Burnt Rubber, Coffee, Skunk... Autolysis?

Discussion in 'Homebrewing' started by pweis909, Oct 16, 2015.

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  1. pweis909

    pweis909 Grand Pooh-Bah (3,250) Aug 13, 2005 Wisconsin
    Pooh-Bah

    Occasionally I have smelled a skunk in the yard that reminds me of burnt rubber and coffee. Sometimes I have opened up a bag of coffee that reminds me of burnt rubber and skunk. In the last week I've opened up two different bottles of beer that gave me the same impression. No, not coffee beers, a saison and a pale ale.Both beers were in brown bottles and the skunkiness was not like that of a green bottled becks -- much more intense. In both cases I really had to work to find the beer flavors under the surface.

    Is this yeast autolysis, which I have heard described as meaty, and maybe burnt rubber? I'm assuming some sort of sulfur compound similar to a mercaptan.

    FYI, the beers were commercial beers. (I'm posting in the homebrew forum because (1) we probably put more thought into off-flavors than the beer talk forum and (2) neither beer is an imperial IPA or stout so who would pay attention over there?) The pale ale had a born-on stamp of 3/2015, and one a saison with unknown production date. Both bottles were made at Midwest breweries and purchased from cooler racks in stores that seem to make an effort to care for their beers.
     
    #1 pweis909, Oct 16, 2015
  2. premierpro

    premierpro Savant (1,060) Mar 21, 2009 Michigan

    I once brewed a batch with oxidized hops and that gave my beer a burned rubber flavor. No matter how long I aged it there was no change. Glad it was not your batch. Take care.
     
    #2 premierpro, Oct 16, 2015
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  3. Brew_Betty

    Brew_Betty Initiate (0) Jan 5, 2015 Wisconsin

    Skunk is garlic x1000 for me.

    Burnt rubber in beer can come from wild yeast. It can also come from bad hops as previously mentioned.
     
    #3 Brew_Betty, Oct 16, 2015
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  4. hopfenunmaltz

    hopfenunmaltz Pooh-Bah (2,635) Jun 8, 2005 Michigan
    Pooh-Bah

    Coffee is one of the descriptors allowed in the Cicerone exam for a skunked beer. People from parts of the world without skunks make the association to coffee aromas.
     
    #4 hopfenunmaltz, Oct 16, 2015
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  5. pweis909

    pweis909 Grand Pooh-Bah (3,250) Aug 13, 2005 Wisconsin
    Pooh-Bah

    Thanks. It was just so much more intense than my green bottle photo-oxidation experiences. And weird to come across it for the first time in two very different beers from different breweries in such a short time, after so many years of thinking about beer flavors.
     
    #5 pweis909, Oct 16, 2015
  6. JohnSnowNW

    JohnSnowNW Initiate (0) Feb 6, 2013 Minnesota

    This sort of reminds @CurtFromHershey and I experienced with a commercial Wheat beer that we tried. I don't believe it was overly hopped, so I'd be surprised if it was from bad hops. It was in a brown bottle too, so I don't think it was light-struck. It was very reminiscent of skunked beer, though...and we both drain poured it.

    Looks as though an infection may have been the reason...
     
    #6 JohnSnowNW, Oct 16, 2015
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  7. Brew_Betty

    Brew_Betty Initiate (0) Jan 5, 2015 Wisconsin

    I've never smelled burnt rubber or skunk in coffee. However, I have smelled cat pee in cheap coffee. Blech!

    I think hot storage can make burnt rubber. That is what happened when I left beer in the trunk of a car during the summer for a few days. The beer was Ommegang which normally is flawless.
     
    #7 Brew_Betty, Oct 16, 2015
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  8. pweis909

    pweis909 Grand Pooh-Bah (3,250) Aug 13, 2005 Wisconsin
    Pooh-Bah

    I have similar thoughts. Neither were highly hopped beers and both were in brown bottles. But I doubt that it is infection. FWIW, one of the beers was Bells Midwest Pale Ale. It feels unlikely that Bells would have a wild yeast infection. They're too good. I want to say the beer was likely mishandled between the brewery and my point of purchase.
     
    #8 pweis909, Oct 17, 2015
  9. SFACRKnight

    SFACRKnight Grand Pooh-Bah (3,348) Jan 20, 2012 Colorado
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    I also get burned rubber from skunk, but have never seen it with autolysis. Soy sauce and mushroomy would be my descriptors. I also agree that bells probably wouldnt have a wild yeast infection and agree with @Brew_Betty that its probably improper storage temps.
     
    #9 SFACRKnight, Oct 17, 2015
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  10. premierpro

    premierpro Savant (1,060) Mar 21, 2009 Michigan

    My bad beer was from using one ounce the last five minutes of boil in a five gallon batch. Drain pour!
     
    #10 premierpro, Oct 17, 2015
  11. SFACRKnight

    SFACRKnight Grand Pooh-Bah (3,348) Jan 20, 2012 Colorado
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    I used an oz of old simcoe in a five gallon batch of IPA. it was one oz out of 16 used and the bleu heese flavor was overwhelming. It doesnt take much.
     
    #11 SFACRKnight, Oct 18, 2015
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