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Off flavor after fermentation but not before

Post #1 made 10 years ago
by opalko
Very frustrated! I can't seem to avoid a grainy/corny flavor that happens after fermentation. I was meticulous in my brewing but when I went to check final gravity yesterday before bottling, ugh. The bad thing is before pitching yeast when I check the OG the stuff tasted great..malty, slight hops - wonderful!
My recipe (ordinary bitter - 2.5 gallons BIAB): (US units)
3 lbs Maris Otter
3 oz 40L crystal
1/2 oz EKG 60 mins
1/4 oz Fuggles 15
1/4 oz EKG 5
1/4 tablet Whirlflock 5 mins
4 gallons water strike temp 156F
Mash in at 152
Temp check 149 at 20 minutes, high heat 30 seconds
Regular stir at 15 minute intervals
Ended 3.9 gallons pre-boil
60 minutes HARD boil
Finish with 3.2 gallons, ice bath cool (not covered!) to 60F in about 4 hours.
Pitched Munton Dry (regular), OG 1033 - tastes GREAT
2 weeks later, FG 1010
Corny, grainy taste, not sure best way to describe...doesn't taste like before fermentation.
This happens nearly every time I brew. I sanitize with StarSan.
What am I missing? I nearly always use dry yeast alternating between Nottingham, S-04, or Muntons. I have one package of WLP002 English Ale that I thought I would give a last go with.
Help!
Cheers
Opalko
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Post #2 made 10 years ago
by flhb
Strange. When people read 'corn off-flavor' they think DMS and will tell you to boil 90 mins. A good 60 min boil should be all that you need, especially since you aren't using any Pilsen malt, to drive off the DMS. Do you cover your pot when boiling? Is there a chance that the vapor condenses and drops back into the pot?

Now, this doesn't really explain why you would get the flavor after fermentation and not before. Maybe it's just covered up before, IDK. I've never had DMS problems before.

My suggestion is taking it to your LHBS, assuming you have one.
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Post #3 made 10 years ago
by opalko
No, I don't cover the pot... Good idea about carrying a bottle in to hb shop. When I get it bottled I will do just that though it's a good hour away. Cheers
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Post #4 made 10 years ago
by Lumpy5oh
Is it a corn flavor or a butter/butterscotch type? It could be diacetyl. It is produced early on in the fermentation and is usually consumed by the yeast later. If you had a slow start or long lag time to your fermentation excess diacetyl may.have been produced and the yeast couldn't eat it all.
The possibility is also that you had an infection in the fermenter and the flavors have been carried over into the finished beer.
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Post #5 made 10 years ago
by mally
How green is the beer opalko?

Maybe just needs a little conditioning time?
G B
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Post #6 made 10 years ago
by PistolPatch
Really annoying when this sort of stuff happens :(.

There's a very good fault guide here. Check out the things the guys mentioned above. It also has "Grainy" there and you'll read things such as over-crushing (don't do that!) and incorrect pH (get a roll of pH paper as currently pictured at the bottom of BIABrewer pages).

I'd also be upping boil time to 90 minutes as this will fix some water problems. Try and read up to see if there are any water problems in your area.

Check how your home brew shop is storing your dried yeast. Also what temp are you fermenting at? With those yeasts at the right temp, they should be fermented within 7 days. Consider getting the beer packaged sooner???

Whilst it doesn't sound like an infection, if you are using vinyl hoses, smell them. If you have a kettle tap or a fermenter tap, pull them completely apart (some fermenter taps are hard to pull apart, just buy a new one if you can.)

Are you bottling or kegging? If kegging, pull them apart and your dispensing tap. Also check that your kegs don't have welds on the inside - everything on the inside of your keg should be perfectly smooth (some new kegs aren't).

Starsan is an acidic sanitiser. Make sure you use an alkaline cleaner before sanitising.

When you are chilling, keep your kettle covered.

That's all I can think of :scratch:.
Last edited by PistolPatch on 17 Apr 2016, 21:55, edited 1 time in total.
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