Second sour batch !!!

[Irena]

hi,today i opened the lid of carboy and the smell made me nerveous because that was the smell of my previous batch which gone sour.i tasted it and yes, this is my second sour (infected !?) batch of beer.one month ago when the first one gone sour i thought it was becasue of carboy stains that remains from previous beer(and my best beer yet),so i filled the carboy with water and strong bleach.after 2 days the stains color changed from brown to white and became smaller but didn't gone completely.so i thought there is no bacteria anymore.i want to know if that caused the sourness of my beer ?
by the way these two sour batches were pilsners,so i want to know if pilsners or light beers are more prone to infection ?
thanks.

 

[FungusBrew]

Any light beer is automatically prone to off flavors, considering it's light, and it wont hide mistakes. You'll taste a minor infection or "mess-up" much quicker. I'd suggest brewing something besides a pilsner unless you're comfortable Something brown/amber. There's plenty of great pils brew were you're coming from anyway.

 

[Hoppin_Mad]

Interesting to note you say the stains on your carboy changed color and got smaller but didn't go away. I always give my carboys a mega scrubbing, plus a bleaching and then another scrubbing if there is anything residual left on them. If you had infection trouble previously you should be doubly careful to clean out the carboy.

 

[skelrad]

I'm curious if the batches have actually been sour, or if they've just been green. After thinking that my first few batches were off, I finally realized that the smell and taste prior to bottling was commonly very strong and sharp just because the beer was green. If you stick your nose into a freshly opened carboy and take a big sniff, it can be enough to make you feel like your nose hairs are burning! I don't know if it's the CO2 or what, but that's not an abnormal thing. The same goes with the taste - a green beer can easily taste sour/sharp/bitter/etc.

It's hard to say if what you're experiencing is normal or not, but based on the fact that you've had two like this, I'm just wondering if it's just green beer you're dealing with. Bottle it and give it a month before passing judgement.

 

[Irena]

a green beer can easily taste sour/sharp/bitter/etc

Considering it's a green beer,does the taste and smell change during the time because it's absolutely undrinkable now ?

 

[emjay]

A green beer is a young beer, so of course it will change with time. For me, I often get an odor of vinegar.

I have my first sour batch of beer right now though. Difference is, I deliberately infected to make it sour. Man is it going to be tasty

Also, lager yeasts put out a LOT of disgusting flavors and smells early on. Are you fermenting them cool, doing diacetyl rests (diacetyl gives a buttery flavor), and lagering? Lagers, including pilseners, are not really the best beers for beginners.

Lastly, you're not cleaning your stuff well enough it sounds like. You need to give them a good scrub, because there shouldn't be ANY residue in your fermenter before knocking out another batch into it.

 

[superjunior]

Considering it's a green beer,does the taste and smell change during the time because it's absolutely undrinkable now ?

yes the taste and smell will change dramatically over a few weeks if in fact its just a green beer issue you are experiencing. I would try soaking the carboy in oxyclean and really scrub those stains with a carboy brush regardless

 

[Rockape66]

How long has it been in the primary. You might want to give it more time for the yeasts to clean up. I can't say that I've had this problem. So far my beers have had a sweet, malty character, with a strong hops aroma. But, I've only been brewing darker ales. Good luck.