Off Flavors Post Bottling

[howamidriving]

I recently brewed the Left Hand milk stout clone here (with a couple minor tweaks). In the bottling bucket it tasted awesome: great coffee/chocolate notes and a nice little bit of sweetness.

I just cracked the first bottle today it's sadley nothing like it was on bottling day. First of all it's virtually uncarbed. It also is a weird slightly sour sort of fruity character. It's actually still totally drinkable though, if it doesn't start to really go down hill drink em for sure.

Obviously the first thing that came to mind was an infection, but I feel like the lack of carbonation sort of rules that out? Maybe possibly oxidation?

Thanks for any input!

 

[oujens]

How long has it been in the bottle? Is it possible the beer is still young and needs to condition a little longer? I remember testing my bottles at 1-2 weeks and they tasted much better at 4-6 weeks. Might need some more time for the beer to mature.

 

[howamidriving]

I'm thinking that could very well be part of it. I forgot to write down to bottle date for this one but it's probably been 3-4 weeks. As I got to the bottom of the glass last night it reminded me of that little tang that Guinness has to it.

 

[RM-MN]

Talk to me after that stout has been bottled for 3 to 6 months. Then if you still have the off flavor we'll dig into what could have gone wrong. My stouts start tasting really good in about 6 months and continue to improve for over a year.

 

[PADave]

Talk to me after that stout has been bottled for 3 to 6 months. Then if you still have the off flavor we'll dig into what could have gone wrong. My stouts start tasting really good in about 6 months and continue to improve for over a year.

I second this. I brewed a stout back in July. The first bottles that I tried after 2-3 weeks in the bottle were a real disappointment. But now, they have become quite delicious.

 

[RM-MN]

I second this. I brewed a stout back in July. The first bottles that I tried after 2-3 weeks in the bottle were a real disappointment. But now, they have become quite delicious.

Save some for later, they will keep improving. I really liked the last bottle of a batch that made it to 2 years. It was really smooth.

 

[kh54s10]

IMO, For bottling 2 weeks is absolute minimum for an average APA or similar beer. 3 weeks, they all taste better. A heavier beer takes longer, sometimes much longer. If you wait another couple of weeks and still get this off flavor you might have an infection.

My guess is that it just needs some aging.