IPA doesnt smell great

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lee smeaton

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I recently did two kits from wilko's - the supposed special editions. 1 was the extra hoppy pilsner which I have just transferred to a corny for conditioning, it smells great and tastes good too. however the other is the IPA, this one has a slightly unpleasant smell to it. I sterilised everything the same way, used the same beerbrite at the same time on the same day. Its worth pointing out that it didn't clear nearly as well as the pilsner. Can it be rescued or should I just chuck it and put it down to badly sterilised equipment. My problem is I am ex Navy and we would drink anything and the thought of throwing away beer - regardless of taste fills me with dread.
 
It could be off. Or it could be the yeast that stinks. I don't do kits so I don't know the Wilco ones, but if Wilco use a genuine lager yeast, and you got the two yeasts mixed up then that could account for the smell.
What does it smell of, by the way?
If it's sort of sulphury or eggy, then I'd say it was OK.
 
It could be off. Or it could be the yeast that stinks. I don't do kits so I don't know the Wilco ones, but if Wilco use a genuine lager yeast, and you got the two yeasts mixed up then that could account for the smell.
What does it smell of, by the way?
If it's sort of sulphury or eggy, then I'd say it was OK.
Also, how long ago did you make it?
 
the yeasts definitely didn't get mixed as I made one kit at a time - the smell is hard to describe but I suppose there is a hint of eggyness - the kits were made around 3 weeks ago, I put the beer finings in on Saturday morning - I think I will just leave it in the garage for a while and hope it magically gets better
 
Sounds like the sulphur smell given off by some yeasts. That usually subsides with a little conditioning. You should be ok and it is part of the learning curve of brewing.
 
two weeks on, I have nearly finished drinking the Pilsner I made at the same time but the IPA is still amazingly cloudy. If I pour a glass off and put it in the fridge overnight it stays cloudy but I get a layer of yeast in the bottom of the glass. To be fair it tastes ok but when you pour it there is a short lived sulphurous smell which dissipates in seconds and then it smells "ok" the Beerbrite obviously didn't work so I am considering just putting it in a corny keg, putting 5 or 10 psi of co2 on it and just putting it to one side in a dustbin of coldwater and leaving it for a few more weeks. At what point do I give up and pour it on the compost heap - as I say it tastes ok but I don't want the gorby ruttles every time I have a pint.
 
two weeks on, I have nearly finished drinking the Pilsner I made at the same time but the IPA is still amazingly cloudy. If I pour a glass off and put it in the fridge overnight it stays cloudy but I get a layer of yeast in the bottom of the glass. To be fair it tastes ok but when you pour it there is a short lived sulphurous smell which dissipates in seconds and then it smells "ok" the Beerbrite obviously didn't work so I am considering just putting it in a corny keg, putting 5 or 10 psi of co2 on it and just putting it to one side in a dustbin of coldwater and leaving it for a few more weeks. At what point do I give up and pour it on the compost heap - as I say it tastes ok but I don't want the gorby ruttles every time I have a pint.

The corny keg option sounds like an idea that could work, not necessarily for the cloudiness but for the off smell. You could consider adding some hop tea?
 
quick update, the IPA has been in the corny keg for just over a week and the keg sat in a fermentation bin full of water - hallelujah, it has cleared, it now smells like beer should and its almost there in terms of carbonation.... oh and it tastes good too!
 
And the moral of the tale is to leave your beer for longer conditioning a) to get it clear and b) it will usually taste much better. For example two weeks conditioning is rarely long enough in spite of what the kit manufacturers will suggest and even the 2+2+2 advice given on here.
 
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