Argh, help needed please- Turbo cider has funny smell :-(

[Plonkie]

Hi everyone, just hoping some of you seasoned homebrewers might be able to help me please?

Me and my boyfriend have brewed a turbo cider and its got a really 'off smell' - it tastes good, looks great, but it has a horrible smell, which is making it undrinkable (even though it tastes nice, which is so frustrating!).

Recipe was just 5 gallons of supermarket apple juice and 550g of sugar, with champagne yeast and nutrient. Pectolase was used. My boyfriend treated it with stabiliser and used only 3 campden tablets. We've read somewhere that if you dont get the ratio of stabilising powder to campden tablets right it can produce a weird smell. Is this true? If so, how do I rectify it? Can I add more campden tablets now to try and balance it out, or is it too late?

We made it almost a month ago and there's been no improvement - we've kept a couple of gallons in the fridge, but still no success!

Any ideas as to why it smells so weird? We dont have particularly discerning palates and have had loads of success homebrewing quick supermarket juice booze already. Dont know why this one is different!

Any help would be great, thanks :

 

[Samarith]

Sounds very odd.

I've never stabilised or added campdens to beer or cider as I prefer a fizzy brew.

Can you describe the 'off smell'? Is it sulphorous, vinegary, buttery?

 

[Tony]

As samarith said... why are you adding campden tabs?

I would suggest either:
a) putting a peg over the nose (this has the unfortunate effect of also killing the taste buds), or
b) drinking it anyway and you won't notice it after 2 pints - well if my TC is anything to go by - I don't notice anything (earthquake, nuclear attack, end of the world, election of a decent govt etc)

 

[Drunken_Jock]

I have the same smell on all the ones i have done but i wouldnt say it was really bad. I just put it down to being a home brew. If you open a tin of cider it does smell the same right at the start but it does go away quite quickly.

But the recent ones i have done all taste ok so nose peg for me.

Jock

 

[Moley]

My boyfriend treated it with stabiliser and used only 3 campden tablets. We've read somewhere that if you dont get the ratio of stabilising powder to campden tablets right it can produce a weird smell. Is this true?

I've heard that if you use stabiliser without metabisulphite (contained in campdens) you can get a geranium-like smell. I've even read the chemistry behind that, but I'm damned if I can remember where. I don't think it can be rectified, but I also doubt that this could be your problem, how much stabiliser powder did he use?

A rotten egg smell is quite commonplace in TC, but I believe that goes away with age, and also if you pour your drink and leave it for a few minutes.

 

[Plonkie]

Thanks for your replies everyone. I think its going to be a 'peg on nose' job! I'll take your advice and let it stand before drinking and hopefully it'll be ok. Thinking of blending it with maybe a fruit cider to dilute the smell a bit!