Avoiding a yeasty flavored beer

Hello all,

I'm hoping to get some insight into avoiding a problem I've had sometimes in the past.  When brewing the average IPA, sometimes I run into this yeasty off-flavor.  In doing research today, I'm seeing both advice to prolong primary fermentation to 3-4 weeks (up from the 2 I normally do) to ensure flocculation... But I'm also seeing warnings about leaving the beer on the yeast trub for too long. 

Where is the balance here?  Or is it beer dependent?  Is 3 weeks primary 1 week secondary the best answer?

Thanks for any and all input!

Chris

What yeast are you using??  Do you dry hop in secondary??

I'm using Wyeast 1056 and no, I usually do not dry hop.

if you do not dry hop there is no need for a secondary.  3 or 4 weeks on the yeast cake is not going to hurt anything.  1056 is one of my main yeasts.  I have never had a yeasty taste from it.  Do you bottle or keg?  Possibly it is a conditioning aspect?

Yeasty
The cause of this flavor is pretty easy to understand. If the yeast is unhealthy and begins autolyzing it will release compounds that can only be described as yeasty. Also if the beer is green, too young, and the yeast has not had time to settle out, it will have a yeasty taste. Watch your pouring method too, keep the yeast layer on the bottom of the bottle.

Yeasty
•
Tastes
Like:
Yeast, bready, can be harsh or slightly
sulfur-like
•
Possible
Causes:
Unhealthy or mutated yeast can re
-
lease “yeasty” flavors into beer. If beer is left sitting
on dead yeast for a long period of time, dead yeast
starts to essentially “eat” itself
(autolysis)
and harsh
or sulfury flavors are released. Young beer can taste
yeasty if the yeast has not had a chance to floccu
-
late completely. Yeasty flavors can also be a result of
pouring yeast when serving from a bottle.
•
How
to
Avoid:
If a beer such as a lager is going to be
kept in a fermenter for a long period of time, using
a secondary vessel is recommended. Always leave a
majority of the trub in the primary fermenter when
racking to a secondary fermenter, bottling bucket or
keg. Some yeast sediment is unavoidable when car
-
bonating in the bottle. If yeast sediment is present
leave the last inch or so of beer in the bottle when
pouring.

Well, I do bottle normally; although I have recently purchased kegging equipment so I am looking into making the switch.  Thank you so much for the information though, I've got a few things to think about.  The note about not needing to use a secondary if I'm not dryhopping -- does that apply to all styles?

Thanks!!
Chris

yep.  the main reason I still do it is to let the beer fall clear so I get less trub in the keg.  I have been using a hop tea when I keg the beer.  It really ups the hop flavor & aroma.  I like it a lot better than dry hopping.  Has a fresher flavor to me.

haerbob3 said:

yep.  the main reason I still do it is to let the beer fall clear so I get less trub in the keg.  I have been using a hop tea when I keg the beer.  It really ups the hop flavor & aroma.  I like it a lot better than dry hopping.  Has a fresher flavor to me.

Click to expand...

I would like to hear more about making a "hop Tea"  Love those highly hopped brews!