First brew done, yummy, why the hangover?

[DrDance]

Hello all! Not sure if this the right spot for this.

So I'm just dipping in to my first ever batch. It's a Brew House bagged wort IPA. Started Dec.27 and been bottle conditioning for 2 weeks now. I'll probably allow it to continue to condition, only adding bottles to the fridge as I drink them.
I had one (1) beer a couple nights ago and woke up feeling like I had a hangover.
Last night I had a couple glasses of beer and the same thing when I woke up.
Questions...
Is this to be expected with home brew? Should it give me a hangover feeling with only a couple beers? Is there something that can be done in the brewing process to eliminate this? What could be the cause of this?

 

[soccerdad]

When I drink commercial beers I generally drink a large (20 oz) glass of water somewhere in the session. No HO. When I drink HB I drink 2 for the same result. ?? I dunno? More active yeast in HB? Trace fusel even if not tasted??

IME hangover is mostly dehydration. More water, less HO.

YMMV

 

[DrDance]

I totally get that. But drinking commercial beer it takes quite a bit before a hangover sets in.
I literally had 1 HB and the headache was there in the morning.
Could it be that I need to clarify the beer more with gelatin or something?

 

[iarobertson]

To eliminate the HO completely? Send me the beer. (tee hee hee)

IMO, it's all about hydration. I think soccerdad hit it on the head, drinking more water should eliminate most hangovers.

 

[JonM]

If your fermentation temps were way high, you could have produced fusel alcohols which can give you a killer hangover. Same with acetaldehyde. However, unless the beer tasted funny, I doubt those are the causes.

 

[JONNYROTTEN]

I actually find I have less of a hangover,Even if I put down a few to many homebrew and wake up groggy I seem to bounce back faster than downing commercial brew. Maybe its the yeast. I've heard vitamin B depletion is half the reason for a HO.

I've also found if I switch up my normal commercial beers I get more of a HO. Like my body gets used to a certain beer and rejects new ones

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

Yes ETOH depletes the B vitamins, but one beer seem like it shouldn't be a problem for someone that's not new to drinking. I'm imagining the ABV of OP's brew is not overly high. Water and B complex are good suggestions. And read the kit to see if there are additives. That's what's good about homebrew- you know what's in it.

 

[Ashevillain]

Hmm, I have never had this happen with homebrew. Fermenting way too high would leave obvious bad flavors as well as a higher chance for headaches. Its strange though; maybe try a different source of ingredients? I would definitely try again but with a kit from morebeer.com or something similar.

Here is a simple recipe for a good 5 gallon batch of IPA:

-6 lbs Golden Light Dried Malt extract from any homebrew site/store
(this extract is tried and true for consistency and very common for IPAs)

-.5oz Centennial (add this at beginning of boil, use your imagination with the rest of the hops)

-3-4 oz Citra hops (if you like fruity hops, otherwise substitute)

-2-3 oz Cascade hops (a classic, piney hop that when combined with citra accentuates fruitiness and freshness)

-2 packets safale-05 yeast
(2 packs will help ensure proper yeast health unless your using a starter)



This will give you a clean ipa that is very fruity/citrusy and you can experiment with the hop additions. Try to keep temperature below 70 for the first week of fermentation.

I hope you figure out your problem! Also, describing your process in more detail might help us come to a more helpful conclusion.

Edit: make sure to use reverse osmosis or distilled water, while doubtful that it could cause a headache, malt extract already has mineral contents so when using tap/spring water your adding more minerals to the water profile than needed. This leads to harsh tastes.

 

[Cavpilot2000]

Agree with the suggestion that you may have had too high a fermentation temp and created some fusel alcohols, which you likely can't taste because it is an IPA and hops are masking it (im not sure how much flavor those fusels have anyway.

More active yeast is definitely NOT the cause, because while HB does usually have more yeast, yeast actually reduces hangovers because yeast is high in B vitamins, the depletion of which is a significant contributor to hangovers.

