THAT HOMEBREW TASTE!!!

[ESB-MONSTER]

I'm a homebrewer of about 20 years but this hasn't been a constant hobby. I recently did a batch of Stout from a Geordie kit (I think) and as usual I have found that the beer has that characteristic 'tang' to it. It makes for a harsh finish and quite honestly I'm not usually up for a 2nd pint. I use spray malt and a dry yeast sachet. Fermentation is usually quite strong if a little delayed (perhaps 24 hours before the thick foam appears). I know that home brew, even from cans can be very good - I used to work near a homebrew shop and I dropped by one day and there was a polypin on the floor. The man gave me a taste of what was an IPA and I can honestly say I would've believed him if he said he had brought it across the road from the pub. I want to brew beer like this!!! Any help gratefully received!

why is esb shouting :lol:

Edit: Fixed :thumb: Font embellishments (Colour and size, style) are to be used for emphasis only please

 

[tubthumper]

time to rack his brains then

honestly the bigest problem with the homebrew taste is the amount of time the brerw is left on the yeat after fermantaion is finished.
however thier are so many varibles that I would start with the water.

boil the water you are going to use the night before and keepit in a sealed container till ready to use ( or disolve a campden tab in it and let it rest for a while)

after that I would try different kits

coopers ones are quite good
and lots of praise on this site for werry 2 can kits too

so If you are trying to get the best from a kit get the best kit that you can afford
and make sure your water is treated as well

when your ready the dark side will call
all grain is realy the way to go if you want pub beating stuff
but you can brew decent stuff from kits
and coopers stout with dry malt and supermarket( ashbeck from tesco eg) water is a really good stout I can recomend

 

[Dunfie]

tubthumper said it all really. If the bloke in the LHBS is making great beer from a kit then he will be more than happy to tell you, and sell you, everything you need to replicate it.

Try other kits, I did a couple of a Woodefords kids (Great Eastern and Wherry) and both were excellent.

 

why is esb shouting :lol:

 

[prolix]

quality two can kits is the way to go, as tub says you can use bought water if yours seems to be sub standard, though I would try a bit of water treatment and ditch chlorine based sanitizers.

As to the Tang there has been and still is great debate as to it's cause, not all kits have it, kit beers have won prizes at competions before.

 

[evanvine]

why is esb shouting :lol:

Didn't hear a thing! :whistle:

 

[Tony]

Try replacing the kit yeast with a decent one too, that could help!
:

 

[artyb]

ive often left my brews in the fv for 20+ days [as a few people on here do, to allow the brew to clean up]
and havnt noticed any particular off tastes,

any recommendations for moving it to a seconday fv after a particular period of time..?

i do now treat the water with a camdem tablet, and the beer seems better tbh

 

[artyb]

ive just been reading this ....
http://uk-homebrew.tripod.com/id24.html

 

[Green Pesto]

Perhaps this may be due to not having a tight enough lid during fermentation.
You need it to allow fermentation to take place without allowing additional air getting in.
The pressure it builds up helps fermentation to take place.

One thing I'm going to try at the end of my next batch has fermented is to do the same as you would with a wine kit ...
.... the theory is that by racking the beer to another tub/vessel & then stir the beer several times over the hour before bottling that this may drive out the yeast gas from the primary fermentation.
I think perhaps that it is this initial biuld up of gases that gives the strongest yeasty tang.
Once sugar primed & bottled, it should still secondary ferment & hopefully have a cleaner edge to the beer taste.

If there is a noticeable difference then I'll let you know!

 

[Tony]

A great many people do not use a tight lid on their FV and no airtight seal is necessary as the fermentation will provide a CO2 'blanket' which will cover the brew. When I started brewing many years ago, I just put a tea-towel over the top of the bucket

Now I do use a tight lid with a fermentation trap, but no pressure is required for fermentation. I've seen a great many pics of lids which have blown off - and the accompanying mess! If pressure builds up, you should release the lid to allow the pressure to escape.

I've never heard of anyone degassing a beer before bottling. Wine is degassed so that there is no pressure build-up in the bottle leading to bottle-bombs. I'd be very wary of trying this. If you've seen some research on 'the theory', I'd be very interested in reading it.

:

 

[Brewmarc]

One point I would like to add, When i first started brewing kits many years ago i was told by a very knowlagabe brewer to always boil the malt extract from the kit in a couple of canfulls of water for about 45 minutes prior to adding it to the rest of the water. Sure you will lose a bit of water to evaporation which is topped up in the fv later, as well as treating the water & replacing the yeast as has allready been said. In those days I definatly noticed a difference ie no homebrew taste, & still adhere to this practice now :

 

[evanvine]

then stir the beer several times over the hour before bottling

If you stir the beer you WILL introduce oxygen which creates off flavours and other nasties. :nono:

 

[Moley]

Perhaps this may be due to not having a tight enough lid during fermentation.
You need it to allow fermentation to take place without allowing additional air getting in.
The pressure it builds up helps fermentation to take place.

Cobblers.

 

[evanvine]

Cobblers.

:rofl:

 

[Kyral210]

Buy the book 'how to brew' by John Palmer. Lots of really good advice. Its more like a school text book than anything else. It will also give you lots of advice for the years ahead. :drink:

 

[Green Pesto]

Perhaps this may be due to not having a tight enough lid during fermentation.
You need it to allow fermentation to take place without allowing additional air getting in.
The pressure it builds up helps fermentation to take place.

Cobblers.

It was late when I posted this .... I did not mean to imply it in the way it reads!


But, rather than insult ... :nono: ... perhaps a constructive insight might be helpful!

I for one am happy to learn! :wha:

:thumb:

 

[Aleman]

Buy the book 'how to brew' by John Palmer.

No don't really, it's full of practices that the US brewers seem to to think are essential to brewing good beer, and in reality are full of bunkum, and not relevant with a lot of beer styles and ingredients that we use in the UK.

There isn't really a book available in the UK that really covers Kit brewing well (Apart from the out of print Homebrew: The CAMRA Guide by Graham Wheeler) although once a kit is made up the fermentation / racking / bottling sequence is the same and Brew Your Own British Real Ale (By Graham Wheeler) really covers the best practices (generally) of those steps . . . and is a much better buy than Palmer.

I really wish another author would pull his finger out and deliver on his promise to write a good UK Based brewing book :evil:

 

[evanvine]

I really wish another author would pull his finger out and deliver on his promise to write a good UK Based brewing book

Now, would that be anybody known to the Forum? :twisted:

 

[Moley]

It was late when I posted this .... I did not mean to imply it in the way it reads!

But, rather than insult ... :nono: ... perhaps a constructive insight might be helpful!

I for one am happy to learn! :wha:

It was hardly an insult, I said nothing against you personally :

I merely disagreed with what you wrote.

Ok, perhaps I didn't need to be quite so succinct. :whistle:

But as I see it, the lid is there merely to keep out dust/debris and flies. Mine are clipped on but aren't gas-tight, some people crack the lid or fit airlocks. Either way, there is no pressure build-up.

In what way would a pressure build-up “help fermentation to take place” ?

I for two am happy to learn too, if that makes sense :wha: