beer complaints

[dynomax]

I have been getting complaints from my friends from my homebrew beer.
some say it tastes wine-ish... some say it tastes slightly sweet.

I'm just wondering why they would be saying this. Its got great carbonation, and comes off at the proper gravity.

I ferment for a week, clairify for a week, bottle, then drink 2 weeks later. 1month round trip.

What can i do.

I use dry yeast, and complaints are coming from the lager/pilsner kits. i typically use 1000g to 1200g of corn sugar.

Thank you. help me keep my friends happy! :)

[Tweek]

The problem is probabally due to the fact that you are not aging your beer. Try drinking it after a month. All beer benifits from a bit of aging. You would be suprised at how much a beer will mature with a little time.

The other thing is maybe your friends just dont like the type of beers you are brewing. It is sometimes hard to get a coors fan to accept a homebrew. I once have a guy taste one of my pale ales and tell me that it wasnt beer that it was Malt liqour. heh what a jackass.
Alot of times poeple compare your light in color beer to the commercial light in color beers ala coors, ect. If that is wha tthey are expecting, then it will always taste sweet.

The wine comment I am not sure about. do you taste this as well? could you describe it better?

[dynomax]

This wine-ish flavor they are referring to is the sweetness i think. and its kind of dry, because i made it with enzyme. But i do somewhat grasp what they;'re talking about. Its just a sweeter flavor, perhaps more sweet than beer should be.

I wouldnt go as far as to say a cidery taste,

thanks.

[b3s]

try two or three weeks in secondary before bottling. i assume the corn sugar is for bottling (carbonation). try using less or even using dry malt extract instead of sugar.

i must admit that i am also confused by this...all of my beers come out quite dry and mostly tart (although i suspect my honey wheat will be a little different).

what kind of beers do your friends typically drink?

[paul84043]

Well, for one...they're receiving free, homemade beer, so I think I'd shut my mouth and not complain!

The wine taste, I made a Calif. Common that has a very strong "wine" flavor. It's exactly what it sounds like!! It tastes like a wine cooler...very strange...
My Sam adams clone has a similar tate as well. I don't know it it's a byproduct of warmer fermentation or what...

I would start to change to liquid yeast, that may well make the biggest change in your beer that you have made...

If you like the beer you're making, then don't worry wbout it, your friends obviously don't have the ability to appreciate good beer!!!

[dynomax]

Yeah,, i do enjoy it. I think i'm going to start brewing more, and let it sit in bottles longer. BTW, i've started bottling in tapped 5L kegs. They worked great. i drank my first 5week old batch (bottled 3 weeks ago) last night. Excellent carbonation, not so good flavor. I think this may improve with aging in the carboy.

I got this quote frmo this page:
http://www.howtobrew.com/section1/chapter8-5.html

"For the best results, the beer should be given time in a secondary fermentor before priming and bottling. Even if the yeast have flocculated and the beer has cleared, there are still active yeast in suspension that will ferment the priming sugar and carbonate the beer."


I ferment for 5-7 days, and clairify for 7 days, then bottle.

And as for hte malt extract powder, thats how i'm doing my batches now. 500g malt extract (dry) and 700g corn sugar, with dry yeast, and yeast nutrient. Also, when transferring to carboy, i always use Gelatin Finings. 2.5ml mixed into boiling water.

[b3s]

well, i leave the beer in the secondary for 2 weeks or until a hydrometer reading is consistent for 3 readings, whichever comes last. i also add 1 week for every 20 points above 50 on the hydro.

also, i was mentioning dme as a replacement for corn sugar, not in addition. if you are already using 500g of dme for priming, i'd get rid of the corn sugar completely and replace with another 500 mg of dme...i've found since removing the corn sugar from priming that my beer tastes more beerlike. YMMV.

OTOH, if you like your beer, then don't change a thing! tell your friends to bring over their own damn beer if they don't like yours. one of my buddies from WI still tries to tell me that fresh coors is the best beer ever...and he lives only 15 minutes from lakefront brewery :rolleyes:

[dynomax]

Well, i'm replacing some of the sugar in the primary with DME.

I generally use 1000-1200g of corn sugar, so i used 500g DME and 700g corn sugar. DME is expensive, and i'm just beginning to experiment with it. I'm not saying i _wont_ brew with no corn sugar, and all DME, btu for now, i'm using 1/2 and 1/2

How much heavier will the gravity be with using DME? The final gravity.

[Fast_Eddy]

My $.02 is that you're getting your off flavors from your water and/or the fermentation temp.

A pils will highlight any water problems as well as undesirable yeast by-products that result from too high fermention temps. I think that esters would give a fruity, sweet (wine-y) taste. I read somewhere that under-pitching, poor oxygenation of wort, and high ferment temp could result in higher ester levels.

Aging is supposed to help this problem since the yeast that are still in suspension will use up some of the by-products when nothing else is available.

Since you're an extract brewer consider using all purified water for your next lager. That way you could at least eliminate water as a potential problem.

[paul84043]

After three weeks in bottles, I find that my beer is only just beginning to develop smoothness and reach it's flavor potential.
Unfortunately, it's still too good to leave alone...
Most of mine that have made it beyond a month in bottles have reached a really nice flavor peak and I kick myself for being so impatient..

I agree with the above posts, I think you would be surprised at the results if you were to lower your fermentation temp just a few degrees and I really think you should give the liquid yeast a shot.
"they" say that there are only 3 varieties of yeast that can be successfully dried and rehydrated, but there are dozens of liquid yeasts that give a very different and unique flavor profile to your beer.

[BluesHarp]

Originally posted by b3s
one of my buddies from WI still tries to tell me that fresh coors is the best beer ever...and he lives only 15 minutes from lakefront brewery

From WI!!! drinks Coors!!! best beer ever!!! 15 minutes from Lakefront!!!

I drive longer than that to get Lakefront and New Glarus at the liquor mart.

You need to re-evaluate your friend criteria!

Are you sure he's not originally from Iowa?? :D

[b3s]

Originally posted by BluesHarp
You need to re-evaluate your friend criteria!


he's a good jeeping buddy and taught me more than anyone about fixing my rig. definitely a buddy!

Originally posted by BluesHarp
Are you sure he's not originally from Iowa?

no...much worse...chicago.

/me ducks and runs

:D

[BluesHarp]

I have to agree with the consensus:

1) liquid yeast
2) watch the ferment temperature, especially with lager yeast.
3) if possible, eliminate all corn sugar; use light DME for priming
4) water...I would use bottled water, but the spring water, not the purified. Purified (at least here in WI) means distilled. It doesn't even taste good as water! I've heard the minerals in spring water are actually beneficial to the taste of the beer. If your water doesn't taste good to drink, don't put it in your beer.
5) condiitoning...patience, as hard as it is to come by, is key.

Good luck!

[b3s]

my only addition to bluesharp is: if your water is soft, use gypsum or brewer's salts.

and if you live alongside the fox river...use someone elses water ;)

[paul84043]

My water is very soft, but being an extract brewer primarily, I figure that the minerals in the extract, in addition to those in my water probably put me in the ballpark somewhere...