Too much yeast nutrient, fussel alcohols?

[Spoon]

Reassure me (or save me a few hangovers and tell me to pour it away).

I brewed a IIPA a couple of weeks back, and I usually add 1tsp of young's yeast nutrient in at flame-out. The packet says 1tsp per gallon, but I only use 1 as I figure some is better than none, and none works just fine for most beers anyway.

This time I did 4tsp (into 20l) as I figured it could probably do with all the help it could get.

Fermentation was at 20C.

Bottled it at the weekend and it's defiantly got a hot / fusel flavor.

Googling suggests that this could be caused by too much free nitrogen (yeast nutrient).

Have I ruined my beer, or have I just picked up on a different flavor that will disappear with a bit of conditioning?

 

[Covrich]

What is the ABV the 7% in your sig??? a hot alcohol flavour isn't nessesarily fusel... the hot flavour can be because a strong beer is still a bit green and raw and needs time to mellow nore of ten than not.

I Suspect being IIPA it is going to be that. give it a few weeks..

 

[Spoon]

What is the ABV the 7% in your sig???

Yup, that's the one.

Just a bit worried as most of my beers/ciders seem to come out of the fermenter pretty drinkable. This tasted like a beer version of the cheap vodka of my youth!

 

[Covrich]

Yup, that's the one.

Just a bit worried as most of my beers/ciders seem to come out of the fermenter pretty drinkable. This tasted like a beer version of the cheap vodka of my youth!

I was just saying to someone else here on their black IPA this morning

I did teh HBC DIPA AG kit last year but only had equipment for half the batch at the time so I split it.. first half came out bang on 6.5% and was alright after a few weeks (3-4 in bottle)

Second half the efficiency was much higher and it was closer to 7.7%.. this tasted like as you desribe you have pour a little bit of a spirit in it.. It needed another 3-4 weeks to mellow..

 

[IainM]

That would be my BIPA.

Anyway, keep it. My Evil Dog kit tasted hot and fuselly, but mellowed out into an a very drinkable beer. Same for the HBC Belgian Dubbel kit I did, which worked out at 9.5%. I tried it yesterday, after only three weeks in the bottle, and the hot flavours have already settled down.

 

[Spoon]

Well it's mellowed out nicely already, and is very drinkable, far too drinkable infact for a school night! :drunk:

Although considering the amount of hops that wen't in it and the hopy aroma during fermentation, it's not the 'alcohop' I was hoping for. I'd not even say it's as aromatic as the Festival Razorback kit. Which is strange, because the original recipe was for a 90min boil and I shifted all the additions back (90->60, 30->15, 5->0) so if anything I was expecting it to come out even hoppier.

Nevermind, it used a lot of different hops so there's plenty left of each to adapt the recipe for next time and I know enough people who'll drink IPA's without questioning the finer points so the batch will disappear quickly.


Lesson learnt for next time:
The grain bill is great, nicely balances between a little maltyness, dryness (I added corn sugar in the end to hit the OG and it's quite carbonataed) and the high alcohol content and goes with the high bitterness nicely. So I'll keep that as a good basis for other IIPA's.

Might try the method I've seen elsewhere on the forum of throwing all the hop-matter from the boil into the FV rather than just leaving it in for the 20minute flame-out steep.

Either that or make a hop-tea, or use hop pellets rather than leaf as I just don't think it's extracted enough.

 

[IainM]

I think for dry hopping pellets really are much better than whole. My BIPA went the same way. Hoppy, but nowhere near as aromatic as I would have liked, considering the amount I put in. I'll go for pellets only next time, and hopefully get closer to the hoppyness of the Youngs AIPA.

 

[Spoon]

I presume that it'd be easy enough to mimic 'pellets' by putting the whole hops and leafs in a food processor to break up the cones and release the lupulin?

 

[Dutto]

I'm still smiling at the comment "... most of my beers/ciders seem to come out of the fermenter pretty drinkable." :lol: :lol:

At 73 years old I reckon my own taste buds are completely shot but even now I wouldn't class ANY of my beers as in any way "drinkable" when they finish fermentation!

Patience is a virtue in brewing! Enjoy!! :thumb: :thumb:

 

[Covrich]

I'm still smiling at the comment "... most of my beers/ciders seem to come out of the fermenter pretty drinkable." :lol: :lol:

At 73 years old I reckon my own taste buds are completely shot but even now I wouldn't class ANY of my beers as in any way "drinkable" when they finish fermentation!

Patience is a virtue in brewing! Enjoy!! :thumb: :thumb:

Depends, I know they are not primed but some maybe less than 5% AG beers after a 2-3 weeks in the Fv are very good at that stage and just need priming up.. they get better of course but they are drinkable early if a little flat :-?

 

[MyQul]

I'm still smiling at the comment "... most of my beers/ciders seem to come out of the fermenter pretty drinkable." :lol: :lol:

At 73 years old I reckon my own taste buds are completely shot but even now I wouldn't class ANY of my beers as in any way "drinkable" when they finish fermentation!

Patience is a virtue in brewing! Enjoy!! :thumb: :thumb:

My Ordinary Bitters (OG 1.038/3.8ABV%) I start to drink them 3 days after bottling when they're carbed up a touch. In fact I have to start drinking them quickly as if I leave them longer than about 4 weeks due to the small amount of 0min additons (usually about 6g-10g) the flavour has all but disappeared