Had a little break in the weather this Summer and for various reasons--one of which was arrogance, another just plain stupidity, and others having to do with clearing out remnant grains and hops--I decided to brew a batch of ale on July 1. This was a 5 gallon partial mash that went just fine; the early fermentation was carried out at 68 degrees (I don't have temp. control so, you understand, the weather was extremely accommodating, at first. . . . ) But then the heat came. So, while the first four days of fermentation were good, the next two-and-a-half weeks were cooking at 90+ degrees--actual temperatures were off the scale. I used 05 yeast, bittered and flavored with Hallertau Mitterfruh and just thought to myself, "this is going to be some scary brew." Well, it's been sitting in the garage for almost two months and I cracked one open yesterday, then another today. It tastes like a Belgian (not totally unexpected), but what I can't figure out is why I'm getting uber gas from this bottle-primed ale. It's not infected, I primed according to my long standing regimen, I use swing tops so I haven't had any bombs (yet!), but what I've opened so far has just foamed out of the bottle for minutes! I can regulate the flow by adding hand pressure to the cap but no matter how long I vent, I lose a good fifth of the bottle. I've tried them cold, I've tried them at room temp, no difference. What's going on? I'm really curious.
VERY hot fermentation
- Thread starter Kagemusha
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VikeMan
It ain't all burritos and strippers, my friend.
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If all of the bottles are gushing, there are really only three possibilities:
- Too much priming sugar
- Fermentation not complete when bottled
- Whole Batch Infection
If only some of the bottles gush, it would likely be uneven priming (i.e. sugar not well mixed with the beer before bottling), or infection isolated to only some bottles (i.e. some bottles not adequately cleaned and sanitized).
What did you mean by "tastes like a Belgian"?
- Too much priming sugar
- Fermentation not complete when bottled
- Whole Batch Infection
If only some of the bottles gush, it would likely be uneven priming (i.e. sugar not well mixed with the beer before bottling), or infection isolated to only some bottles (i.e. some bottles not adequately cleaned and sanitized).
What did you mean by "tastes like a Belgian"?
To my taste, Belgian ales are yeasty, fruity, and a bit sour. Granted, I haven't drunk many because I don't particularly like them. In fact, I would say that those I've had taste as if they were mildly infected, and this ale has that character. But I've tasted truly infected beer before and I wouldn't classify this as such.
All of the bottles are gushing. The amount of priming sugar is not to blame. The fermentation took place over a three week period in two separate 2.5 gallon fermentors that reached high krausen in 72 hours each. The taste of the final product is slightly malty sweet but thin overall with a mild lambic sourness.
All of the bottles are gushing. The amount of priming sugar is not to blame. The fermentation took place over a three week period in two separate 2.5 gallon fermentors that reached high krausen in 72 hours each. The taste of the final product is slightly malty sweet but thin overall with a mild lambic sourness.
VikeMan
It ain't all burritos and strippers, my friend.
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IMO, you are describing an infection. And you're not classifying it as one because it doesn't taste the same as a "truly" infected beer you've tasted before. There are several potential contamination microbes, and some produce more/less lactic and/or acetic acid than others. There's also the time factor...this beer might become more sour over time. If it's infected, it probably will.
