That "Homebrew Taste"

I haven't noticed much of that "homebrew taste" with my own beer unless you mean "delicious."

I attribute it to my fermentation temperature control freezer/controller.

 

I'm a little surprised how many people offered suggestions without knowing what it is that you are actually tasting. What does your young beer taste like?

 

I've never ever brewed a bottled-conditioned ale (extract or AG) that was anywhere near 'ready-to-drink' after four lonely weeks in the bottle.

A few batches just start 'coming into their own' after five weeks. Most are best at six to eight weeks.

 

Homebrew taste = "extract twang"? Stale ingredients? Effects of partial boil? Green apple? Butterscotch? Yeast bite?

Regardless of what you are tasting, you can definitely get rid of it. With practice and patience, homebrew taste = really good.

 

Turn homebrew taste into homebrew tasty!

 

The fermentation temperature could be a likely culprit, but like Vikeman mentioned, it's better to sense what you're tasting and do the research from there. Yeast is one of those things that gets overlooked very often when determining flavor profiles.

 

Given how quickly most production breweries turn around a batch of beer, I'm somewhat skeptical of insufficient time to mature as an explanation for the "homebrew taste". But, as others have stated, it would help considerably to have a better description of what the OP is hoping to fix

 

it's my understanding that bulk aging shortens turnaround time

 

My experiences with "homebrew twang" have been related to a combination of things. Stale extract(old liquid or oxidized DME). Under pitching yeast. Uncontrolled fermentation temp. And chlorine/chloramine in the brewing water. Eliminate these and it should go away.

 

There could be multiple factors here: insufficient time to mature means the yeast haven't finished the job. Homebrewers have been known to underpitch, almost certainly moreso than probrewers. Comparing a homebrewer that underpitches to a probrewer who uses a higher pitching rate is not a fair comparison. If you don't pitch enough, you are more likely to have some sort of off-flavor.

I don't think it is bulk aging perse, but maybe the fact that a beer is kept is contact with yeast longer helps.

 

If you're underpitching, the fundamental problem is that you're underpitching, not that you aren't waiting long enough. More time may correct some of the problems that come from underpitching, but not all of them.

 

Like I said, there are multiple factors that could be going on; that "homebrew taste" could be a lot of things, and some of those involve needing more time.

• Diacetyl taste that fades because the yeast weren't finished cleaning up
• Acetaldehyde taste that fades because the yeast weren't finished cleaning up
• Beers that are overly sweet (or later, overly carbonated) because they were bottled too soon.

Pros might never experience these things because they have a better understanding of (1) when a fermentation is finished and (2) how to finish it efficiently. Newbies do not necessarily know either of these things. How many times do we see posts "Is my beer finished?" The experienced forum members always respond "What does it taste like" and "What did the hydrometer say." How many newbies do you suppose don't bother asking "Is it finished?" and just go ahead and bottle? I think this has to at least be part of the story behind the "homebrew taste" reputation.

 

For the OP. If you have a local brewery (must be one not too far in WA), ask the brewer if they can taste your beer and give advice. If you have a local club, go to a meeting and have one of the guys who has a good palate taste your beer and give recommendations on how to improve your beer.

 

I think you are confusing ´homebrew taste´with immature beer taste. Beer you have described is very young at this point(only 32 days since brew-day).
It would be helpful to know OG of this beer, maybe it is over 1055 ,thus it takes a bit more time to mature.

 

Best advice, so far, IMO.

To the OP: It's a long shot, but is it possible that what you're perceiving as a 'home brew taste' is actually something that's been missing from the commercial brews you're used to? I'm reminded of my first experience with homebrew many, many years ago. A friend of my wife and her husband were invited to our home for dinner. Her husband bought some homebrew. There was a flavor that I had never before experienced. I wasn't sure if was deliberate or not. It seemed like a flaw, but I kind of liked it (since I knew very little about beer at the time and I didn't want to offend, I didn't say anything about it). Years later, a friend recommended a SNPA. There was that flavor! And it was good! (it was hops)

 

I used to get that "taste" in every batch until I made some changes. I always boil with the lid completely off the kettle now, I don't use any kind of sugar in my boil and I ferment at 65 (1056, wlp001, US-05). I also now only ferment for 2 weeks for most batches as opposed to 3 weeks like I used to do. Not sure what it was, but that taste I used to pick up in every batch is gone. I do partial mash brews, by the way.

 

“I always boil with the lid completely off the kettle now, I don't use any kind of sugar in my boil and I ferment at 65 (1056, wlp001, US-05). I also now only ferment for 2 weeks for most batches as opposed to 3 weeks like I used to do.”

Did you make all of the above changes simultaneously? I am intrigued by your statement of: “I also now only ferment for 2 weeks for most batches as opposed to 3 weeks like I used to do.” What was your motivation for the change of 3 weeks to 2 weeks? Do you really think that less time in the fermenter yields an improvement? What do you think occurred with an ‘extra’ week in the fermenter?

Cheers!

 

That's my belief, too. Good fermentations make good beer. Stressed yeast makes off flavors.