First brew - odd cider taste

[smubbs]

Hi all, long time reader, first time brewer.

I took the big step to make my first home brew a few weeks ago. I bought the Coopers DIY kit and made the Lager that came with it.

It was in the FV for 11 days and then in bottles for two weeks so far.

I've noticed a prominent yeast/cidery taste to it, is this normal for a young beer like this? Will this mellow as it sits in the bottles or have I had an infection and not realised it?

Any info welcome.

Cheers

 

[jongylary]

hey smubbs,
very new my self, i know the guys will be firing a thousand questions at you soon so they can help you.
what yeast did you use?
what temp did you pitch the yeast at?
what was to Og and FG>
what temp did you ferment at?

i know by throwing this info out there will assist the guys in helping.


i found with my very first beer it took until at least 6 weeks to start to mature in flavour -

best of luck happy brewing

 

[Gelding]

Hey Smubbs, am sure a queue of people wanting to answer that have had the same experience on K&K.

The cidery taste can come from numerous sources, I'd say main reasons are using table sugar (sucrose) instead of dextrose or malt, and fermenting at too high a temperature.

Did you add table sugar and what temperature did you ferment at ?

Afraid that is one off flavour that will not go away in time. Drink it and / or try again.

 

[smubbs]

Thanks for this.

It was straight from the kit. I used the Brew Enhancer 1 and carby drops for charging. Fermentation was between 20-24 degrees according to the strip on the side of the FV, I didn't use a temperature probe or anything like that so it may not be accurate.

 

[citizensnips]

The other thing asides from the dextrose and maybe it was just me but often from the coopers drops the smaller bottles especially could be quite highly carbonated...leading to the impression of a thinner body and more cider/champagne impression than a beer. Just a thought

 

[Barry]

It should mellow with age. Try to ferment below 22°c, ideally 17-20°c, for most ales, most of the time. For lagers, when using a lager yeast, it should be 8-12°c depending on the yeast and style.
If temperature control is a problem then brew a saison using a saison yeast. The saison yeast can ferment well at 24°c or higher. Some Belgian yeasts also ferment well in the low to mid 20's.
Hope this helps.

 

[NealK]

From John Palmer's How to Brew:
Acetaldehyde
A flavor of green apples or freshly cut pumpkin; it is an intermediate compound in the formation of alcohol. Some yeast strains produce more than others, but generally it's presence indicates that the beer is too young and needs more time to condition.
and here is a link to the article:
http://www.howtobrew.com/section4/chapter21-2.html
Try "lagering" a few bottles in the fridge for a month and see if they improve.

 

[smubbs]

Thanks all for the great suggestions.

I'm going to try again, with more attention to the temperature control!

I'll try lagering this batch off for a few weeks and get back to you.

Thanks again and happy new year!

 

[roverfj1200]

Sounds about right for a Kit and Kilo job.. Bit cidery bit yeasty.. Bit of kit twang..... All normal

 

[Gelding]

I should mellow with age

Cidery taste ?

Never in my experience.

 

[Glot]

Smubbs, the fact that you detected it, questioned it and put some good thought into why means you are off to a good start even if you just wanted a really good first brew.

 

[Barry]

If it is cidery in way of being a green apple taste it can indicate young beer that needs more time mature.