All brews taste the same - where am I going wrong?

goulders

So far I have brewed a Coopers Real Ale, a Coopers Mexican Cerveza and a John Bull English Ale.  They have either been barrelled or bottled, but they all have the same taste.  The Coopers Real Ale did taste quite good, but had a 'funny' taste to it.  I then brewed the others and they have been left for varying periods, but all have the same taste.  There wasnt much difference in the taste between the Cerveza and the Bull English Ale which clearly there should have been.  I have made sure that everything was sterile and all the correct amounts of sugar, etc were used, but I am going wrong somewhere.

Also, there is plenty of pressure in the barrel or bottle, but when pouring the Cerveza there are NO bubbles throughout the drink.  I get a good head (too much really as I have to wait ages to pour a full pint).  Any ideas where I am going wrong?? 

HBO_Staff

They certainly should taste different, and the most obvious possible cause would be that they are not quite ready to drink. It is important to leave them somewhere warm once bottled or kegged for a few days which gets the sugars dissolved and makes sure secondary fermentation starts properly. Then move somewhere cooler to allow to condition. Often manufacturers state minimum times to make them drinkable, we find to drink any brew at it's best it must be left for as long as possible, ideally quite a few weeks to condition. The drinks can drastically improve in flavour and taste. This will also improve the carbonation. It can take a while for the carbonation to properly take place.

To improve the brews, use a brew enhancer in place of sugar when brewing, this will improve the body and head of the brews as opposed to using sugar.

The premium kits which come with 3kgs of malt extract tend to be better and require no additional sugars in the primary fermenting stage, or the Simply range come with a free brew enhancer for a limited period so you could try making a kit with an enhancer for free which you could compare. We have made the Export Lager from the Better Brew range, in the early stages it didn't taste great, but now after a few more weeks in the bottle it tastes great, is well carbonated, and ours hasn't suffered from a chill haze when popped in the fridge like some others do.

The best thing to do is to leave your brews to condition for longer and chances are they will improve and develop more individual tastes

goulders

Thanks for that.  I will leave them longer before drinking and hopefully that will work.  The only way I can describe the taste is it is very similar to the wort when it comes out of the can, albeit not as strong.  Patience was never my strongest point!! 

HBO_Staff

Try an ensure the bottles are kept somewhere nice and warm for at least a few days to get the secondary fermentation going after bottling, this can make all the difference - if using PET plastic bottles these go from being soft to very hard and can no longer be squeezed. It is then just a case of waiting and leaving it to condition for as many weeks as you can....

miker7301

My last brew tasted, frankly, bloody horrible. I was so upset! But, I left it in a dark place for 3 months, and now, its worlds apart, its not the best brew, but it is now drinkable. Which is just as well, as I need to drink it to make room for the next one! In a dictionary, next to patience, it should say see homebrew, and vice versa.

HBO_Staff

It's true a brew can much improve with leaving to condition. Some brews in the early stages can initially be poor tasting as they are just not ready to drink, but after being left for a few weeks to condition the flavours and taste can completely change. We've had brews which were nearly thrown away, but try them a couple of months later and they have matured into something great. There will always be brews not to everyones taste too, it's often trial and error, the genuine reviews at the bottom of each listing can often be a good guide as to how others found various brews they've made