I am really trying to learn what my palate is telling me, and I have learned that diacetyl imparts a butter flavor, but what about brew that has a weak tea essence? I have found that flavor coming through in altbeir, as well as some American IPA's. For my taste, it is very off putting. Thanks for any insights.
Any chance the AIPA you were getting a tea flavor from was Alpha King? I thought I was getting that flavor the other day when I tried it for the first time. Maybe it was just past its prime...
I start getting tea flavors from IPAs when they start getting old and the hops fade and the malt starts coming through more.
The altbeir was a Cheboygan, and the AIPA was a Breckenridge Lucky U that yes, might have been past it's prime...I'm thinking it was a yeast reaction, probably infected. There was sediment much like the altbeir..reminded of tea sediment.
I suspect there are tannins contributing to the flavor you describe. To quote Palmer's book How to Brew, "The extraction of tannins is especially prevalent if the mash water is too hot - above 170°F [...] The compounds give the wort a dry puckering taste, much like a black tea that has been left to steep too long."
Very unlikely that this is an infection, most likely just the presence of tannins which you appear to be sensitive to and do not enjoy.
Thanks for the explanation. .I was actually thinking it might be a natural quality that I just don't care for.
It's the first thing I've noticed when Pliny starts to drop off. My solution is to never let it drop off.
I get it sometimes in Old/Strong Ales, and generally find it pleasant. I can't recall ever getting it in "lighter" styles though.
Only is it offensive to me when I find Two Day old tea flavor in a beer. Some IPAs have tea like qualities to them, I find it's from the hops though. The beer that has that two day old tea finish is the Iron Maiden Trooper brew.
Gruits and Sahtis both seem to give the impression of tea to me. Maybe partly due to the fact that both styles achieve bittering through plants other than hops--I think because both styles predate the use of hops in beer (?). Gruit uses a blend of herbs and Sahti uses juniper.
