What happened to this beer???

[luizffgarcia]

Hey guys, can you please help me figure out what may be the reason this batch turned out so badly?

This is the recipe: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=42841

If you look at the picture you can see how weird it is, kind of translucent with a horrible color.

For this beer i nailed my numbers, used 100% destilled water built with brun water, controlled fermentation temperature, so i am totally clueless on how this happened.

The taste is a little sour and it smells a little like vinegar. I guess my only suspicious is i added a little dryhop to it, maybe because the beer has only 4% ABV it was not enough to prevent an infection from the dryhop? I saw a few bubbles on the surface of the beer before transferring to the keg, i had never seen bubbles like those before.

Please help me figure this out, i dont want to waster another batch for the same reason that caused this

 

[RedlegEd]

Hey guys, can you please help me figure out what may be the reason this batch turned out so badly?

This is the recipe: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=42841

If you look at the picture you can see how weird it is, kind of translucent with a horrible color.

For this beer i nailed my numbers, used 100% destilled water built with brun water, controlled fermentation temperature, so i am totally clueless on how this happened.

The taste is a little sour and it smells a little like vinegar. I guess my only suspicious is i added a little dryhop to it, maybe because the beer has only 4% ABV it was not enough to prevent an infection from the dryhop? I saw a few bubbles on the surface of the beer before transferring to the keg, i had never seen bubbles like those before.

Please help me figure this out, i dont want to waster another batch for the same reason that caused this

Hi. BM's Centennial Blonde is a great recipe that is very easy to make. It's often recommended as a first brew for folks just starting out. Some questions.
1. Did you use the AG or Extract version?
2. Which profile did you select using Bru'n Water (i.e. how much acid if you add, if any?)
3. Are you absolutely sure your sanitation was good?

What you're describing as vinegar taste may be caused by Acetobacter, or maybe just too much acid. Ed


ETA: BTW, normally, dry hopping shouldn't cause an infection. Bad bugs don't do well in hops.

 

[DocScott]

Sounds like an infection with acetobacter. I'd look to anything that touched the beer after the wort was cooled and make sure it was sanitized. The dry hop is very unlikely but rather something else that touched the beer (racking cane, bottles, etc)

 

[luizffgarcia]

This is a screenshot of my brun water for this beer.

I use AG BIAB, no need for acids as the salts reduced the ph to the desired levels.

About sanitation, it should be good, i have brewed over 50 batches and only had one infection ever, but who knows right? lol

Would an infection change the beer looks like that? It looks so wrong!

 

[RedlegEd]

This is a screenshot of my brun water for this beer.

I use AG BIAB, no need for acids as the salts reduced the ph to the desired levels.

About sanitation, it should be good, i have brewed over 50 batches and only had one infection ever, but who knows right? lol

Would an infection change the beer looks like that? It looks so wrong!

Everything looks quite normal, and since you didn't add acid, then I would suspect Acetobacter as your culprit. Yes, an infection could cause a milky/cloudy appearance such as you see. Then again, if you were trying to brew a Berliner Weisse, I'd say it was spot on. Unfortunately, as @DocScott said, I'm afraid you'll need to go back through your cold side and double check everything that touched your beer and really clean/sanitize it, or replace it. Ed

 

[luizffgarcia]

Everything looks quite normal, and since you didn't add acid, then I would suspect Acetobacter as your culprit. Yes, an infection could cause a milky/cloudy appearance such as you see. Then again, if you were trying to brew a Berliner Weisse, I'd say it was spot on. Unfortunately, as @DocScott said, I'm afraid you'll need to go back through your cold side and double check everything that touched your beer and really clean/sanitize it, or replace it. Ed

Oh crap, i will brew again today. If this bug was the culprit, will starsan be enough to clear this? Or do i have to bleach my equipment?

 

[RedlegEd]

Oh crap, i will brew again today. If this bug was the culprit, will starsan be enough to clear this? Or do i have to bleach my equipment?

As long as your equipment is thoroughly cleaned, Starsan should do it. However, were it me and if I suspected something, I would clean & bleach it first, really rinse very well, then soak in Starsan before using (be sure to get into all the little nooks and crannies.) There are some folks who will say that once plastic gets an "infection," it can't be cleaned well enough and should be replaced. If that's true, then I've been lucky. Good luck to you. I know it's really frustrating (and time consuming and expensive.) Ed

 

[Kerrbrewer]

I have had a few light beers that were vinegary when young. I thougt they were infected and dumped one. But after they aged a little they were good. Let it sit awhile.

 

[RedlegEd]

I have had a few light beers that were vinegary when young. I thougt they were infected and dumped one. But after they aged a little they were good. Let it sit awhile.

Agreed. Sometimes age works wonders. If it is a Acetobacter problem, it won't change. If not, as @Kerrbrewer said, it could get better. I'd still clean your cold side thoroughly. Ed