Polyurethane with a hint of Rootbeer:

[HempelNet]

Well I figured I would share my first rootbeer horror story and strike it up to a lessons learned. The wife and I thought it would be fun for the kids to make some rootbeer so we bought a Homebrew rootbeer extract, grabbed some sugar, yeast, and a some 2 liter bottles. At the time we decided to embark on this family time adventure my normal carboys were tied up so my Mr. MacGyver kicked in and used a 4 gallon drinking water container.

We followed the directions and set the rootbeer aside for a few days then poured it into the 2 liter bottles. After carbonation took we chilled and kicked our feet up to enjoy the fruits of our family labor. Not only did it smell like plastic but it tasted like plastic with a hint of rootbeer. The makeshift carboy has a permanent plastic / rootbeer smell to it now so it is now being used for loose change. Figured we could use it as a better bottle fund.

We still had fun making the science experiment but the boys had even more fun shooting the fully carbonated 2 liters with BB guns afterwards. <Massive Gushers!> The moral of the story is yes MacGyver maybe able to make a bomb out of chewed bubble gum and a fig leaf but he needs to learn to make rootbeer!

 

[david_42]

At least it wasn't a batch of real beer.

 

[cell]

I didn't know that it could happen. I wonder what happened.. maybe it's the heat from the fermentation and the kind of plastic used?

 

[marzsit]

what brand of extract did you use? was it zatarains?

 

[HempelNet]

I believe it was the water container I used as far as the brand of extract here it is. Thanks..

 

[Guinness]

I have now had a similar problem twice.

My first attempt at root beer, in a 2L pop bottle came out tasting like plastic. Now I've made some ginger ale, and split the batch into 4 500ml PET bottles. Let it sit for about 4 days until nice and hard, refrigerated, and tried it tonight...plastic!!!

Can anyone help with why I'm getting this flavour?

Used Nottingham's btw.

 

[mordantly]

pet is inert. the flavor could be from chlorine in the water or wild yeasties/infection.

 

[Guinness]

Must be yeasties, somehow, because I dechlorinate with campden tablets.

That worries me because I use the same process/equipment as I do for my brewing. I don't detect anything in my beers, but is it subtle enough to be hidden by the hops/malt, but shine through the ginger ale flavour?

 

[mordantly]

it could be some bacteria that can't thrive in beer. try to make some by boiling and sanitizing as if it were beer and see what happens. i bet it'll be good.

edit:

Ropey and gusher infections are highly visible, but most other infections only change the taste.

Chlorine produces plastic/Band-Aid/clove-like aromas.

 

[Guinness]

Well, like with beer, time apparently heals all evils.

Stuck this in the back of the fridge for a bit more than a week, pulled one out, tried it, and it's great.

Maybe, like beer, it was just a 'green' flavour I was getting?