Is my beer ruined?

[LuNchBoX1371]

So i just got done fermenting my first batch and it taste great but it smells like vodka or some type of other hard alcohol mixed with a beer smell; it also smells a little rancid kinda. My dad thought that it smelled like regular beer but im having doubts. Idk wat diacetyl smells like but could it be that. My OG and FG come out to be almost on point from the recipe. My beer should smell good shouldnt it, not kinda rancid right? I have never really smelled much beer before but the pale ales i have smelled smell pleasent. We bottled it anyways, will the smell dissipate? It is suppose to age for 24 days in the bottle. Plus we only use 1 fermenter could that be it?

 

[k_mcarthur]

The smell does change from fermenter to pour from keg for me, but rancid wouldn't be how I describe my beer at any point. What was your recipe?

 

[opiate82]

I find that the odors in the fermenter rarely accurately represent the beer personally. I don't know if I would call it "rancid" but I usually get a way more fruity smell then what the beer actually tastes like. Every time I panic and think that I fermented way to warm and that there are fruity esters everywhere that have ruined my beer, and every time once I serve a glass it ends up fine.

I would wait till it is carbed up and chilled then try it.

 

[jrgtr42]

Without knowing more, we really can't guess.
Can you provide your recipe, procedures (at least the cliff's notes version)
OG, SG, and temperatures while fermenting?
You're probably OK, and keep in mind that there is nothing that can live in fermented beer that can hurt us. Taste bad, maybe, but not actually make us sick or worse.
Also, when you say you just used one fermenter, I presume you mean that you did not transfer to a secondary. This is fine. Most people now are not using secondary unless they are bulk aging for some reason - wood, fruit, souring, and so on.

 

[LuNchBoX1371]

Its a fools gold amber ale boil size: 4 gallons, boil time: 45 min., using bullion hops for 45 min and hallertauer hops at 15 min. with irish moss at 15 min as well. Dextrose sugar, 1 pound, and 6 pounds of Northwestern Dry Extract and 1 pound of Extra light dry extract. IBUs 18.5 and the OG was 1.054 and the FG was 1.020. and temperature kinda fluctuated from 76 to about 67, we r trying to fix the flucuation problem by letting it sit in water. Because the ambient temperature of the water isnt gonna change much. Just like y a pool is not very hot when its 110 out

 

[k_mcarthur]

What yeast? 76° is too high for most ales, don't be discouraged if it doesn't taste like what you had in mind, next time do the water thing and float frozen bottles first few days to keep in low 60's. But that shouldn't cause rancid smell.

 

[hlm123]

My last batch was a recipe I made up, and when I bottled it I thought it smelled and tasted like rubbing alcohol with overpowering fresh hops/spices and was going to be awful. A few weeks in the bottles and it was like a Sierra Nevada IPA. With experience (brewing and tasting samples) you'll have a grasp of how the beer changes at different stages of the process.

 

[Warmart]

And I just kegged my 2nd batch (my first IPA) last Wednesday. I was surprised by the terrible smell coming from the fermenter, and from the keg after racking. Very strong alcohol odor and just seemed odd and off. Then after two days it started getting way better and now it's quite good, tastes similar to Arrogant Bastard. I was just surprised as my first beer, an APA, smelled quite good just prior to racking. Much more malt in my 2nd though, it's a very malty IPA.

 

[atoughram]

Try some WLP-029 yeast sometime - smells like poo while it's fermenting...

Also, the hops seem to be much more pronounced when your tasting your beer from the fermenter warm. Carbonation and cool temps lessen the bitterness.

 

[LuNchBoX1371]

I used wyeast scottish ale, do u think that could be it; but after what im reading and it sounds like some people have the same problem, hopefully its crisps up