself. I'll never forget how awful food tasted (and beer too!). It'd definitely be a bummer if the condition became permanent.

 

[RM-MN]

Some people have reportedly gotten back their taste and smell by adding a zinc supplement to their diet. it's cheap to try and no bad side effects as long as you take it as suggested on the label. It worked for my BIL as he had lost his sense of smell and taste a few years ago and started to be able to smell after taking it for a couple weeks.

 

[MikeTHIS]

I had what I thought was a cold over Christmas. But then came the loss of taste and smell - it started to come back after two weeks and then gradually returned. I’d say I’m at like 90%? Brewing and beer is far more enjoyable, but I’m not sure how much of this is mental.

I lost my mind when I couldn’t smell hops. That’s my favorite aroma and the subtleties of each.

 

[btbonser]

Beer may be the source of your problem

 

[Bigmann76]

I caught COVID back at the first part of November and didn't lose my sense of taste or smell, I was just too sick to drink!!! I was struck with the dreaded long COVID. I was just able to finally have a beer at the beginning of March!! And I had 3 different beers kegged, one of which was untapped. I'm hoping to finally get to brew again this weekend since I have enough ingredients for 6 batches!

 

[Joggin]

I used to be able to smell a mouse fart a mile away, but lately hawks must be getting them.
Losing taste and smell would suck not being able to enjoy hop aromas. I wonder if Neti Pots would help?
Hopefully time will resolve it.

 

[NGD]

Those BBC links cover it, but you can search for “smell training” and find plenty of information. Its fairly easy to do and will help you regain some elements of taste lost with hypogeusia.

 

[day_trippr]

That is news to me. That would be excellent. Do you have a source for it?

Here's one but there are more out there...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/heal...ffcb28-859e-11eb-82bc-e58213caa38e_story.html

 

[dtashmore547]

I lost my sense of smell and taste 13 years back, so you have my sympathies, only way I ever get any sense of taste or smell is the occasional dose of cortisone, an injection sometimes gives me some 5 weeks of pleasure. I have had to learn to enjoy ales with only the basic tastes from the tongue.
no idea how long covid effects the sense of taste and smell but it shouldn't be permanent.

 

[BrewZer]

Beer may be the source of your problem

So close... if only you had used a Corona...

 

[cgoldberg3]

I lost my sense of smell and taste 13 years back, so you have my sympathies, only way I ever get any sense of taste or smell is the occasional dose of cortisone, an injection sometimes gives me some 5 weeks of pleasure. I have had to learn to enjoy ales with only the basic tastes from the tongue.
no idea how long covid effects the sense of taste and smell but it shouldn't be permanent.

I'm surprised you bother with beer at all. Almost seems like you'd be better off with liquor at that point.

 

[bracconiere]

i lost my sense of taste 14 years ago! (if i didn't allready say that) making beer got so much easier! now i just have decide wether it's going to be black or amber!

 

[Spikybits]

lost my taste/smell from august until early December when it started coming back - Roughly 85% normal now - raw hops still do not smell anything like they did prior to COVID. C hops are really muted and all beer smells really yeasty to me.

proceeded to drink all of the beer in my fridge that I was avoiding... mostly left by others when people bring beer over for parties. I can now drink any liquor like a fish and peated scotches are no longer terrible.

what really gets me is that cilantro now tastes like soap post COVID - which has really bummed me out...

 

[bwible]

My wife lost her smell/taste last year. She was eating hot sauce out of the bottle and telling everybody she couldn’t taste it. Like others said, it came back in 2 weeks or maybe even a little less than that. I believe we both had it, though my only symptom was a 103 fever that came out of nowhere, lasted right about 8 hours, then was gone. I did not lose mine. They say alcohol kills the virus and I drink plenty. Though we believe we both had it, neither of us got the q-tip to the brain test. My stepdaughter is a nurse, she got the test and said she was crying from the pain.

“peated scotches are no longer terrible.”
Peated scotches never were terrible. I really like Johnny Walker Double Black.

 

[brianpablo]

Thanks for all the responses! I do find it easier to drink straight liquor as a lot of beers still don't taste quite right to me. I'm hoping it will ease up, and I've been doing some basic aroma therapy to try to wake the sense up again. Neither taste or smell are back totally but I'm not sure I'd know the difference if it weren't for beer. I'm going to keep brewing and keep giving it a chance. And if it never gets better, just do like bracconierre and rotate between ambers and stouts!

 

[HB2 HughBHomeBrew]

Been wondering same thing. Had COVID in December and defintitely noted like the OP that beer seemed "seltzer-y." I have a porter recipe (no chocolate added) that I'm sure I could taste chocolate in before, but don't notice it now.

 

[dtashmore547]

I'm surprised you bother with beer at all. Almost seems like you'd be better off with liquor at that point.

no I always prefer ales, still get mouth feel and can still tell between a poor ale and a good one, besides liquor just gives me heartburn!

 

[Dland]

what really gets me is that cilantro now tastes like soap post COVID - which has really bummed me out...

This has always been the case for me. It is reported to be a relatively common genetic variation (maybe 20 % of population). Hope you get your enjoyment of it back, in any case. Many times an otherwise good meal is less enjoyable for me by inclusion of cilantro.

https://www.britannica.com/story/wh...of this,flavored aldehydes in cilantro leaves.

 

[Spikybits]

This has always been the case for me. It is reported to be a relatively common genetic variation (maybe 20 % of population). Hope you get your enjoyment of it back, in any case. Many times an otherwise good meal is less enjoyable for me by inclusion of cilantro.

https://www.britannica.com/story/wh...of this,flavored aldehydes in cilantro leaves.

Yea my Brother-in-law has always had cilantro taste like soap. He welcomed me to the club.

not the end of the world and definitely a situation I would rather have than some others.

 

[brianpablo]

Had a few beers last night and they really just didn't taste like anything. A mish-mash of confused flavors with some carbonation in the background. Sometimes my instinct is to keep "practicing" to train my taste buds. Then at other times I just reach for the bottle of bourbon that's on the shelf. I suppose I could always do both. I'll give it a good six months to see if things change. Kombucha still tastes good, so it's not all bad news.