Massive headspace in secondary

Discussion in 'Homebrewing' started by thebriansmaude, Dec 16, 2016.

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  1. thebriansmaude

    thebriansmaude Crusader (472) Dec 16, 2016 Canada (AB)
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    Actually no - I just assumed this was a good practice for any beer. But with all the crazy racking after 4 days and early bottling there wasn' really any time for the yeast to clean up, which in retrospect is a worse thing i think.

    There aren't really any 'off' flavours in the beer from oxidation, infection, or anything like that. I really think the main issue is that even though we reached target FG, there was still a ways to go for those yeast, and it sort of drinks like its much too sweet, and there was a lot of wort that the yeast didn't get to.
     
    #21 thebriansmaude, Jan 29, 2017
  2. thebriansmaude

    thebriansmaude Crusader (472) Dec 16, 2016 Canada (AB)
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    Also - my version of a diacetyl rest is moving the fermenter from the basement to the slightly warmer upstairs...

    All in all, learned a LOT over the course of this beer..It is at the very least drinkable, and i'm sure a few more weeks of bottle conditioning won't hurt it one bit. Thanks for all the input from this thread!
     
    #22 thebriansmaude, Jan 29, 2017
    Last edited: Jan 29, 2017
  3. PapaGoose03

    PapaGoose03 Grand High Pooh-Bah (6,057) May 30, 2005 Michigan
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah

    I think that IPAs and DIPAs don't hit their max flavor profile until 2-3 weeks after bottling. I'd wait until them before passing full judgement on your beer's taste. Also, if you're going to get any oxidation it will show up very gradually, and probably not noticeable to your taste until a month from now if it happens.
     
    #23 PapaGoose03, Jan 29, 2017
    thebriansmaude and scottakelly like this.
  4. thebriansmaude

    thebriansmaude Crusader (472) Dec 16, 2016 Canada (AB)
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    That's the odd thing with this beer Mothergoose, it has been bottled for about six weeks now, but of course it was bottled prematurely, so I guess this is where we get into the question of bulk vs bottle conditioning?

    Either way. Since brewing this beer I have learned a great deal more about pitching yeast at the proper rate, and in retrospect, this beer was probably massively underpitched. No starter, only two packs of liquid in a 1.080 OG beer? Probably contributing more to the overall crappy flavor than anything else I recon?
     
    #24 thebriansmaude, Jan 29, 2017
  5. PapaGoose03

    PapaGoose03 Grand High Pooh-Bah (6,057) May 30, 2005 Michigan
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah

    Much of what you said here does not seem possible if you hit your FG. However, my taste buds often detect sweetness if a beer has been hopped with too many varieties which produce a muddled, bitter taste that seems sweet.

    You bottled very early but yet you hit your FG, so it does not sound like your yeast pitch rate was poor. And to me, to start out with an OG of 1.080 and get to your 1.016 FG so quickly is phenomenal. Maybe you fermented too warm, and/or maybe you had too much water in your wort are where your described symptoms take me. Bottling too quickly, and if somehow that sweetness that you mention does translate to unfermented sugars, your bottles could become gushers. Any issues with that?

    There were some mistakes made, but it's a learning exercise for you. If it wasn't mentioned above, I suggest that you spend some time with John Palmer's book HowToBrew.com before you get much farther into this great hobby.
     
    #25 PapaGoose03, Jan 29, 2017
  6. thebriansmaude

    thebriansmaude Crusader (472) Dec 16, 2016 Canada (AB)
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    Interesting about the sweet flavor from too many hop varieties. I suppose this could be playing a role. The recipe was as follows http://byo.com/mead/item/850-oshea-brewings-hop-monster-double-ipa. Its actually quite an old recipe now that I look closer.

    We used Cascade hops instead of Amarillo.

    One more off flavor in this beer that has reduced a bit in the last couple weeks (Ive been trying them week by week more or less) is an estery / banana flavor. Does that sound symptomatic of some of the debacle described above?

    Since this beer I have brewed at least three more batches, and have had much better results - and yes likely from reading up HowtoBrew / Randy Mosher's new book. Indispensable stuff!
     
    #26 thebriansmaude, Jan 29, 2017
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