Tankard
Well-Known Member
So, after discovering a cardboardy off-flavor in my first AG (which was also in my last extract batch), I am left feeling very discouraged. I have been coming to this site less often, as the "SUCCESS ON FIRST AG!" threads leave me feeling depressed. Part of me really regrets turning over the cash to go AG, as my beer has not benefitted from the switch right away.
I know I'm overreacting, but I really wanted my first AG to be a success. I now have 50 bottles of beer that are drinkable, but are not as enjoyable as a Boston Lager would be, for example. I'm thinking of dumping this batch and just starting over... except I know now what I have to do. I MUST control my fermentation temperature next time. I MUST find a way to get my immersion chiller to get the wort below 80 degrees, instead of the 85-87 which is the lowest temp the wort drops to with my IC + tap water combo.
My plans for the future include building a "Son of a fermentation chiller," and buying a 25 foot copper prechiller, even though I'm not sure how these work. Next time I'll buy some 5.2 (not sure if I need it or not, however). I also am worried about my bottling strategy. Quite a few bottles get oxidized when the flow comes out too fast, or when the beer gets an air bubble in the bottling wand tube...
The worst part of it all is that this batch proved to me that something about my procedure is wrong. I thought my last batch had a bit of a "bite" simply because of the extract recipe, but this AG had the same thing.... It's me, not the recipe.
Sorry to sound so fatalistic, I guess I'm just venting. Thanks for listening
I know I'm overreacting, but I really wanted my first AG to be a success. I now have 50 bottles of beer that are drinkable, but are not as enjoyable as a Boston Lager would be, for example. I'm thinking of dumping this batch and just starting over... except I know now what I have to do. I MUST control my fermentation temperature next time. I MUST find a way to get my immersion chiller to get the wort below 80 degrees, instead of the 85-87 which is the lowest temp the wort drops to with my IC + tap water combo.
My plans for the future include building a "Son of a fermentation chiller," and buying a 25 foot copper prechiller, even though I'm not sure how these work. Next time I'll buy some 5.2 (not sure if I need it or not, however). I also am worried about my bottling strategy. Quite a few bottles get oxidized when the flow comes out too fast, or when the beer gets an air bubble in the bottling wand tube...
The worst part of it all is that this batch proved to me that something about my procedure is wrong. I thought my last batch had a bit of a "bite" simply because of the extract recipe, but this AG had the same thing.... It's me, not the recipe.
Sorry to sound so fatalistic, I guess I'm just venting. Thanks for listening