 

[mongoose33]

I've never had that in any of the beers I've brewed. I've had occasion to drink 3 or 4 in an evening, and no ill effects--but I don't pound them, I sip them, and those 3 or 4 might be over 3 hours time.

It might be worth knowing the recipe, conditions under which you brewed it, fermentation temperatures.

And with regard to fermentation temps: fermentation is exothermic, meaning the yeast during fermentation will raise the temperature of your wort by 5-10 degrees. So if you have ambient temperatures of, say, 69 degrees, your wort isn't 69--it's probably between 74 and 79 during active fermentation.

You can mitigate that with a ferm chamber, or even a swamp cooler. I have a fridge I sometimes use as a fermentation chamber, but my basement is such that if I do the swamp cooler, it can maintain about 64-66. And even though I have a ferm chamber, it's more likely I'll use the swamp cooler. Easy, works, keeps the temp where i want it.

It is said by many that one of the most significant changes new brewers can make to their process is fermentation temperature control. I believe those many are correct.

 

[Ashevillain]

As soon as I had temp control, it completely raised the bottom line of all my brew's quality. That being said I firmly believe that if you brew to style for the time of year and use a hardy, appropriate strain of yeast you can make amazing beer with no temp control. I'd just rather always control everything precisely! Its less natural/traditional, but the scientific control that can be asserted in brewing is what initially drew me to it in the first place.

 

[PADave]

I actually find I have less of a hangover,Even if I put down a few to many homebrew and wake up groggy I seem to bounce back faster than downing commercial brew. Maybe its the yeast. I've heard vitamin B depletion is half the reason for a HO.

Same here. I don't think I've had a hangover since I started brewing. The yeast are your friends.

 

[Thorsbrew]

Everyone suggesting B vitamins to reduce hangovers.....does B2 count? As i take those every day.

 

[DrDance]

If your fermentation temps were way high, you could have produced fusel alcohols which can give you a killer hangover. Same with acetaldehyde. However, unless the beer tasted funny, I doubt those are the causes.

Agree with the suggestion that you may have had too high a fermentation temp and created some fusel alcohols, which you likely can't taste because it is an IPA and hops are masking it (im not sure how much flavor those fusels have anyway.



More active yeast is definitely NOT the cause, because while HB does usually have more yeast, yeast actually reduces hangovers because yeast is high in B vitamins, the depletion of which is a significant contributor to hangovers.

Thanks, it might be the fermentation temp. It doesn't taste bad at all, quite easy drinking actually.
I just can't explain how one beer would make me feel that way. And at the risk of sounding like a complete lush, I'm not new to drinking and one beer wouldn't do it[emoji51]
Thanks for the input from everyone!
It might be the fusel alcohol issue. That's the only thing that seems probable. I'm pretty sure dehydration isn't the issue either. I'll double check my fermentation temp on the next batch.

 

[DurtyChemist]

What are you using to control fermentation temperatures or monitor temperatures?

 

[DrDance]

What are you using to control fermentation temperatures or monitor temperatures?

I'm just using a stick on thermometer on my FastFerment. It was steady at 22-24C for the duration of the fermentation.

After last night, and few down the hatch with a buddy, no headache. Maybe I'm getting used to it now? Still delicious.

 

[foam_top]

As others have stated, high temps will stress the yeast and produce harsher alcohol that are known for hangovers. However, I once found my porter at a temp of 79f during active fermentation (about 16 hours after pitching). I was certain that batch was going to have ill effects but it didn't have any off flavors nor do I remember any hangovers. I think the yeast was US-04, if that means anything to anyone.

 

[myelo]

Before you get too alarmed, you know it's possible you have a brain tumor or something ... and your beer is perfectly fine!

 

[DrDance]

Before you get too alarmed, you know it's possible you have a brain tumor or something ... and your beer is perfectly fine!

I hope it's that!! I'd hate to blame beer for anything negative

 

[Queequeg]

There are three options

1) you are a light weight

2) the beer contains high molecular alcohols

3) a combination of 1 and 2

seriously chances are its 2.

