Sterile tasting beers

[Darth Malt]

So I have been brewing since feb and I have noticed a common denominator in my batches, they always taste *insert ominous music here * sterile. I dont know if its a low attenuation that makes it taste that watery sterile or even the plastic bottling bucket that I am using, but I really nees some ideas.



Darth Malt

[jwatkins56550]

I have no clue what sterile tastes like....but I know there is never a wrong flavor descriptor...

So your beer is tasting thin and watery... Some more info may be beneficial. What is the recipe like? Are you kegging or bottling? Without proper carbonation, a beer can seem watery and thin..It is not your bucket that is for sure. Low attenuation doesn't always mean watery taste either, I mean look at many belgian beers, they finish very low and don't suffer from a watery taste. If you are convinced it is attenuation, you could purchase some malto dextrin powder and add that to the beer to bring the body up.

[Darth Malt]

i tought about that. I am rebrewing with a half a pound of caramel 20L malt to see if it has an effect. I also changed to a lower attenuating yeast. I realized I said low attenuation at first, I meant high attenuation.

the bill went:

.4 lb caramel 20L malt
.25 lb flaked wheat
.4 lb of crystal 40L
7 lb light malt extract

and WLP001

I have just started putting half the batch in a party pig and the other in bottles.

[brewinhard]

By sterile, do you mean in the flavor or aroma? Is it more like a "bandaid mixed with chlorine" thing? That is how I would think a "sterile" beer might taste/smell. What was your final gravity? Are you cleaning/sanitizing well? The only reason I am saying that is b/c sometimes wild yeast can throw off strange phenolics imparting those characters in a beer.

[Darth Malt]

Its more like a distilled water taste, but it's the same no matter what type of water I use. It just tastes stripped down.

[BDawg]

what hops?

[Darth Malt]

what hops?

last batch was the IPA:

1 oz columbus at 50
1 oz columbus at 40
1 oz chinook at 30
1 oz nb at 20
1 oz crystal at 10
1 oz fuggle at 5
and dry hopped with 1 oz fuggle

[BDawg]

You really shouldn't steep flaked wheat. It is gelatinized but not converted (ie, it's gonna add unconverted starch to the brew). Malted wheat will self-convert if steeped at saccharafication temps (~148-158F - yes, the temp range goes lower, but below that temp, the enzymes work SLOWLY).

Where do you live? Are you using city water? Have you tested your water pH?