Hi all,
As the name suggests, I have been having some issues with my beers going very dusty of late. The kind of taste and sensation of walking into a dust storm. Dried out mouth with a kind of dirty, earthy, dusty type of taste to it.
I will list the recipes this has happened to below, with an outline of the processes and differences between them all. Every single one of these has been made in the past 2 months.
I don't believe it is infection related, I heat sterilise and K-Meta everything religiously, both before and after every brew or bottle day. Taps cleaned, bungs soaked and I ditch any bottles/taps/etc that I can't clean to an acceptable level.
**TL;CBF Reading Processes/Ingredients/Miscellaneous Crap? Skip to the bottom
The first recipe I did that went dusty is as follows:
Adelaide Tap Water:
Calcium(Ca): 27.0 ppm
Magnesium(Mg): 14.0 ppm
Sodium(Na): 74.0 ppm
Sulfate(SO4): 59.0 ppm
Chloride (Cl): 123.0 ppm
Bicarbonate(HCO3): 66.0 ppm
PH: 7.4 PH
This goes through a sediment filter and gets dosed with a pinch of K-Meta to remove Chlorine.
System used in this first beer was a 3 Vessel Keg System, fermented in a 30L [8G] plastic fermenter
Recipe Style: Saison
Recipe Type: All Grain
Yeast: Danstar Belle Saison [Wyeast 3711]
Yeast Starter: Hydrated
Batch Size: 20L [5.25g]
Original Gravity: 1.050
Final Gravity: 1.004
ABV: 6.1%
IBU: 16
Boiling Time: 60 Minutes
Color: 5
Fermentation: 13 days at 21C [70F]
Tasting Notes: Dead
Efficiency: 80%
2.5kg [5.5lbs] Barrett Burston Pale Malt
1kg [2.2lbs] Joe White Wheat Malt
0.5kg [1.1lbs] Flaked Oats
200g [7oz] Best Sauermalt
100g [3.5oz] Weyermann Munich 1
Mashed at 62C [144F] for 40 minutes at 2.5L/kg [1.2 Quarts/Lb], brought up to 68C [154F] by adding hot water to around 3L/kg [1.45 Quarts/Lb] Sparged with 77C [170F] Water
5g [0.17oz] Azacca - 60 Minutes
20g [0.7oz] Azacca - Flame Out
40g [1.4oz] Azacca - When Whirlpool hits 80C [176F]
100g [3.5oz] Azacca - Dry Hops split over 2 additions, one when krausen drops, the other 4 days after.
Bottled 4 days after last dry hop. Racked off into bottling bucket and bulk primed to 2.8 vols
Looks perfect, ideal carbonation. Tastes like dust. And tasted like it from my first sample, 2 days in, gravity 1.020.
The next beer was done using rain water, at a different location, using a completely different system. BIAB single vessel NE Style Pale Ale
Recipe Style: Pale Ale
Recipe Type: All Grain
Yeast: Wyeast London Ale III
Yeast Starter: Yes
Batch Size: 20L [5.25g]
Original Gravity: 1.050
Final Gravity: 1.006
ABV: 5.8%
IBU: 50
Boiling Time: 60 Minutes
Color: 7
Fermentation: 10 days at 19C [66F]
Tasting Notes: Headless, muted hop flavours, faded dust.
Efficiency: 60%
4kg [8.8lbs] Barrett Burston Pale Malt
0.75kg [1.65lbs] Flaked Oats
0.25kg [9oz] Joe White Wheat Malt
0.25kg [9oz] Weyermann Munich 1
0.25kg [9oz] Simpsons Golden Naked Oats
0.25kg [9oz] Joe White Light Crystal [60L]
Mashed at 66C [150F] for 60 minutes at 3L/kg [1.45 Quarts/Lb]
No sparge
20g [0.7oz] Magnum - FWH
60g [2.15oz] Hop Blend* - Flame Out
60g [2.15oz] Hop Blend - When Whirlpool hits 80C [176F]
190g [6.7oz] Hop Blend- Dry Hops split over 2 additions, one when krausen drops, the other 5 days after.
* Hop Blend is a blend of 90g [3.2oz] each of Citra, Amarillo and Simcoe with 40g [1.4oz] Mosaic
Bottled 3 days after last dry hop. Racked off into bottling bucket and bulk primed to 2.2 vols
Tasted great up until bottling day. Went dusty. The dirt flavour is subsiding and being replaced by the fruity hop flavours you would expect from the recipe. Plenty carbed enough but holds no head, unlike the Saison which has a nice thick head.