 

[DrDance]

There are three options



1) you are a light weight



2) the beer contains high molecular alcohols



3) a combination of 1 and 2



seriously chances are its 2.

Yes #2 seems right...if there's something I've never been called, and I've been called a lot of things, lightweight isn't one of them.

 

[MidAtlanticBrew]

I get less of a hangover from my home brews then commercial. I do have good temp control and I brew lots of session beers...

 

[dhoge]

You prob had something else going on, I.E. dehydration or a cold, low grade fever etc. You are not going to get hungover from one homebrew, or any other beer for that matter. If it tasted fine, and your fermentation is as stated, hangover is not the culprit.

 

[max384]

I'm a doctor, so I'll weigh in here. It's fun to speculate that fusel alcohols caused the hangover, and they indeed could have if the beer was brewed really hot and the OP couldn't taste them. However, dehydration is the real culprit in hangovers the vast majority of the time.

Vitamin B (and others) deficiency from drinking primarily happens in alcoholics after years of abuse, and it is mainly B2 (thiamine) and folate that are most deficient. B6 and B12 are the ones that are most closely related to headaches. Although they can be depleted in alcoholics, they are implicated in migraine and tension type headaches, not hangovers. Generally, once someone has an illustrious enough drinking career to be vitamin deficient, they generally become much more tolerant to hangovers, not more susceptible.

The internet (and bars) are full of alcohol wive's tales. You'll hear stories about this type of alcohol gives me hangovers, but this one doesn't. This type of alcohol makes me mean. This type makes me funny, etc. It's all a load of crap. Alcohol is alcohol. You drink enough and you'll get drunk. You drink enough and don't drink enough water, you'll be hungover.

 

[Thorsbrew]

Just to chime on on the hangover part carrying over from 'the doc' post above me. I'm no doctor but i can give my personal anecdotal experience. Yes hydration is very important but equally important is eating. In my early 20s when i drank a lot with friends i would get horrendous hangovers when i went past my limit. But i tried eating just a bit just before drinking and it made a huge difference. Especially if it was bread, like just a sandwich or so. I went from horrendous hangovers to yeah a little hangover there but gone shortly and pretty mild.

Yes bread absorbs alcohol so you'd probably say i was getting less alcohol. Perhaps, but i didnt notice a major change in how drunk i had gotten just how harsh the hangover was the next day.

 

[Pantherjon]

I guess I must be immune to beer hangovers..In my prime I would get falling down drunk on it and wake up fine in the morning..Groggy, yeah, but no headache..BUT, get me drunk on wine, or worse yet, on champagne, then I am guaranteed to have a raging headache in the morning after..Only thing I have noticed with home brew is I need to pee a lot..gotta go..LOL..

 

[Queequeg]

Vitamin B (and others) deficiency from drinking primarily happens in alcoholics after years of abuse, and it is mainly B2 (thiamine) and folate that are most deficient. B6 and B12 are the ones that are most closely related to headaches.

This is why some suggest homebrew is actually better because it contains a lot of suspended yeast high in B vitamins which you consume drinking the course of a session.

The internet (and bars) are full of alcohol wive's tales. You'll hear stories about this type of alcohol gives me hangovers, but this one doesn't. This type of alcohol makes me mean. This type makes me funny, etc. It's all a load of crap. Alcohol is alcohol. You drink enough and you'll get drunk. You drink enough and don't drink enough water, you'll be hungover.

I'm not so sure about this, after all beer and other alcoholic drinks don't consist of just alcohol. The chemicals produced by the yeast and present in the hops/grain could account many varied biochemical responses. They just aren't studied or understood.

Also some breweries krausen their beer, which again removes loads of yeast bi-products.

Likewise they may add sodium meta-bisulphate and other additives.

But overall I agree, largely people make excuses and reply on superstition make up for bad drinking habits.

 

[k1ngl1ves]

The key to avoiding hangovers is to never stop drinking.



You're welcome.

 

[ZmannR2]

Homebrew IPA'a never give me hangovers. Malty ass brews of any kind will tho.