NB SS Minnow Dry Dock

[gishua]

Hi guys,
Pretty new to brewing. This was my 2nd brew. I chose to go with NB SS Minnow Dry Dock. The brew went well and I sanitized everything very well before brewing and during bottling.

Primary Fermentation - 2 weeks

I bottled 3/30/14 and been trying bottles every week since then. I'm experiencing some issues and wondering if it's just GREEN beer.

1. Tastes undercarbed - we put 2/3 cup as directed in instructions of sugar that came with kit
2. Tastes cidery / winey
3. I took to local brew shop and guy said it tasted a bit sour? I don't know the sour taste just yet.

Any help appreciated.

Thank you in advance.

 

[tmendick]

What temp did you ferment? Do you have any way of regulating temperature?

 

[gishua]

around 70-75F - no I don't

 

[tmendick]

That's pretty high temp, especially if that is room temp, fermentation adds heat so if your room temp is about 70+ the actual temp of the beer could be closer to 75+

Looking at the recipe on Northern Brewer the yeast is 1968 London ESB, its temp range is 64-72.

I would reccomend a Swamp Cooler (essentially submerge your fermenting vessel in a tub/bucket full of water and add frozen bottles) to regulate temperature, that is a cheap option that I used for the first 10 or so batched until I upgraded to a fridge with an external temp controller.

Let it sit for a week and try it again.

 

[gishua]

But these are already in the bottle. So basically trash? LOL

 

[tmendick]

Let it sit for a week and try it again.

Time heals most wounds.

Is it really bad, or just not what you were expecting?

 

[gishua]

Yeah i'll just let it sit and start another brew. It tastes like a flemish....would low sugar in bottles cause a sour taste?

 

[tmendick]

In a week try it out, if it's more sour tasting then you might have an infection.
What are you using for water? You could have a higher than usual level of chlorine in your tap which could cause a slightly sour flavor...I think....
How long did you condition in the bottle?

 

[gishua]

I bottled 3/30/14 so basically a month
Using Tap water (when would i put metabisulfit in? For the 3 gallons in fermented after boil?)

 

[Ramitt]

You put it in as soon as you pour it.

 

[gishua]

Ok i'll do that next time. Think the SS is bad? Should I toss it?