Sour taste after 1 week

[scrub0bk]

So I just cracked a wheat beer I bottled last weekend (I know early) and it has a prett distinct sour taste to it. It's still highly under carbed so it could just be premature, but I'm wondering if anyone experienced similar tastes early in bottling? I'm hoping that the whole batch isn't ruined, if so I might have to start looking into my sanitation procedures because it just bottled another batch today and hope that one doesn't come out the same. I know I read it could be due to infection, but would I know that this early?

Thanks all

 

[TNGabe]

Acetaldehyde is common in beer that hasn't finished conditioning and is often described as having a 'green apple' flavor. I wouldn't call it sour though. If it the beer has more of a lactic (sour milk) or acetic (vinegar) character, that would indicate a likely bacterial contamination.

 

[yewtah-brewha]

Do you ferment where you keep your grain? If you do stop doing it, I got a sour batch once and I whittled it down to the grain being stored in the fermenttion area. contaminats from the grain will seek the smell of the beer and destroy it!

 

[yewtah-brewha]

also a week is fine for carbonation, mine are ussually ready at day 6 sometimes sooner,

 

[scrub0bk]

I don't really have any grain in storage as this is only my 3rd batch so I don't think that would be it. I wouldn't say its a vinegar or sour milk taste but more green apple like you said. I'll give it more time and see where we get each week, hopefully the carbonation gets up though cause it'll need it.

 

[mrboz]

More time conditioning if green apple taste - if this persists with other batches, give more time in your carboy before bottling - it's not just getting to final gravity, it's giving yeast time to clean up some of the off-flavors (that's why a lot of folks do secondary fermentations). With bottles, sometimes you can get an infection just in one bottle.