i did an ipa, secondary fermentation and am getting ready to bottle…i tasted this swill and i will tell you what…it tastes like…alcohol…no real malt flavors or hop flavors…it was chilled with a wart chiller…never got above 75 degrees…i have never had this happen before…any suggestions
Most likely this is your cause. What yeast did you use?
wyeast 1469
American and English yeast strains generally do not like temps that high and may produce fusel alcohols as a result. To prevent this, I suggest looking into methods of controlling fermentation temperature.
viewtopic.php?f=1&t=103505&p=917359&hilit=swamp+cooler#p917359that really sucks…is there any way to save this beer?
Agree with KC, 75 degrees is about 15 degrees too high. Some of that flavor will fade with age. If you were tasting it at bottling I think you’ll be okay. A lot of the character of a brew doesn’t arrive until about 4 weeks in the bottle, so much of the hot alcohol flavor you’re picking up now shouldn’t be too noticeable later on. If on the other hand you’re getting that flavor after it’s been in the bottle for a month, it’s probably there to stay.
I have a few bottles from a stout that fermented hot in fall 2011. I taste one about every 2 months, and I’m still getting a faint boozy off flavor. It’s definitely fading with age, but not very quickly.
If you let it sit eventually the fusels will change to esters IRRC.
I just brewed innkeeper with 1469. Wyeast website says 64-72 is optimal ferm temp range. I kept my fermometer in the low 60s in a swamp cooler and had rapid and very active fermentation. If your fermometer reads 75 your internal temp could be low 80s.
I would agree if you’re looking for a clean flavor, but 1469 can put out some wonderful fruity esters (I picked up a hint of cherry once) that you’ll miss if you ferment too cool. I think the sweet spot for this one is 68ish. 1469 is my go-to yeast for bitters. I brewed one recently that ended up too clean because it fermented in the low 60s. It was still good, but not what I was aiming for.
From what I’ve read (can’t remember where), fermometers are closer than that…1-2 degrees difference.
The stick on fermometers are pretty close to actual beer temp. Maybe a degree or two off, but I consider it to be close enough.
75F is pretty darn hot for ambient, but not too awful bad for actual fermenter temp.
From what I’ve read (can’t remember where), fermometers are closer than that…1-2 degrees difference.[/quote]
Agreed. What I was referring to was my understanding that the temp in the center of a 6.5 gal carboy or pail can be 5-7 degrees warmer than the outer surface during active fermentation. I thought that’s the reason we attempt to keep temps on the lower end of the optimal range.
From what I’ve read (can’t remember where), fermometers are closer than that…1-2 degrees difference.[/quote]
Agreed. What I was referring to was my understanding that the temp in the center of a 6.5 gal carboy or pail can be 5-7 degrees warmer than the outer surface during active fermentation. I thought that’s the reason we attempt to keep temps on the lower end of the optimal range.[/quote]
I have a thermowell in the interior and a the “fermometer” LCD strip on the exterior of my 6.5 gal carboy. The thermocouple inside the thermowell measures to the nearest 0.1C. The fermometer measures to the nearest 2.0F, and the color-change usually spans an additional +/- 2.0F. You’re not going to be able to use the fermometer to get a precise measurement, but–depending on how/where you read the temp–mine have been within +/- 1 degree of the thermocouple.
[quote=“Silentknyght”]
I have a thermowell in the interior and a the “fermometer” LCD strip on the exterior of my 6.5 gal carboy. The thermocouple inside the thermowell measures to the nearest 0.1C. The fermometer measures to the nearest 2.0F, and the color-change usually spans an additional +/- 2.0F. You’re not going to be able to use the fermometer to get a precise measurement, but–depending on how/where you read the temp–mine have been within +/- 1 degree of the thermocouple.[/quote]
How uniform do you find temp is inside the carboy? I suspect it’s fairly uniform given the turbulence caused by active fermentation.
In my experience fusels don’t really age out to an extent that a beer becomes drinkable.
[quote=“Silentknyght”]
I have a thermowell in the interior and a the “fermometer” LCD strip on the exterior of my 6.5 gal carboy. The thermocouple inside the thermowell measures to the nearest 0.1C. The fermometer measures to the nearest 2.0F, and the color-change usually spans an additional +/- 2.0F. You’re not going to be able to use the fermometer to get a precise measurement, but–depending on how/where you read the temp–mine have been within +/- 1 degree of the thermocouple.[/quote]
I stand corrected. Thanks SK! Now I’ll promptly forget it so that I won’t be tempted to let the temp slip upward! 
[quote=“dannyboy58”]
Agreed. What I was referring to was my understanding that the temp in the center of a 6.5 gal carboy or pail can be 5-7 degrees warmer than the outer surface during active fermentation. I thought that’s the reason we attempt to keep temps on the lower end of the optimal range.[/quote]
The temp difference would be with the “air” temp. With the movement of the wort during active fermentation, the temp should be fairly uniform through out the fermenter. Of course there could be a variation with the stick on thermometer based on the insulating property of the pail/carboy.
