Red ale has turned sour, help?

[ComusLives]

Hey all,

About two weeks ago I brewed a red ale from a kit, everything went well and it bubbled away at around 18C for the last week and a half. I've largely left it alone, but I've noticed that as of a few days ago there's a distinct sour smell off it, like cheap fortified wine. The taste isn't great either, bitter and sour, which while I knew it was gonna be pretty hoppy is pretty nasty. It's drinkable but I dunno for much longer if I leave it.

I'm hesitant to suggest an infection, but there's been a thin white foam on top of the brew, not solid at all, that hasn't gone away at all. It breaks up and reforms when you disturb it. I thought it was krausen that hadn't subsided, but it hasn't gone away. I think it might be the hop enhancer I used that didn't dissolve properly since I forgot to rehydrate it before just pouring it in.

I think I attached a photo of the foam to this post. What do you think? Bottle it and wait to see if the flavour/smell improves? Or just dump it and move on?

 

[Brulosopher]

That actually doesn't look infected, to me, just small CO2 "colonies," which isn't a big deal. The flavors you're describing sound sort of similar to green beer (beer before it's ready), which has a distinct yeasty tartness, in my experience. I might suggest giving it another few days at ale temps before trying it again. If a pellicle develops, dump it, if not, package and give it a chance.

 

[GuldTuborg]

How many buckets of fermenting beer have you stuck your nose in? There's a distinct CO2 smell, which builds up during fermentation, combined with other fermentation by-products that I can see one easily mistaking for something sour or like cheap fortified wine. It takes a little experience to detect the difference between the two, hence my question.

I'm with Brulosopher above to let this ride. It may well turn out to be just fine.

 

[ComusLives]

That actually doesn't look infected, to me, just small CO2 "colonies," which isn't a big deal. The flavors you're describing sound sort of similar to green beer (beer before it's ready), which has a distinct yeasty tartness, in my experience. I might suggest giving it another few days at ale temps before trying it again. If a pellicle develops, dump it, if not, package and give it a chance.

Wouldn't the flavours from a green beer go away after a while, rather than just starting after a week? It's still beer-y, but the sourness doesn't seem right to me, considering the style I was going for.

I've tried my previous batches while the were still green and they didn't taste much like this, although they were hefeweizens.

 

[ComusLives]

How many buckets of fermenting beer have you stuck your nose in? There's a distinct CO2 smell, which builds up during fermentation, combined with other fermentation by-products that I can see one easily mistaking for something sour or like cheap fortified wine. It takes a little experience to detect the difference between the two, hence my question.

I'm with Brulosopher above to let this ride. It may well turn out to be just fine.

A few, and none have been quite like this one. Having said that they've been different styles. It's more the development of the sour taste, and the smell of even the samples that's very unpleasant, which makes me think it's more than just CO2.

 

[Brulosopher]

That actually doesn't look infected, to me, just small CO2 "colonies," which isn't a big deal. The flavors you're describing sound sort of similar to green beer (beer before it's ready), which has a distinct yeasty tartness, in my experience. I might suggest giving it another few days at ale temps before trying it again. If a pellicle develops, dump it, if not, package and give it a chance.

 

[ComusLives]

Brulosopher, you posted the same reply twice... How long should I leave it to see if a pellicle forms, and what exactly should I look out for? It's already been two weeks in the fermenter, and I was thinking of leaving it for another week anyway.

 

[Brulosopher]

Brulosopher, you posted the same reply twice... How long should I leave it to see if a pellicle forms, and what exactly should I look out for? It's already been two weeks in the fermenter, and I was thinking of leaving it for another week anyway.

That was not intentional, my bad! I'd leave it another week or so, give it a look and a taste, then decide whether you should package or dump at that point.

 

[Calder]

Describe the taste. If you had a decent fermentation, the only infection that would show anything significant would be actobacter (vinegar).

If it is a mild sourness, it could be taste perception of something normal which will change.

If you had a slow start to fermentation (say 3 days) you might have sourness from lacto.

Once alcohol is present, most acid (sour) forming bacteria work very slowly. Only actobacter works fast.

If it is 'vinegar' you should be able to tell. Unfortunately if it is, it will only get worse, and there is no cure.

Acetaldehyde (sp???) is a bi-product of yeast fermentation, and gives the 'green beer' flavor. This is a more subtle acidity and will normally disappear with time. Yeast will normally clean this up with time, but not always if a large amount was produced due to adverse conditions.