The next beer was done using adjusted [1.25 tsp CaCl2 and 2/3tsp CaSO4] rain water, same location, this time using a different vessel to mash in. BIAB 2 vessel NE Style India Pale Ale
Recipe Style: India Pale Ale
Recipe Type: All Grain
Yeast: GigaYeast Vermont Ale Double Pitch [Conan]
Yeast Starter: No
Batch Size: 18L [4.75g]
Original Gravity: 1.060
Final Gravity: 1.008
ABV: 7.3%
IBU: 70
Boiling Time: 60 Minutes
Color: 7
Fermentation: 12 days at 19C [66F]
Tasting Notes: More headless, muted hop flavours, not that dusty, but still noticeable.
Efficiency: 55%
5kg [11lbs] Barrett Burston Pale Malt
0.7kg [1.54lbs] Flaked Oats
0.35kg [0.77lbs] Simpsons Golden Naked Oats
0.15kg [0.33lbs] Joe White Wheat Malt
0.15kg [0.33lbs] Dextrose
0.1kg [3.5oz] Joe White Light Crystal [60L]
Mashed at 66C [150F] at 3L/kg [1.45 Quarts/Lb], temperature dropped lots, lots of pulling off and heating to 70C [158F] while constantly stirring and adding back into the mash. 90 minute or so mash.
Sparged with Cold Water
10g [0.35oz] Magnum - FWH
275g [9.7oz] blend of Citra, Simcoe and Centennial through FO, Whirlpool and Dry, in much the same way as the previous 2 beers.
Bottled 6 days after last dry hop. Racked off into bottling bucket and bulk primed to 2.3 vols
The last beer, which was bottled last night is going to go in here aswell. This is back on the first 3 vessel system, filtered tap water again, metabisulfite in the water to remove chlorine.
Recipe Style: Pale Ale
Recipe Type: All Grain
Yeast: US-05
Yeast Starter: Hydrated
Batch Size: 23L [6g]
Original Gravity: 1.054
Final Gravity: 1.005
ABV: 6.5%
IBU: 35
Boiling Time: 90 Minutes
Color: 7
Fermentation: 12 days at 20C [68F]
Tasting Notes: Soul Crushing
Efficiency: 60%
4kg [8.8lbs] Barrett Burston Pale Malt
2kg [4.4lbs] Bairds Maris Otter
0.65kg [1.43lbs] Joe White Caramel Malt [20L]
200g [7oz] Best Sauermalt
Crazy mash day. Mash was stuck when I tried pulling a sample after 30 minutes. Opening and stirring dropped temperature significantly. Blowing back under the bed a couple times eventually unstuck it. Heated half of the wort to 70C [158F] while stirring constantly, the other half in the mash tun received boiling water to bring it up to 70C [158F] also while stirring constantly. Recombined and started recirc. Sparged at 77C [170F] as per normal.
20g [0.7oz] Magnum- 90 Minutes
30g [1.1oz] Amarillo - Flame Out
60g [2.1oz] Amarillo- When Whirlpool hits 80C [176F]
40g [1.4oz] Simcoe + 50g [1.75oz] Amarillo - Dry Hops split over 2 additions, one when krausen drops, the other 4 days after.
Bottled 5 days after last dry hop. Racked off into bottling bucket and bulk primed to 2.5 vols. Bottled 6 bottles prior to racking off, using carbonation drops and kept them to the side to compare later.
This tasted perfect until 2 days before bottling when I pulled a sample. Last night when I bottled it, it tasted just the same as the rest.
I have tried all I can to try and find what part of the process is doing this. I have 3 fermenters in rotation and a separate one just for bottling out of. I have used different equipment, water supplies, yeasts, hops, everything. Racked off with different hoses, kept fermenters in different areas around the house, one at another persons house [where I brew on the 3 vessel system and use tap water]. We share all of our equipment and brew together constantly. None of his beers during this period have done what mine have done. There is no real difference to any of our techniques, we swap and change fermenters and equipment all the time, just use whatever anyone has around with nothing in it at the time. We share almost all of our grain [Except Base Malts, he has his own bags there, and I have mine at my place] This is the only difference I can find.
Now, tl;dr? What I am wondering, would a bag of grain be making these dusty flavours? It is the same grain I have used forever, the same that him and another guy use, but out of a different batch. I don't know when I opened this bag, but it was close to when I started noticing all of my beers becoming undrinkable and tasting like this. I have tried the process of elimination on absolutely anything and everything I can think of, as outlined in the last 4 beers I have made above, in regards to ingredients, processes, equipment, location. I have searched and found not much on any of my flavour descriptors and what may be causing it. Is there anything else out there that may be causing this? I have made many of beers like these ones previously, but without oats, or with different batches of hops, or different yeasts, or slightly different grain bills, but nothing like the string of crap I have been getting of late.
Any ideas and suggestions will be welcome.
