Something is wrong....Off flavor in my Stout

[ZmannR2]

My chocolate stout is fresh off the fermentation of 2 weeks and 2 days and I force carbed in the keg and taste a really odd lingering flavor of metallic! And it doesn't go away. 15 mins after my sample glass that flavor was still lingering. It's awful. I know a stout needs to age but I needed to sample it. What in the world could this be and is there any way of fixing it? The yeast used was US-05

I did add to the existing recipe by adding a pound of crystal, 1/3 pound of black patent and a half pound of chocolate malts just because I wanted to bump the alcohol a bit. Maybe I went to heavy on the dark malts?

This was an all grain BIAB. I've been brewing brewing a year now and this is my first of 10 batches of varying recipes I've ever had a problem with. I have used all this equipment before many times too

 

[ZmannR2]

I'm getting great answers here. But still can't decide to dump it or not

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=63393

 

[meatcleaver]

the beer is awfully young to be thinking about dumping it. I'd give it a month or three & try it again.
also, posting the complete recipe as well as water info might be helpful.

 

[jerbrew]

What's your water like? Maybe they've switched sources and didn't tell you or you didn't know they do that and it now has a high mineral content. I'd agree to wait a while before dumping it it can't hurt.

 

[JJack887]

US-05 is very dry and can enhance bitterness, potentially leading to off-flavors. I don't use that yeast.

 

[flars]

Was your fermentation temperature with the US-05 in the low 60°F range? Fermenting US-05 at low temperatures will produce off flavors. I called it peach when I first tasted it in a dry Irish stout fermented at 63°F.

I added a tablespoon of cold brewed coffee to each glass to cover the taste. A dry Irish coffee stout is pretty good.

 

[Honda88]

I know exactly what you are talking about. I have had this happen with an oatmeal stout. After leaving it in the fridge for awhile it eventually went away. It took months for it to stop tasting that way though. The hydrolysis of lipids can supposedly cause this. Stainless steel that has been improperly cleaned can cause this. Brew water high in iron could cause this...So many variables. I have no clue why the cold treatment caused this to go away...I could have just been sensing it more on a different day too. good luck

 

[TheMadKing]

It's only been in the keg 2 days?

It's probably either suspended yeast (they hold a lot of funky flavors) or carbonic bite. Don't even consider dumping a beer until its been in the keg a couple months and it has shown no improvement.

 

[Rush]

So 2 weeks into fermentation and you have an off flavor? Let that thing sit! Minimum I'd wait two months to see how it's progressing. Hell, I have an imperial stout that I brewed 8-9 months ago that has a sour off flavor I still can't bring myself to dump.

 

[sixwinds]

I had this issue in the past with dark beers like porters and stouts. Turns out I was not being careful enough when racking into the keg which caused the siphon to suck up a bunch of the yeast cake. Several people at my LHBS identified the off flavor as dead yeast which confirmed my suspicions.

Now I brew 6 gallon batches, and leave the last gallon in the fermenter when racking - have not had the issue since.

 

[Honda88]

I had this issue in the past with dark beers like porters and stouts. Turns out I was not being careful enough when racking into the keg which caused the siphon to suck up a bunch of the yeast cake. Several people at my LHBS identified the off flavor as dead yeast which confirmed my suspicions.

Now I brew 6 gallon batches, and leave the last gallon in the fermenter when racking - have not had the issue since.

This could have been my issue too. I don't keg because I don't have the equipment. I'm guessing having the beer in the fridge may have settled the yeast out of suspension so when I pour now I'm just getting clean beer.

 

[ZmannR2]

Was your fermentation temperature with the US-05 in the low 60°F range? Fermenting US-05 at low temperatures will produce off flavors. I called it peach when I first tasted it in a dry Irish stout fermented at 63°F.

I added a tablespoon of cold brewed coffee to each glass to cover the taste. A dry Irish coffee stout is pretty good.

I set my chamber at 61 during the first explosive few days keeping wort around 67 or so, then raise it to 66 so It stays right at 67.....then a 1 day diacytel rest at 70 after 2 weeks.

I've never had issues with US-05 though on any IPA's.....this is the first malty brew I've used it with though

 

[ZmannR2]

It's only been in the keg 2 days?

It's probably either suspended yeast (they hold a lot of funky flavors) or carbonic bite. Don't even consider dumping a beer until its been in the keg a couple months and it has shown no improvement.

I don't wanna waste my keg that long.....you think bottling it and storing at room temp a few months would be a good idea?

 

[TheMadKing]

I don't wanna waste my keg that long.....you think bottling it and storing at room temp a few months would be a good idea?

At minimum give it a couple weeks then. You should start seeing improvement in that amount of time. It just makes me want to cry to think about dumping a beer that's only been in the keg a few days. These things take time. And no, I don't think bottling at this point is a great idea, but it's certainly an option.

There's also the option of using this as an excuse to buy another keg...

 

[ZmannR2]

I had this issue in the past with dark beers like porters and stouts. Turns out I was not being careful enough when racking into the keg which caused the siphon to suck up a bunch of the yeast cake. Several people at my LHBS identified the off flavor as dead yeast which confirmed my suspicions.

Now I brew 6 gallon batches, and leave the last gallon in the fermenter when racking - have not had the issue since.

OK so then maybe keep it kegged another week for it to drop out of suspension, then bottle it, maybe even dumping the first few bottles? Then storing for a few months?

 

[GHBWNY]

Let it ride and brew another beer. Had the same thing happen to a Maple Nut Brown... so metallic I couldn't drink it. It eventually aged out (6 months) to the point of not just tolerable, but "good".

 

[flars]

I set my chamber at 61 during the first explosive few days keeping wort around 67 or so, then raise it to 66 so It stays right at 67.....then a 1 day diacytel rest at 70 after 2 weeks.

I've never had issues with US-05 though on any IPA's.....this is the first malty brew I've used it with though

I had never noticed the off flavor in IPAs, Pale Ales, or Ambers. Only noticed the first time I used US-05 in a stout.