r/Homebrewing • u/derelekt1 • Aug 09 '26
Kegged Lager Today
This was my first kegging a beer and my first lager. Tasted a little that was left and was not impressed. Tasted flat (obviously), and sort of like freezer burned butcher paper (I have no idea what the flavor is). Set it at 12PSI and will give it another try next weekend.
If I could find a homebrew group, none here locally, would it be wrong to take one of these and ask what that flavor was?
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u/beauterson Aug 09 '26
Trying my first lager in a couple of weeks and all I've done is read to figure out the best approach.
It takes time. You need to 'lager' it. You don't smash one out like a pale ale.
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u/Pbacon123 Aug 09 '26
I've messed up one and successfully made 2. They taste like wet ass when they're green. Give it at least a couple weeks. If it's still gross after 3-4. Well. Join the club.
When they work out and as you get better they are by far my favorite thing to make.
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u/derelekt1 Aug 09 '26
I assume I'll be joining the club. I started this on in mid-Jun.
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u/Pbacon123 Aug 09 '26
Hey I started in May. Everything I did wrong on the first didn't happen on the second. Everything I did wrong on the second didn't happen on the third and it actually tasted good. This third one is alright, but nothing went "wrong". I just took a stab at a new thing and have no feelings good or bad about it.
I'm still not very good at it, but I'm having a lot of fun. I read a lot and watch a lot of stuff. The biggest worry is infection, which is commonly lacto basilis which happens usually during a weak or stalled fermentation. If it's not sour just "blah" then idk what I could be besides oxidation. Did you closed transfer?
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u/derelekt1 Aug 09 '26
It's been in the fermentation chamber until today when I did a closed loop gravity transfer. That part went well and was so much better that bottling.
It was just a bit that wouldn't fit into the keg that I tried. I've heard proper carbonation helps, so we'll see.
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u/Pbacon123 Aug 09 '26
It can definitely. As long as you didn't taste sourness it's probably not an infection.
Two things to remember, it's green as sin so it's gonna taste a lot weirder an off than when it's largered. Second, getting a correct efficiency is important. If you didn't mill stuff right etc it may not have imparted all of the grain flavor you expected. My very first one was a Japanese lager and I messed it all up but the key thing I didn't do right was mill it correctly and use rice hulls to help it mash better.
Can't say for certain what may have gone wrong for you if anything, but I'd give it a few weeks then decide. And hey, if it's bad, as long as its safe, you're usually the only one drinking it. I have a Marzen I'm slogging through on principle.
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u/derelekt1 Aug 09 '26
Well, it's not sour, not sulfury. I think it may have been oxidized although I have no idea how. Efficiency left some to be desired. It was around 64%. Looking at some malts I have left, I'm thinking they should be double crushed. I included some rice hulls but was told I may have used too many.
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u/Pbacon123 Aug 09 '26
Hulls are hard to overshoot. You'd have to be above 7-10% of the total grist weight to change flavor. Do you have the recipe you used? It'd help us look over everything and might give some answers to what went wrong. Or even, do you know what type of lager you made?
As a basic girly girl (I'm a dude) I actually like American light lagers. The thing with them is an absence of flavors. If you made something closer to that than like a Märzen or a kölsch, right now all you'd taste is byproducts of fermentation.
I'm trying to think of how you'd have gotten anything oxidized. Especially since you sampled from the fermenter. Did you have a pretty solid yeast cake at the bottom of your fermenter or did you have a loose floating haze?
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u/derelekt1 Aug 09 '26
I posted it in the thread. Here it is: https://imgur.com/a/unQLkWr
Just a low ABV American Lager.
I use a Craft-a-Brew Catalyst fermenter, and the trub jar had a pretty dense cake in it. It did sit on the trub for three weeks.
