Tangy aftertaste

[ianruge]

I was having the same tangy problem for half a dozen batches and then on a whim I used an aluminum brew pot instead of the enamel pot that I had been using. The resulting beer had NONE of the tangyness and was head-and-shoulders above anything I had brewed.

I had read that using an enamel pot would work for brewing, but the pot I was using had large amounts of the enamel chipped from the bottom and I didn't realize at the time that this would make the pot inappropriate for brewing.

I don't know if your problem has the same origins, but I am confident that I have solved my tangyness problem with a new stainless steel brew pot.

Hope this helps, it has made my life a lot better.

 

[Kaz]

I would bet that its a) Fermenting too warm and b) slightly green beer. Until I started fermenting most of my ales in the mid 60's, I didn't care much at all for my beers, I'm much happier now that I built a fermentation chamber.

 

[gurrback]

I'm trying to think of an appropriate solution to this problem. I live in a condo and don't have a lot of extra space. I don't have room for a freezer + SWWNBN won't have any of that. I would love to keep this solution affordable.

What type of ambient air temp would be required to keep the internal fermentation temp around the high 60f mark?

 

[jmf143]

I'm trying to think of an appropriate solution to this problem. I live in a condo and don't have a lot of extra space. I don't have room for a freezer + SWWNBN won't have any of that. I would love to keep this solution affordable.

What type of ambient air temp would be required to keep the internal fermentation temp around the high 60f mark?

Research "Swamp cooler" - you can disregard ambient air temp using one of these. Cheap and has a small footprint.

 

[Qhrumphf]

Research "Swamp cooler" - you can disregard ambient air temp using one of these. Cheap and has a small footprint.

+5000

I live on the 14th floor of a high rise in a small apartment and live on a tight budget. I use a 20 gallon tote bucket, and can fit two 6.5 gallon carboys in there, match the water outside to the level inside the carboy, and swap out gallon jugs filled with ice from the freezer. Cost efficient and effective. Can even hold down near 50 degrees with enough ice jugs and enough daily swaps (4 jugs, two in the freezer, two in the cooler, swapped every 8 hours worked for me for a 52 degree pseudo-lager). And the water keeps the temperature fluctuation to a minimum.

 

[gurrback]

Thanks a lot for all of this info. I'm going to change my procedure and implement a new fermentation strategy for my next brew.

Because of the stupid venting in my small
Condo, and the need to keep my bedroom door closed, that room is actually 65f all year around. I figure if I build a swamp cooler in this room and bring the temp of the water down to 60ish I should get an internal temp in the mid 60's. Now I just need to get "her" approval.

 

[Big-J2000]

To combat that, I'd not use the prepackaged kits and buy the ingredients fresh (a kit from AHS or northernbrewer.com is fine, as they package it up fresh when you order from bulk LME), and add the majority of the extract at the END of the boil, instead of the beginning. I'd also make sure the temperature of the fermentation never get above 72 degrees.

I brewed an AHS Cream Ale kit earlier this year that had the "twang" in it, but I did add all of the extract at the beginning. I will have to try adding it later next time. Any suggestions on when and what ammount? As for the fermentation temps, I put my carboy in a big bucket with water that I add frozen water bottles to as needed. The spikes usually occur when I neglect to switch out the bottles!

 

[rayg]

Was this thread started by someone's avatar just
to yank my chain concerning "old wive's tales"?

Ray

 

[nymtber]

Cool that beer. I havn't brewed since june because basement temps went up too much. I have a fermentation chamber that is pretty much done, now I gotta get brewing the next cool day (thursday in the low 70's!)

I planned on continuous brewing all summer, but I didn't realize our basement gets so warm (76 currently). That won't be a problem with my big foam box and mini fridge I have enough room for 2 carboys in there, which is more than I need to brew anyway.