zstar5000
Member
Hi everyone.
Ive read the threads, consulted the Google, and even prayed about it, but Ive got a serious issue that I think needs some real expert advice.
I recently cracked open a second bottle of my third and latest batch, and there is a disturbing trend the cause of which I cannot for the life of me figure out. To varying degrees, each batch of beer has had the same sour banana sort of smell during fermentation and taste after bottling. The second bottle of this third batch wasn't as sour as the first bottle, but it was more just plain gross. This taste diminishes slightly after a few months in the bottle, but its remains strong enough to detract from the taste of hops in my IPA and the malty goodness in my amber.
Im all about practicing patience when it comes to letting the yeast finish its job, but I thought more time in the bottle would allow a decent beer time to get better, not be necessary in all my batches to make wretched tasting beer drinkable.
Below I will post the steps and/or ingredients which all three batches have had in common. Hopefully someone will notice a red flag.
1. I sanitize with a 12.5 ppm iodine solution. Ive been told this is no rinse, and everything I spray with the solution still has some residual spray when I add the wort/beer.
2. I brew partial mash. After steeping I sparge with around 2 liters of water thats about 80-85 C.
3. Although I do a late addition DME, I probably dont portion out my bittering hops properly, so each batch is probably more bitter than I would like. This probably doesnt produce the sour taste, but it certainly doesnt help.
4. Do to the depressing lack of hop selection here in Korea, Ive used Hallertau hops in each batch: for flavor in the first, and bittering in the second and third.
5. Carahell grains have been used in all three batches.
6. I keep a thermometer on top of my fermentation bucket. The ambient temp in my apartment is always around 23C, and Ive never seen the thermometer above 25 during fermentation.
Thats all I can think of right now. If something isnt on the list Ive effectively eliminated it as a cause because Ive used a different ingredient/method on at least one of the three batches.
Thanks for any help!
Ive read the threads, consulted the Google, and even prayed about it, but Ive got a serious issue that I think needs some real expert advice.
I recently cracked open a second bottle of my third and latest batch, and there is a disturbing trend the cause of which I cannot for the life of me figure out. To varying degrees, each batch of beer has had the same sour banana sort of smell during fermentation and taste after bottling. The second bottle of this third batch wasn't as sour as the first bottle, but it was more just plain gross. This taste diminishes slightly after a few months in the bottle, but its remains strong enough to detract from the taste of hops in my IPA and the malty goodness in my amber.
Im all about practicing patience when it comes to letting the yeast finish its job, but I thought more time in the bottle would allow a decent beer time to get better, not be necessary in all my batches to make wretched tasting beer drinkable.
Below I will post the steps and/or ingredients which all three batches have had in common. Hopefully someone will notice a red flag.
1. I sanitize with a 12.5 ppm iodine solution. Ive been told this is no rinse, and everything I spray with the solution still has some residual spray when I add the wort/beer.
2. I brew partial mash. After steeping I sparge with around 2 liters of water thats about 80-85 C.
3. Although I do a late addition DME, I probably dont portion out my bittering hops properly, so each batch is probably more bitter than I would like. This probably doesnt produce the sour taste, but it certainly doesnt help.
4. Do to the depressing lack of hop selection here in Korea, Ive used Hallertau hops in each batch: for flavor in the first, and bittering in the second and third.
5. Carahell grains have been used in all three batches.
6. I keep a thermometer on top of my fermentation bucket. The ambient temp in my apartment is always around 23C, and Ive never seen the thermometer above 25 during fermentation.
Thats all I can think of right now. If something isnt on the list Ive effectively eliminated it as a cause because Ive used a different ingredient/method on at least one of the three batches.
Thanks for any help!