Thanks,
Ryan
As the name suggests, I have been having some issues with my beers going very dusty of late. The kind of taste and sensation of walking into a dust storm. Dried out mouth with a kind of dirty, earthy, dusty type of taste to it.
I will list the recipes this has happened to below, with an outline of the processes and differences between them all. Every single one of these has been made in the past 2 months.
I don't believe it is infection related, I heat sterilise and K-Meta everything religiously, both before and after every brew or bottle day. Taps cleaned, bungs soaked and I ditch any bottles/taps/etc that I can't clean to an acceptable level.
**TL;CBF Reading Processes/Ingredients/Miscellaneous Crap? Skip to the bottom
The first recipe I did that went dusty is as follows:
Adelaide Tap Water:
Calcium(Ca): 27.0 ppm
Magnesium(Mg): 14.0 ppm
Sodium(Na): 74.0 ppm
Sulfate(SO4): 59.0 ppm
Chloride (Cl): 123.0 ppm
Bicarbonate(HCO3): 66.0 ppm
PH: 7.4 PH
This goes through a sediment filter and gets dosed with a pinch of K-Meta to remove Chlorine.
System used in this first beer was a 3 Vessel Keg System, fermented in a 30L [8G] plastic fermenter
Recipe Style: Saison
Recipe Type: All Grain
Yeast: Danstar Belle Saison [Wyeast 3711]
Yeast Starter: Hydrated
Batch Size: 20L [5.25g]
Original Gravity: 1.050
Final Gravity: 1.004
ABV: 6.1%
IBU: 16
Boiling Time: 60 Minutes
Color: 5
Fermentation: 13 days at 21C [70F]
Tasting Notes: Dead
Efficiency: 80%
2.5kg [5.5lbs] Barrett Burston Pale Malt
1kg [2.2lbs] Joe White Wheat Malt
0.5kg [1.1lbs] Flaked Oats
200g [7oz] Best Sauermalt
100g [3.5oz] Weyermann Munich 1
Mashed at 62C [144F] for 40 minutes at 2.5L/kg [1.2 Quarts/Lb], brought up to 68C [154F] by adding hot water to around 3L/kg [1.45 Quarts/Lb] Sparged with 77C [170F] Water
5g [0.17oz] Azacca - 60 Minutes
20g [0.7oz] Azacca - Flame Out
40g [1.4oz] Azacca - When Whirlpool hits 80C [176F]
100g [3.5oz] Azacca - Dry Hops split over 2 additions, one when krausen drops, the other 4 days after.
Bottled 4 days after last dry hop. Racked off into bottling bucket and bulk primed to 2.8 vols
Looks perfect, ideal carbonation. Tastes like dust. And tasted like it from my first sample, 2 days in, gravity 1.020.
The next beer was done using rain water, at a different location, using a completely different system. BIAB single vessel NE Style Pale Ale
Recipe Style: Pale Ale
Recipe Type: All Grain
Yeast: Wyeast London Ale III
Yeast Starter: Yes
Batch Size: 20L [5.25g]
Original Gravity: 1.050
Final Gravity: 1.006
ABV: 5.8%
IBU: 50
Boiling Time: 60 Minutes
Color: 7
Fermentation: 10 days at 19C [66F]
Tasting Notes: Headless, muted hop flavours, faded dust.
Efficiency: 60%
4kg [8.8lbs] Barrett Burston Pale Malt
0.75kg [1.65lbs] Flaked Oats
0.25kg [9oz] Joe White Wheat Malt
0.25kg [9oz] Weyermann Munich 1
0.25kg [9oz] Simpsons Golden Naked Oats
0.25kg [9oz] Joe White Light Crystal [60L]
Mashed at 66C [150F] for 60 minutes at 3L/kg [1.45 Quarts/Lb]
No sparge
20g [0.7oz] Magnum - FWH
60g [2.15oz] Hop Blend* - Flame Out
60g [2.15oz] Hop Blend - When Whirlpool hits 80C [176F]
190g [6.7oz] Hop Blend- Dry Hops split over 2 additions, one when krausen drops, the other 5 days after.
* Hop Blend is a blend of 90g [3.2oz] each of Citra, Amarillo and Simcoe with 40g [1.4oz] Mosaic
Bottled 3 days after last dry hop. Racked off into bottling bucket and bulk primed to 2.2 vols
Tasted great up until bottling day. Went dusty. The dirt flavour is subsiding and being replaced by the fruity hop flavours you would expect from the recipe. Plenty carbed enough but holds no head, unlike the Saison which has a nice thick head.
