[majorvices]

"Barf" of "Vomit" aftertaste is usually Butyric acid caused by bacteria infection.

Hrm.. Interesting. I may need to up my sanitation game with some iodophor. Does the Butyric acid flavor typically go away after while or would it be present through the entire batch?

Taste is truly subjective and I am just speculating what you are experiencing. If it truly is butyric acid, no, it won't go away and might get worse. But again, I'm just guessing and it could be you are tasting something else entirely which could go away.

Not sure what sanitizer you are using but iodophor is phine (lol) but so is StarSan, etc., as long as (like BrewBama said) your stuff is completely clean.

[Joe_Beer]

If you don’t get the biofilm, beer stone, and other deposits off your equipment before using your sanitizer of choice, the sanitizer cannot work.  Emphasis is usually on sanitizer but cleaning may be more important.

Yup, I could have easily missed something. Usually my chiller gets a buildup of gunk on top of each coil that needs to be scrubbed off after every use but it gets boiled for at least 15 mins every use anyway so wouldn't any leftovers would be pretty well cooked off?

I ran across an article (https://beerandbrewing.com/dictionary/jqALuAyCXB/) yesterday mentioning that Butyric Acid off flavors can sometimes be attributed to cane sugar additions. Looking back at my notes, I added a cup of sugar to my "hop fix" solution (simmered on stove top for five mins however). I'm curious about that since my cider is made the same way (except no sanitizing of the sugar). Basically organic apple juice with 1.5 cups of table sugar in it. Both times I've made it, it had to go a good month in secondary to get rid of the butyric acid off flavor. It's simply an unpleasant beverage otherwise.

All in all though, it's a good reminder about getting the gunk off before sanitizing. There's a lot to clean up on brew day and I can be a corner-cutter with things when time gets tight.

Taste is truly subjective and I am just speculating what you are experiencing. If it truly is butyric acid, no, it won't go away and might get worse. But again, I'm just guessing and it could be you are tasting something else entirely which could go away.

I appreciate the speculation, thanks I'll never know where I can improve if I never get any feedback. Besides, you're going on very, very little information. What you all posted gave me some ideas where to look and that helps immensely.

Not sure what sanitizer you are using but iodophor is phine (lol) but so is StarSan, etc., as long as (like BrewBama said) your stuff is completely clean.

Hah! Usually just starsan solution. I keep a batch mixed in a fermenter bucket and check the pH (usually it's 2.5) before using it again. It gets cloudy sometimes but I guess that's not supposed to be an issue? I'll dump some into the fermenter bucket and some into the keg and then pour it all back for next time.  Given that I've still got the same 32oz bottle of concentrate from July 2020, maybe I'm not going through this stuff as fast as I thought I would benefit from using a fresh batch every time.

[majorvices]

Could have something to do with the way you added your hops. But I have used lots of cane sugar (up to 20%) without strong cidery or butyric off flavors.


While it's a good idea to keep everything clean I wouldn't stress to much about whatever happened on the hot side, the cool side is where you need to be careful. I used an IC and hose it off and just dunk it in the boil at 10-15 min prior to flame out. If it has obvious residue I will definitely take the time to clean it but mostly a good hose down after the boil does the trick.

[Bel Air Brewing]

I would just dry hop it.  Call it a hoppy APA instead of an IPA and enjoy it.

Yep, just what I do when I forget.

But...certainly, you never forget!