• Please visit and share your knowledge at our sister communities:
  • If you have not, please join our official Homebrewing Facebook Group!

    Homebrewing Facebook Group

Hefeweizen Pale Ale??

Homebrew Talk

Help Support Homebrew Talk:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

Hokie_Brewer

Well-Known Member
Joined
Dec 29, 2010
Messages
213
Reaction score
4
Location
Falls Church
My first homebrew was Charlie P's Whitney's Gone Fishin Pale Ale and it's been bottled for about 3 1/2 weeks now. The color is great, carbonation/head is great but the flavor is a little strange. It sort of tastes like a hoppier hefeweizen because of a faint banana flavor I think. Not bad, I definitely will be drinking all of it, but it just wasn't what I was expecting for a Pale Ale.

My first batch fermented in my kitchen (small apartment) and the ferm temps were somewhat high (75*-78*) and jumped around a lot because of cooking and such. My second batch I put in the closet which is cooler and more stable.

What do you think caused the off flavors in the first batch? High/unstable temps? Just want to know so I don't make the same mistake again.

Thanks :mug:
 
My first homebrew was Charlie P's Whitney's Gone Fishin Pale Ale and it's been bottled for about 3 1/2 weeks now. The color is great, carbonation/head is great but the flavor is a little strange. It sort of tastes like a hoppier hefeweizen because of a faint banana flavor I think. Not bad, I definitely will be drinking all of it, but it just wasn't what I was expecting for a Pale Ale.

My first batch fermented in my kitchen (small apartment) and the ferm temps were somewhat high (75*-78*) and jumped around a lot because of cooking and such. My second batch I put in the closet which is cooler and more stable.

What do you think caused the off flavors in the first batch? High/unstable temps? Just want to know so I don't make the same mistake again.

Thanks :mug:

Higher temps can raise ester production. The flavor you described sounds like an ester. What yeast was used?
 
My first homebrew was Charlie P's Whitney's Gone Fishin Pale Ale and it's been bottled for about 3 1/2 weeks now. The color is great, carbonation/head is great but the flavor is a little strange. It sort of tastes like a hoppier hefeweizen because of a faint banana flavor I think...

Hey Hokie,

I am going to brew this today and bought all the ingredients at myLHBS in Falls Church. Just wondered what ingredients you used? I purchased Muntons Light Malt Extract, 1007 German ale Wy yeast, Amarillo hops boil, German Spalt hops and Sterling hops. I usually do a 5 gal boil...did you follow the recipe to the T or did you make any substitutions? I am going for something not terribly hoppy...so I think doing a smaller boil like the recipe calls for might give me that.

Thanks for your input.
 
Higher temps can raise ester production. The flavor you described sounds like an ester. What yeast was used?


I'd put my money on this being what happened. The Banana flavor you described I'm pretty positive is from the yeast and as CloneFarmer said, a fermentation temperature that high will increase the Esters. A cooler place like your closet should work, I like to stick around 65-68 degrees for Ale fermentation. For a Hef I feel like you could get away with higher, but 75-78 is too high I think.
 
Back
Top