Lemon/Citrus taste from beer.

[flairman123]

Hi guys.
I'd like to know if there is anything I can do with eh last couple of batches I brewed.
They all seem to have a lemon/citrus aftertaste which is not the cause of any hop additions.
I brewed a couple of ales which are find,the lemon tasting beers were all Lagers (Coopers Dr-aught,Canadian Blonde and an Ultimate brewers classic Strawberry beer (Lager).
I probably did not achieve the temps as low as 15-18C maybe more like the low 20's.
Held in primary for approx 3 weeks hoping to get a very clear beer.
Secondary for 2 weeks (same reason as above,and to free up fer mentor),and then to keg for the bones of 3 weeks.
Forced carbonated ,all seemed to be ok, but all the above mentioned have the same lemony aftertaste,which sounds ok, but is not really nice at all.
Will more Keg conditioning help this or am I stuck with it.
To clean/sanitize I usually fill up the fer mentor with WTP overnight, then clean and rinse.
Than leave empty until ready for use and use star san to sanitize before use.
I do this for primary fer mentor,secondary, and for my kegs.

Any help appreciated.

[flairman123]

Sorry!
Should have added all hydrometer readings steady before moving from primary to secondary.
Also with the UBC Strawberry blonde that was bottled not kegged after about 6-7 days in primary as I remember and there was also 2 different fermentors used for the batches that were kegged(again about 3 weeks in primary specifically for kegging).

[LordEoin]

Cooper's draught and cooper's canadian blonde both use the same Cooper's Ac Ale yeast strain.
I'm guessing that 'maybe more like the low 20s' was probably more like mid 20s and this is just a byproduct.

It's hard to tell though without solid information like:
- recipe
- pitching temp
- fermentation temp
- Fermentation time

[flairman123]

Thanks for the reply.
I only recently acquired a little fridge for brewing, so before that I only had room to put one bottle of water in my kitchen fridge & shoved one into my chest freezer for a couple of hours, the others were probably at room temp.
So I did aim for below 20C but as best as I could read the stick thermometer the pitching temp was low 20's.
This did seem to rise slowly during primary fermentation to 22 at a guess.
Recipes were standard I kg of LME with both Coopers draught and the Coopers Lager that's all, just wanted to get the bare bones right.
Fermentation time for both was 3 weeks primary, and then 2 weeks secondary, and then to keg total 2 months from start to finish.
The Ultimate brewers classic Strawberry Blonde(lager)as per standard 7-8 days primary then bottled and conditioned for 4 weeks.

Is there any way back with these batches over time or am I stuck with the off flavour?

[LordEoin]

it sounds like you did everything right.
It might be just something in those kits you don't like, but it could fade with more conditioning

[flairman123]

Thanks.

I will leave the 2 x kegs in the shed to condition longer and hope for the best.
I might tempt faith and try another lager now that the temperatures have dropped ,and probably leave an electric fan blow across the fermenter during primary.
If I fail again its probably ales from now on!!

Thanks for your help!

[johnrm]

Was that 1Kg LME or DME?
I thought 2 tin kits were generally the beer plus 1.7Kg LME.

What OG and FG did you have?
Was there a radiator in the room you fermented in?

@Lordeoin, do these kits ship with Ale or Lager yeast?

[flairman123]

Ok.

1st was a Coopers Kit from Homebrew company Coopers Draught kit with IKG beer enhancer.
2nd was a Coopers Canadian Blonde with 1KG LME instead of sugar.
3rd was the Ultimate Brewers classic  2 x tins as you correctly stated with nothing else added except a little hop & strawberry vile that came with the kit.

I'm at work the moment ,but I have OG & FG written at home but i'm sure that they were all ok..
Lord Eoin commented that both the coopers kits use Ale yeast.,as did the UBC kit.

Yes the room does have a radiator ,and the initial primary was for sure above the recommended 15-18C, low to mid 20's at the highest.

I have read that the first 4 days of Primary fermentation are the most imporatnt so I tried my best to keep an eye on the tmp during this period,and it was around 22C which was all I couls manage at the time.
I'm better equipped now for cooling brewing water so I guess I just need to know if that lemon/citrus aftertaste is a direct result of fermenting at too high for Coopers Lager(with ale yeast),and with extra conditioning will it subside ,or am I stuck with it.
I guess its a bummer but if I have to dump I can free up two cornies and start again!

[imark]

Might be infected. If it is...it won't ease off but will continue to get drier. If it tastes like arse just dump it.

[LordEoin]

Get someone to taste it for you first. it might be fine.
@john canadian = ale, lager = ale/lager blend

[johnrm]

I'm only down the road. Hic!

[flairman123]

Dont' want to take a chance wiping out two of the most prominent forum expert members!!

[johnrm]

I'd have a go off it if you could get a sample to me.
You could bring a keg, I have taps.

[LordEoin]

step inside john's candy van. it's a friendly place.