Blonde ale a loss?

[JeffLacoy]

OK, I'm about a half dozen brews in now and this is my first real newbie moment where I am unsure if the beer is a loss or not?

Just bought a thermapen, and while comparing it to my old thermometer id been using, realized my old one had been reading 4-6* high. I botched my mash last weekend on an Amarillo/cascade blonde, and while I thought I was tempting fate mashing at 145-146, I was probably actually barely pushing 140. Batch sparged, again, way too low since my thermometer was way off, and boiled.

Somehow got almost 0 mash tun loss (changed my mill gap), and had extra volume and a preboil gravity of 1.028. Decided I'd boil down to the correct volume, in hopes of pushing the gravity up and getting the volume close to right. Pitched 1318 at about 70*, and let it ride at 68* the past 5 days. Smelled great initially, but the past 24 hours it smells, Yuck. Best I can describe it is as a banana/bubblegum/slight black licorice scent. Ive read esters are volatile, so if they are offgassing, it's not in the beer anymore, but haven't experienced this yet.

Is the smell any indication of an issue due to the stupidly low mash temp? Is the mash temp in itself a cause for concern? Any input is appreciated. Was gonna let it ride, but not if it's assuredly toast.

 

[jwalk4]

Ride, Ride, Ride, let it Ride.


Even at 140F, some conversion will occur. Next time though, if your mash temp was low, give it longer than an hour and you will probably get a few more OG points out of your mash.

As for the yeast smell, your temps are a little warm which leads to more esters and smell. But it is also an indicator that the yeast is working on some extracted sugars.

Congrats, you still made beer!

 

[Transamguy77]

I'll second let it ride, in the end you'll have beer, possibly not the beer you were expecting but it'll be beer.

 

[JeffLacoy]

I did the iodine test, did let the mash go a little longer. Looked OK.

I drink beer, so this should all work out in the end. Lol

 

[Cavpilot2000]

Ride, Ride, Ride, let it Ride.
Even at 140F, some conversion will occur. Next time though, if your mash temp was low, give it longer than an hour and you will probably get a few more OG points out of your mash.

Congrats, you still made beer!

68-70 a little warm for ale fermentation? Since when?
Sure, some people like to ferment ales cool to suppress esters, but for most ale yeasts, 68-70 is the performance sweet spot!

 

[csurowiec]

68-70 a little warm for ale fermentation? Since when?
Sure, some people like to ferment ales cool to suppress esters, but for most ale yeasts, 68-70 is the performance sweet spot!

68-70 inside the liquid in the fermenter, great. 68-70 ambient room temp, not so much.
If the room is 70 the inside of the fermenter at high krausen could easily be 78 which would give estery smells.

 

[jwalk4]

Ehhhh, to me, that's still climbing up there. Most English strains I keep lower and they are still plenty fruity.
To each their own.

Edit last time I did an English strain, 04 I think, I got mega bubblegum.

 

[Cavpilot2000]

68-70 inside the liquid in the fermenter, great. 68-70 ambient room temp, not so much.
If the room is 70 the inside of the fermenter at high krausen could easily be 78 which would give estery smells.

An 8 degree climb would be rare. 4-5 probably more likely, and in my experience, a non-issue. I ferment ales at 68-70 ambient all the time and never experience temperature-based unwanted esters. But again, to each his own, and unwanted is subjective.

And I dislike S-04 intensely. Never had a good expreience with it, while WLP002 and 007 I've had great experience with (and that's not a knock on Fermentis - I love, love, LOVE 34-70).

So maybe it is yeast-dependent.

 

[csurowiec]

I will admit the info I stated above is based more on what those who have come before me have stated than personal experience. The only beers I have ever let ferment at ambient room temp are Belgians where I wanted a strong yeast flavor/presence. I am pretty OCD about temp controls using a converted chest freezer to avoid esters and fusels.

 

[JeffLacoy]

I'm fermenting in a mini fridge with an itc-1000 controlling a heat wrap and the fridge itself, getting readings via a thermowell in the center of the wort. We can all hug now. ☺️

 

[leonardoreges]

Lower temps can lead to lower sugar conversion and then lower OG.
That's never gonna change fermentation profile of your beer, just yields lower ABV.
Banana and/or bubblegum smell are due esters formed in fermentation, usually associated with high fermentation temps and belgian yeasts (not the case).
Just let it roll a little longer.

 

[myntz]

Don't quote me on this as I've only used 1318 once before my current batch, but when I was fermenting a blonde with 1318 @ 68-72*F, I was getting very pungent belgian-y smells. The aroma could only be described as yeasty mixed with bananas, cloves and past-prime stone fruits.

After 13 days of ferment, the smells were gone and the beer tasted much much much cleaner than the aromas I was getting during ferment.

 

[JeffLacoy]

That's what I'm hoping for. All part of the trial and error of being new! The fermenter smells much more 'normal' now, getting back to a bit of a hop aroma, although this was a very lightly hopped beer. 2.5oz total between bittering and late boil additions

 

[JeffLacoy]

It's a dumper. Just took a gravity sample. It's bubbling from the bottom as if lightly carbonated, but no airlock activity. Hit fg, but unfortunately tastes like a honey, wheat vinegar. Taste coats your mouth like cough syrup, and 10 minutes later can still taste it on my tongue.

Bummer.

 

[kh54s10]

How long has it been fermenting? Let it ride longer. I have had a couple that I thought were not so good on bottling day and 3 weeks later I thought they were very good.

I would only dump it if it makes you gag.

 

[JeffLacoy]

Borderline gag, had to spit it out. Lol. Hell, maybe I'll just let it finish the week out, but don't have my hopes up. Don't really want to even waste the co2 kegging it.

 

[myntz]

Aw no! I'm sorry to hear that man.

Even if you do go ahead and dump it. Bottle up a 6-er with a tsp of sugar in each and let em condition for a month. Maybe you'll have some good come of it.

 

[JeffLacoy]

Maybe I'll throw it in a 5g bucket with some Brett or something. Wouldn't bother with temp control. Brett gonna be very active with little residual fermentables, and temps around 60-62, or it really wants to be quite a bit warmer?