Something was off

[Kealia]

...with the batch of One Evil Pilsner I did. I bought some during the big sale and made it back in November and just 'finished it' today. It was a 6G batch and I kegged 5 and bottled the rest, but it never tasted quite right.

I had no sanitization issues, nor temp issues during fermentation. I'm normally a Nelson Sauvin fanatic but I just didn't like this batch. There was always an aftertaste that I just didn't like. So much so that I kept filling growlers and taking them to people at work - being sure to tell them it was not my favorite batch, mind you.

I finally decided this weekend to give the keg to a friend because his wife liked it, thinking that would allow me to get rid of it. We decided that he would take the keg home along with my second co2 tank and a picnic tap to allow them to drink it. He measured everything out to ensure it would fit, then took a growler home first to ensure that his wife remembered the beer and wanted a lot of it on hand. He called today to say, "I can't believe I'm saying this but no thanks". They didn't really care for it either.
So I took the keg out of the kegerator and decided to pour it down the drain. It turns out that there were only about three beers left in the keg after all. I'm glad we didn't go through the trouble of taking the gear to his house and clearing out his second fridge!
I found 6 bottles in the fridge so I opened one, thinking that the issue may be in the keg but it tasted the same so down the drain they went.
The beat description I can give to the taste was an after taste of celery. It wasn't funky, sour or bad, but it wasn't something I could drink a pint of either.
I don't know if I got a bad batch, had an issue with my 5G bucket or what by t I know I didn't enjoy that batch at all. I enjoyed the MrB version of that beer originally so that was disappointing.
I did decide that my Ale Pail was overdue to be replaced so I did scrap it afterwards.

In any case, I may try it again at some point but maybe not. I'm pressed for time lately so the occasional BD extract batch would have been nice but I'm a bit gun shy now.

Long post, sorry.

[dbrowning]

I bought a few of these myself during that same sale
I cant drink it
First batch I ever made that I simply couldn't drink
Unfortunately I still have a couple of cans left

[Beer-lord]

I had to give up the kits because to make them enjoyable, I had to add so much extra hops and grain, it just wasn't worth it. But, I brewed an ESB a few years back that had a semi-celery taste and never could figure it out. I just thought it was the little bit of hops I used that were bad.
Sounds like a big bummer. My condolences.

[mashani]

Wow. I can't say I've ever brewed liquid celery. Fascinating.

FWIW, the stout I got in that blowout sale tastes fine.

[FedoraDave]

I haven't done an HME kit in ages. If I want a quick brew day, I'll get my own DME, etc., and throw together something real quick. The kits started to seem flat to me; nothing interesting or special going on with them, and, like Paul, needed so many specialty grains and extra hops, I figured I'd be better off just making a generic beer on my own.

[John Sand]

I'm in the same boat with kits: no more.
I did make the OEP, and found it "okay". But my wife tasted celery in it too. A certain amount of DMS is acceptable in lagers I think. They may have let it get away from them. A few times I've had craft beers with pronounced off flavors. It happens to the pros too.

[Kealia]

Interesting....Like I said I really liked the PP from MrB that was supposedly the same recipe. This was just "off". It's interesting that your wife got the celery taste, too.

[mashani]

Almost sounds like the folks in NZ brewed up a DMSey batch and canned it. Which I suppose could happen.

[tssummers50]

Thx for posting! I bought the big cans on sale as well, and had the same problem. I dumped the last 3 liters down the drain. First time ever.The next batch I made was with the 2 small cans of Evil Pilsner, plus one can of pale export. The batch with the smaller cans turned out pretty drinkable. Maybe a problem with the 3.75 lb cans? I forgot to mention the batch I made with the big can, was a 2.5 gallon batch.

[Dawg LB Steve]

Maybe we can get Sam to weigh in on this. I have 2 or 3 of the big cans also from the sale, now I'm a bit hesitant to brew these.

[mashani]

Dawg, did you get the Pils, or something else? The Oatmeal Stout can I brewed from the big can tastes fine, just like the old Mr. Beer Oatmeal Stout. I liked to brew that 3 cans to 2.4 gallons, so 1 big can to 2.5 gallons worked fine for me. I have another can of that and I'm not afraid to brew that, I think it will be fine.

Now if I had the Pils, I would be worried...

[Dawg LB Steve]

I got the big cans of the One Evil Pilsner and Twisted Monk Wit. The TMW I did as partial mash and made a 5.5 G batch, that was good. I would have to look but think I have 2 or 3 OEP's.

[mashani]

I think if I had one of the OEPs and couldn't send it back, I'd try it as 5 gallons with some Crystal and DME + Hops added, and a really aggressive ale yeast (blow off machine) at warmer temps, instead of the included S-33, as that kind of yeast can potentially blow off some of the DMS... Doesn't sound like there is any reason to keep it a "pils". Or I might even steep some black patent and turn it into a dry irish stout. That would probably cover it up.

[Dawg LB Steve]

I think if I had one of the OEPs and couldn't send it back, I'd try it as 5 gallons with some Crystal and DME + Hops added, and a really aggressive ale yeast (blow off machine) at warmer temps, instead of the included S-33, as that kind of yeast can potentially blow off some of the DMS... Doesn't sound like there is any reason to keep it a "pils". Or I might even steep some black patent and turn it into a dry irish stout. That would probably cover it up.

Thanks I picked these up for maybe a quick brewday to fill a keg, but the Dry Irish Stout sounds interesting. I'll have to think about modifying and making a good Irish yeast starter to pitch.

[Kealia]

Maybe we can get Sam to weigh in on this. I have 2 or 3 of the big cans also from the sale, now I'm a bit hesitant to brew these.

I sent a PM to the BrewDemon account on here after posting but haven't heard back. Maybe Leigh or somebody else with direct contact can point him to this thread?