Hey,
I'm a part time BIAB with a trusty Big W pot. Each step I've taken from extract, partial, biab, and now kegging with forced carbonation makes a great inprovement in the product.
However from my process I can't seem to shake what I preceive as a slight metallic taste and excess bitterness.
My steps are typical basic BIAB.
1. Mash 64-67 depending typically for 75 mins. Boil for 90 mins with hop additions from 60mins (typically lid on but cracked open to not loose too much to steam). SGs generally right on the money once I top up more water, beersmith uses 65%, but think I'm getting closer to 78%.
2. Cool down by putting it in the laundry trough, cool water fills the trough and hot warmed water exits at the top through the overflow (this is something I need to imrove as depending it can take 90mins to get to pitching temp, though gets down to ~50C reasonably quickly).
3. Pour the whole lot into the fermenter, trub and all (with half batches I can't afford to spare anything), pitch and wait.
4. Depending on the style I; put it in my beer fridge on the vacation setting (maintains 16C), wrap poly pipe around the fermenter with temp probe in fermenter that triggers a bilge pump in an esky that pumps ice water through the poly pipe (the method prior to the fridge), or do nothing (latest strong ale beer, ambient has been 20C inline with the desired fermentation temp). FG is generally where it needs to be +/- a few points
5. Purge keg with CO2, fill it either trough the dip tube or bottling tube to minimise O2 and agitation. Usually theres enough for a 9.5L keg and half a mini keg.
6. Purge the head space a couple of times, in the fridge to carbonate. If dry hopping a hop bomb is added and left at room temp for close to week, then removed, purged again and into the fridge.
The metallic taste slightly noticable, like if you licked a coin or tasted blood (none I can say I do regularly). After the first sips, the pallet adjusts and its not as noticable, but I know its there. All the reading suggests metal contact, which I doubt. The only metal may be from the pot.
The bitterness could just be me needing to adjust the hops, or my pallet, but mine always seem that bit more bitter compared to similar commercial beers.
Any thoughts on what to try to fix this would be appreciated.
I'm a part time BIAB with a trusty Big W pot. Each step I've taken from extract, partial, biab, and now kegging with forced carbonation makes a great inprovement in the product.
However from my process I can't seem to shake what I preceive as a slight metallic taste and excess bitterness.
My steps are typical basic BIAB.
1. Mash 64-67 depending typically for 75 mins. Boil for 90 mins with hop additions from 60mins (typically lid on but cracked open to not loose too much to steam). SGs generally right on the money once I top up more water, beersmith uses 65%, but think I'm getting closer to 78%.
2. Cool down by putting it in the laundry trough, cool water fills the trough and hot warmed water exits at the top through the overflow (this is something I need to imrove as depending it can take 90mins to get to pitching temp, though gets down to ~50C reasonably quickly).
3. Pour the whole lot into the fermenter, trub and all (with half batches I can't afford to spare anything), pitch and wait.
4. Depending on the style I; put it in my beer fridge on the vacation setting (maintains 16C), wrap poly pipe around the fermenter with temp probe in fermenter that triggers a bilge pump in an esky that pumps ice water through the poly pipe (the method prior to the fridge), or do nothing (latest strong ale beer, ambient has been 20C inline with the desired fermentation temp). FG is generally where it needs to be +/- a few points
5. Purge keg with CO2, fill it either trough the dip tube or bottling tube to minimise O2 and agitation. Usually theres enough for a 9.5L keg and half a mini keg.
6. Purge the head space a couple of times, in the fridge to carbonate. If dry hopping a hop bomb is added and left at room temp for close to week, then removed, purged again and into the fridge.
The metallic taste slightly noticable, like if you licked a coin or tasted blood (none I can say I do regularly). After the first sips, the pallet adjusts and its not as noticable, but I know its there. All the reading suggests metal contact, which I doubt. The only metal may be from the pot.
The bitterness could just be me needing to adjust the hops, or my pallet, but mine always seem that bit more bitter compared to similar commercial beers.
Any thoughts on what to try to fix this would be appreciated.