New brewer i need help!!!!

[Tlynn87]

Ok so i have brewed about 5 batches of beer now and all but the first one turned out bad. They all have similar taste to them. A little about my brewing process: i use a aluminum brew pot and a turkey frier as a heat source, all batches have been malt extract, i use a wort chiller to cool, and i use bottled water. Im not sure how to describe the off flavor but its a bad after taste. Here are a couple things that i think i might be doing wrong but I'm not sure? 1. i use a turkey frier as a heating source. it is really hard to get it to a light boil, usually its a really strong rolling boil because there isn't a way to control the flame. its all or nothing.
2. i try to catch all i can when i transfer to my bottle bucket but i still get quite a bit of all the stuff on the bottom of the brew pot like the hops and stuff. 3. after i pitch my yeast i store the bucket in a small bathroom in my house to ferment. i am starting to think that the temp in the bathroom fluctuates a lot because there is a heat register in the bathroom and its a small area so it gets hot quick when air is on. These are the only thing i can't think of that i might be doing wrong. If you have any advise for me please help!! Im hell bent on brewing good beer!! all comments appreciated

thanks

 

[Stauffbier]

I'm willing to bet the problem is your fermentation temp. Just a hunch.

Also, do you make yeast starters to ensure you are pitching enough yeast?

 

[Yooper]

There are two things that come to mind for me. One is a too-high fermentation temperature and the second is the water. What is the water you are using for brewing?

 

[jCOSbrew]

Fermentation temp and sanitation are key. Are you using starsan or similar sanitizer for all your cold side equipment (fermentor, bottling bucket, bottles, etc.)?

AL pot will develop a grey oxide layer after the first boil. It will not contribute to off flavors just don't scrub off the grey layer when you clean.

You could also try late extract addition (save half of extract and add during the last 10 min of the boil)

 

[Yankeehillbrewer]

1. If your burner is wide open the whole time there is a chance you could be scorching the wort. Try and get a regulator for that thing. What kind of burner is it?

2. I'm a little confused on this one, I think you mean when you transfer from your Boil Kettle into the fermenter? Theres a couple ways to address this..One is to put a spigot on your BK with some type of screen or false bottom to filter the majority of that stuff out...or What I do is I put a 5 gallon paint strainer over my fermenter then I dump the wort through that, but this only works if you are doing 5-6 gallon batches, things are just to heavy to pick up with bigger batches. With all that said, I think it's unlikely that this would contribute to any off flavors. Lots of people on here just dump everything into the fermenter and report good results.

3. Chances are this is your problem, make sure your temps are in the proper range for the Yeast you are using. Small fluctuations(1-2*) aren't the end of the world, but ideally you want to lock in the temp. To do that you need to build some type of fermentation chamber, I would suggest a freezer of some type with a temp controller. Then you can properly lager if you want to & do a good crash cool.

As others have commented on, make sure your Cleaning & Santizing practices are good, & your pitching a proper amount of healty yeast.

Cheers

 

[Tlynn87]

stauffbier most of the time i use dry yeast. I always boil water then let it cool to about 95 then rehydrate my yeast for about 20 mins then i pitch

Yooper i used one gallon jugs of spring water from local grocery store.

JCOSbrew i don't think sanitization is my problem because i am over the top when it come to that. i use starsan and am OCD about everything that my wort touches after the boil.

So if i boil at too high of a temp would that create off flavors? what is the correct boil for the wart?
thanks for your help!!

 

[Tlynn87]

Yankeehillbrewer i think i am going to invest in a new burner because its just to hard to control. If i start to have a boil over the only way to stop it is to remove the pot from the burner because there is no control valve. I have also looked into getting a temp controller and a freezer. How do i make sure i have enough yeast? i just rehydrate what they give me in the kit and pitch it? not sure what else i would need to do to make sure its healthy and the proper amount

 

[Jupapabear]

A rigorous boil should be good. I keep a cup of cold water and a spay bottle to keep my wort from boiling over. It always is a chore for me since I have such a small kettle right now. I would suggest what the others have said; control fermentation temps.

I use a turkey fryer, but I have have a regulator on it to control the flame. I have to tinker with it throughout the boil, but the hour passes quickly.

 

[andy6026]

The things I would suspect are (a) fermentation temps, and (b) water supply. Ideally you want to ferment at the low end of each yeast's preferred temperature range. Use a swamp cooler to get temps down if you need to.

I'm not sure how your water supply will affect doing extract batches as compared to all grain. Surely it would since beer is mostly water. However, in doing AG mashes, I noticed that my pH level was much too alkaline. I have my first batch fermenting now where I used lactic acid to bring down the pH and I'm sure this beer will turn out better. Perhaps the more experienced extract brewers can give you tips on what you need to control in the water supply for those batches.

 

[Stauffbier]

I still say it's fermentation temps. If you can't afford to build a fermentation chamber at the moment, then at least start using a swamp cooler. In other words put the fermenter in a tub of water and rotate frozen water bottles in the water to maintain the temp. I did this for a very long time. I typically kept the water at about 56-60 degrees for the first few days during initial fermentation (for most ales), and then let the temp rise to the yeasts minimum temp after that for the remainder of the time.

 

[Tlynn87]

ok well i think ill be building a fermentation chamber form an old freezer soon! thanks everyone for you response and advise!!

 

[Yankeehillbrewer]

Yankeehillbrewer i think i am going to invest in a new burner because its just to hard to control. If i start to have a boil over the only way to stop it is to remove the pot from the burner because there is no control valve. I have also looked into getting a temp controller and a freezer. How do i make sure i have enough yeast? i just rehydrate what they give me in the kit and pitch it? not sure what else i would need to do to make sure its healthy and the proper amount

http://www.mrmalty.com/

This has a good pitch rate calculator on it, you can adjust it to fit your setup. I highly suggest always rehydrating any type of Dry Yeast, & make sure it is not too old. Also make an appropriate sized starter when using Liquid.

That's odd that your burner doesn't have a controller on it. You should be able to pick up a 10 or 20 PSI regulator at most hardware stores.