Astringent taste.

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Dirtybeau

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So I've brewed three batches now. They have all had an astringent flavor in the finished product (at the back end of a swig).

  • All were extract kits with a combination of DME and LME
  • The first two batches were 5 gallon boils
  • The last batch was a partial boil (3 gal), then dilluted
  • In the first two batches I steeped the specialty grains at a temperature of approximately 165-170F
  • In the final batch I reduced specialty grain steeping temp to approximately 155-160F
  • In all batches grains were steeped for 20 min.
  • The first two batches had a much stronger astringency relative to the latest batch
  • I use an "oxynator" to infuse oxygen into each batch prior to pitching yeast

My thought has been something wth the process of steeping grains, but I'm really at a loss :confused:. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance, this forum is my new home.
-DB
 
Yeah, I think its probably tap water too. Sometimes city water can have lots of unwanted chemicals and off-flavors that can affect the beer. Try getting some water from a grocery store and see if the astringent taste goes away.
 
Are you thinking the problem with tap water is pH-related? i.e. too high.
 
Not everyone has problems with tap water but mine is high pH and has both chlorine and chlormine in it. It is so hard that water deposits have to be cleaned out of everything it touches regularly.
 
I used to get an off-taste from chlorophenols. It shows up as a rubber-like (medicinal?) aftertaste. For me, this was due to the chloramine in my tap water. (Most cities use chloramine now instead of chlorine, because it's more stable.) I started using Campden tablets in my brew water and this problem seems to have gone away.
 
Its not the water. It is the grain. You are probably squeezing the grain bag to get evey drop out. Am I right? Don't touch the grain once it is in the bag. It can also be your temperature on the grain. Too cool and you don't get enough out of the grain. Too hot and you will get astringency. I would bet it is too hot or you are squeezing the grain bag

Forrest
 
This is by no means a definitive answer, but I think your gut may have right about the grain steeping being the issue-- especially if you're using a lot of high-kilned malts. 170F is a rather high temperature at which to conduct the entire steep, and decreased astringency in your latest batch may well be due to the reduction of your steeping temperature. I'd say try steeping at 150-155F in your next batch and see if it helps you more.
 
Have you calibrated your thermometer? It's important to know that your thermometer is spot on when it comes to brewing.
 
I had the same issue at one time, and I have to agree with Forrest. Some of my early partial mashes, I squeezed the heck out of my grain bag thinking I was getting every tasty drop from the grains, instead I made beer with a serious astringent bite on the back end.

In my case, it did mellow out some after bottle conditioning for over 6 weeks. If yours is the same issue, dont give up on it and let it sit for a while.
 
+1 on the squeezing - did that for my first few batches of steeped. FInally got over it when I started reading on the forums.

Great stuff here!
 
I can't thank you guys enough for the advice, much appreciated.

I generally bob the grain bag once or twice and then let it drain back into the wort as I remove the bag. I'll nix this practice.

The first two batches contained the flavor throughout the lifetime of the beers, but it did mellow over time. The latest batch is about 5 weeks old, and the astringency is significantly less noticeable than in the others (I'd just like to identify the source and remove it completely in future brews).

For my next brew:

  1. Calibrate my thermometer
  2. Steep grains @ 150-155F
  3. Put grains in wort and don't mess with for 20 min

Thanks again, I'll update after my next brew.
-DB
 
Oh, you want to thoroughly wet the grains, and "teabagging" them is a good idea. You can stir well, and make sure that they are saturated. You can lift them out, and let them drip over the pot without any problems. I think the water temperature will make a big difference, and controlling the temperature better will help.

How are the grains crushed?
 
I had that same problem and I think the beer got contaminated with wild yeast or something. I've brewed 9 batches and only 1 had the astringent taste. The 1 that had that taste took almost 4 full days to start fermenting. How soon did your brews start showing signs of fermentation?
 
How are the grains crushed?

Been reading a bunch about the importance of this step today.

I order kits from Northern Brewer, and had assumed they were pre-crushed (I believe they used to offer this option). At any rate, I hadn't crushed any of the grains from these kits. Soooo... Addendum to my list is thouroughly crush specialty grains.
 
+1 to all of the other suggestions here and a couple of other things to think about.

Your fermentation temps - I have a batch of stressed yeast beer right now that has that same 'band-aid/banana' smelling/flavored beer. It is getting better with age, but I stressed the hell out of the yeasties by pitching too hot (for one).

Also, what are you using for your sanitizer? Improperly mixed starsan is said to cause this as well.
Good luck!
-Me
 
So, if you can't squeeze the grain bag, do you pull it out saturated, or hold it up and let it drain. I'm guilty of squeezing...
 
letting the grain bag drain out is fine. i still wouldn't rule out the water. you can get campden tablets and add like 1/4-1/2 of a tablet per 5 gal to remove chlorine/chloramines from the water. it's cheap and works for a lot of people. but with extract, it's perfectly acceptable to use distilled water if you want. you can get it cheap at grocery stores if you take in your own bucket/carboy to fill it up.
 
Late extract addition will help with that astringency as well.
 
Update:

My latest two batches were steeped at temps between 150-155F, temped with a calibrated thermometer, basically I followed as much of the advice I received on this thread and (after 4 weeks bottle condition on the first batch, and 2 weeks BC on the second) am happy to report that the astringency I tasted in earlier batches is all but gone.

I am interested in the comment about using starsan, and how I might be misusing the product, so further research for this geek. Thanks again to all the responses, my liver can't begrudge you all enough.
 
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