The next beer was done using adjusted [1.25 tsp CaCl2 and 2/3tsp CaSO4] rain water, same location, this time using a different vessel to mash in. BIAB 2 vessel NE Style India Pale Ale
Recipe Style: India Pale Ale
Recipe Type: All Grain
Yeast: GigaYeast Vermont Ale Double Pitch [Conan]
Yeast Starter: No
Batch Size: 18L [4.75g]
Original Gravity: 1.060
Final Gravity: 1.008
ABV: 7.3%
IBU: 70
Boiling Time: 60 Minutes
Color: 7
Fermentation: 12 days at 19C [66F]
Tasting Notes: More headless, muted hop flavours, not that dusty, but still noticeable.
Efficiency: 55%
5kg [11lbs] Barrett Burston Pale Malt
0.7kg [1.54lbs] Flaked Oats
0.35kg [0.77lbs] Simpsons Golden Naked Oats
0.15kg [0.33lbs] Joe White Wheat Malt
0.15kg [0.33lbs] Dextrose
0.1kg [3.5oz] Joe White Light Crystal [60L]
Mashed at 66C [150F] at 3L/kg [1.45 Quarts/Lb], temperature dropped lots, lots of pulling off and heating to 70C [158F] while constantly stirring and adding back into the mash. 90 minute or so mash.
Sparged with Cold Water
10g [0.35oz] Magnum - FWH
275g [9.7oz] blend of Citra, Simcoe and Centennial through FO, Whirlpool and Dry, in much the same way as the previous 2 beers.
Bottled 6 days after last dry hop. Racked off into bottling bucket and bulk primed to 2.3 vols
The last beer, which was bottled last night is going to go in here aswell. This is back on the first 3 vessel system, filtered tap water again, metabisulfite in the water to remove chlorine.
Recipe Style: Pale Ale
Recipe Type: All Grain
Yeast: US-05
Yeast Starter: Hydrated
Batch Size: 23L [6g]
Original Gravity: 1.054
Final Gravity: 1.005
ABV: 6.5%
IBU: 35
Boiling Time: 90 Minutes
Color: 7
Fermentation: 12 days at 20C [68F]
Tasting Notes: Soul Crushing
Efficiency: 60%
4kg [8.8lbs] Barrett Burston Pale Malt
2kg [4.4lbs] Bairds Maris Otter
0.65kg [1.43lbs] Joe White Caramel Malt [20L]
200g [7oz] Best Sauermalt
Crazy mash day. Mash was stuck when I tried pulling a sample after 30 minutes. Opening and stirring dropped temperature significantly. Blowing back under the bed a couple times eventually unstuck it. Heated half of the wort to 70C [158F] while stirring constantly, the other half in the mash tun received boiling water to bring it up to 70C [158F] also while stirring constantly. Recombined and started recirc. Sparged at 77C [170F] as per normal.
20g [0.7oz] Magnum- 90 Minutes
30g [1.1oz] Amarillo - Flame Out
60g [2.1oz] Amarillo- When Whirlpool hits 80C [176F]
40g [1.4oz] Simcoe + 50g [1.75oz] Amarillo - Dry Hops split over 2 additions, one when krausen drops, the other 4 days after.
Bottled 5 days after last dry hop. Racked off into bottling bucket and bulk primed to 2.5 vols. Bottled 6 bottles prior to racking off, using carbonation drops and kept them to the side to compare later.
This tasted perfect until 2 days before bottling when I pulled a sample. Last night when I bottled it, it tasted just the same as the rest.
I have tried all I can to try and find what part of the process is doing this. I have 3 fermenters in rotation and a separate one just for bottling out of. I have used different equipment, water supplies, yeasts, hops, everything. Racked off with different hoses, kept fermenters in different areas around the house, one at another persons house [where I brew on the 3 vessel system and use tap water]. We share all of our equipment and brew together constantly. None of his beers during this period have done what mine have done. There is no real difference to any of our techniques, we swap and change fermenters and equipment all the time, just use whatever anyone has around with nothing in it at the time. We share almost all of our grain [Except Base Malts, he has his own bags there, and I have mine at my place] This is the only difference I can find.
Now, tl;dr? What I am wondering, would a bag of grain be making these dusty flavours? It is the same grain I have used forever, the same that him and another guy use, but out of a different batch. I don't know when I opened this bag, but it was close to when I started noticing all of my beers becoming undrinkable and tasting like this. I have tried the process of elimination on absolutely anything and everything I can think of, as outlined in the last 4 beers I have made above, in regards to ingredients, processes, equipment, location. I have searched and found not much on any of my flavour descriptors and what may be causing it. Is there anything else out there that may be causing this? I have made many of beers like these ones previously, but without oats, or with different batches of hops, or different yeasts, or slightly different grain bills, but nothing like the string of crap I have been getting of late.
Any ideas and suggestions will be welcome.
Thanks,
Ryan