This is my first 2 all grain batches. I did a porter and ipa recipe kit from the local brew store. It's been in bottle for 10 days, I know it's early but I couldn't wait. I notice a very slight soap after taste on the porter but on the ipa it's more pronounced. From what I've read it looks like a high mash ph is the culprit. Or will it clean up as it conditions? Any other ideas? Thanks
Here is what John Palmer says is a cause for a soapy taste per his How To Brew book. "Soapy Soapy flavors can caused by not washing your glass very well, but they can also be produced by the fermentation conditions. If you leave the beer in the primary fermentor for a relatively long period of time after primary fermentation is over ("long" depends on the style and other fermentation factors), soapy flavors can result from the breakdown of fatty acids in the trub. Soap is, by definition, the salt of a fatty acid; so you are literally tasting soap."
Although the most viable explanations are what @Mothergoose03 posted, there can be others. Which hops did you use? What did your recipes look like otherwise?
In addition...some of the floral hops can be mistaken for soap due to modern soaps having a lot of floral fragrances added to them. Might wait and condition the bottles a little more. (even the IPA)
Wait another week on the bottles, anything less than 2 weeks and I tend to get weird flavors from active fermentation. In particular, I often taste at a week (yes, I have a problem), and get diacetyl that is cleaned up a week later.
There wasn't a whole lot of trub in the porter maybe 3/16, the ipa had about a inch of crud but it was probably mostly hops. More than likely I'm being over critical and hypochondriatic. The ipa recipe was: 9.5 # 2 row, .5 #crystal 10L, .5 # carafoam mashed at 152° for 60 min. 2oz cascade 40 min 1oz cascade 10 min 1oz cascade at flame out 4oz cascade dry hop Wyeast 1272. It could be the hops, I can't say I've had a 100% cascade hoped beer before.
Do you use 5.2 PH Stabilizer? I defer to everyone else here on this, but was perusing old threads and the OP here said his soapy flavor problems disappeared when he ditched the stabilizer, so thought I'd ask.
I agree with this, I get "soapy" when I get too much grapefruit from the hops. I think it is an example of different people perceiving different things, but I am really sensitive to this in some beers. In these cases I have to let the hop aroma mellow a bit. For me it's usually when crystal malt plays a role and there are no roasted malts, with a large addition of late hops.