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u/Pbacon123 Aug 09 '26
Yea nothing in there's gonna pop out at you. (Also if you used a pound of hulls you're fine there). I think you're just tasting green, mild American lager. I, against my better judgement, taste everything when I do my transfer. Best way to describe all of them was "yucky" but like a three year old would say it. Give her time. I think you'll be happy.
Edit: the efficiency is a tad low but shouldn't really change a whole awful lot. If your gravity was where it should be I think you're ultimately okay.
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u/EbNinja Aug 09 '26
Freezer burned parchment paper makes me worried about oxidation, but driving off lots of oxygen will help.
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u/lifeinrednblack Pro Aug 10 '26
Good News: Freezer Burned Butchers Paper may be the best description of oxidized beer I think I've ever heard. Like yeah that's the perfect description. Which makes sense. Freezer burn is oxidation of produce and meat. And oxidized grain tastes like paper.
Bad News: Yeah that sounds oxidized. It's not going to get better. It's only going to get worse.
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u/derelekt1 Aug 10 '26
soooo, drink it as quickly as possible?
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u/lifeinrednblack Pro Aug 10 '26
You got it. Carb it up and drink it until it's unbearable.
Edit: That said, keep in mind I'm only going off of your description. So it may not be oxidized at all. But if it is oxidized it isn't going to get better.
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u/dmtaylo2 Aug 18 '26
Freezer burned butcher paper is just about the best description I have ever heard of oxidation. Thanks for putting that into my brain. And sorry it happened to you. Careful on your wort transfers not to aerate on cold side. Regards.
EDIT: u/lifeinrednblack, I just read your comment now, AFTER I wrote mine. Great minds. Cheers.
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u/tato_salad Aug 09 '26
Hell yeah join a local Homebrew club, and there will be def someone who will have an opinion on the off flavor.
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u/_brettanomyces_ Aug 09 '26
From my experience of homebrew clubs (and competition judges), there will be several people with different and competing opinions about the off flavour!
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u/Ryankool26 Aug 09 '26
Largest require a heavy pitch of yeast and cold fermentation, low & slow. Usually the last pull as the keg kicks is the best
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u/derelekt1 Aug 09 '26
It's odd because it is not necessarily "bad," it's just not "good."
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u/boarshead72 Yeast Whisperer Aug 09 '26
Don’t judge a lager until it is good, carbonated, and has actually been lagered. There’s quite the dramatic change in taste after 3-5 weeks in the cold.
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u/dmtaylo2 Aug 18 '26
This is likewise just about the best description of oxidation that I have ever heard. Exactly. It's not terrible... it's just not good.
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u/JoystickMonkey Aug 09 '26
At best, lagers leave quite a bit to be desired early on. Sometimes you can pick up some nice hops flavors that become dulled after a few weeks, but those are usually overshadowed by the cloudy/green flavors. In my experience two weeks will let you know if there are any big problems, and then 4-6 weeks of lagering is usually peak flavor.
They are some of the most “naked” beers. Any problems like water profile, fermentation issues, hops inaccuracy, etc will really show through. Even if you make a good one, it’s not a sure thing that you’ll be able to repeat it until you start taking lots of notes and refining your process.
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u/Tro1138 Aug 10 '26
It might taste better once it's nice and carbonated. I had one that tasted blah until the carbonation was finished
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u/Puzzled-Attempt84 Intermediate Aug 10 '26
Say more. What yeast and what was the recipe and even fermentation temp? Don’t even think about the beer for another 3+ weeks. Let it ‘lager’. Brew another beer.
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u/homebrewfinds Blogger - Advanced Aug 11 '26
You can certainly ask folks to taste it. If you can't find a local homebrew group, try a homebrew shop or even make buddies with the brewer at your local brew pub. As others have said, give it some time. Things settle out, the beer conditions and carbonation changes flavors dramatically.
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u/BiochemBeer Aug 09 '26
Let it ride and lager a few weeks.
The flavor you describe could be oxidation though, so if it doesn't fade - review your methods after pitching the yeast.