Home brew twang

[MyQul]

If we have any song writers on here, can you compose a song titled 'That Home Brew Twang'
I think country and western style would work well.

I've always thought te forum could do with a smilie with a banjo

 

[Brew_DD2]

I found it to be cheap liquid extract when I was brewing with extract. Never got it with DME or more expensive LME.

 

[Wobjack]

Too much table sugar has been and is IMO the guilty party and is an ever presence in the old kit & kilo way

Agreed dude, I found I only ever got the 'twang' from 'beer squash' kits where they'd say to use XXX kgs of sugar....

 

[Pawlo7671]

I used to get the twang in kits such as coopers lagers and other lighter style beers hence pretty much why IPA's became my staple beer and even after brewing them for a while switching back to a lighter style would twang things up. Since I switched to AG i can brew lighter beers and there is no twang. I think its down to a few things first being that you have to do a full boil when doing AG and this boils of nasty's in the water the other being that, well, I just don't think its possible to make a wort then condense it right down, put it in a tin, re hydrate and not have a twang.

 

[Ale]

Ive had twang in one can kits and two can kits without any added sugar.

And can that banjo smilie play this...
[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsC4kf6x_Q0[/ame]

(go on, you know you want to listen to all of it.)

 

[Poochops]

I've done about a dozen or 15 kits and only the first I ever did had the twang it was a woodfordes Wherry. Because I set it going in August I had trouble keeping it cool it might have peaked at 24 degrees for a day of the ferment and I put it down to that TBH. I was a bit more careful with later kits until I got my brewfridge and I never got it again. I use untreated tap water and I've used LME, DME, white sugar, brown to boost the abv, and all in previously brand new polythene stinky buckets, but no twang. I must have been lucky by the sounds of it, but if I'd got the twang consistently I'd probably have packed it in after half a dozen kits.

 

[shepp]

Ive had twang in one can kits and two can kits without any added sugar.

And can that banjo smilie play this...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsC4kf6x_Q0

(go on, you know you want to listen to all of it.)

Love that scene :thumb:

Bitter sweet when you know what happens to the guys.

 

[Ale]

I've done about a dozen or 15 kits and only the first I ever did had the twang it was a woodfordes Wherry. Because I set it going in August I had trouble keeping it cool it might have peaked at 24 degrees for a day of the ferment and I put it down to that TBH. I was a bit more careful with later kits until I got my brewfridge and I never got it again. I use untreated tap water and I've used LME, DME, white sugar, brown to boost the abv, and all in previously brand new polythene stinky buckets, but no twang. I must have been lucky by the sounds of it, but if I'd got the twang consistently I'd probably have packed it in after half a dozen kits.

I wonder if its just the make of the bucket/FV

 

[Godsdog]

we all assume some things which was why I posted this. Like being food safe, could the activity of the yeast cause it to leach flavours?

And do we all mean the same thing when we say home brew twang? Could it be different flavours that when described sound similar but are in fact something else?

Sugar will cause a twang, but is it the only one? So why do people use table sugar to prime, could that be the cause? I dont think so as using different sugar doesnt seem to affect it for me, its not "the" home brew twang.

priming with table sugar is so minimal with the amount used it will have no Twang effect,its when you go over the 250 gram threshold for a 23 litre brew in the FV that it will start to come through,thats my thoughts on it anyway:thumb:

 

[Ale]

One thing Ive got to admit I have always felt could be a cause is that for kits they say to fill the tins with boiling water, I wonder if that is what causes it. If I do any more kits I might try emptying them cold and scrap out eh wort instead of adding hot/boiling water. Its the hot water on the tin rather than wort that I suspect could be the culprit.

 

[GhostShip]

One thing Ive got to admit I have always felt could be a cause is that for kits they say to fill the tins with boiling water, I wonder if that is what causes it. If I do any more kits I might try emptying them cold and scrap out eh wort instead of adding hot/boiling water. Its the hot water on the tin rather than wort that I suspect could be the culprit.

That's interesting and something that had crossed my mind. Not sure how you'd get all of the contents out of the can without it though. The Festival kits are a bit easier as they come in a thick plastic bag rather than a can - you can squeeze most of the contents out.

 

[Ale]

That's interesting and something that had crossed my mind. Not sure how you'd get all of the contents out of the can without it though. The Festival kits are a bit easier as they come in a thick plastic bag rather than a can - you can squeeze most of the contents out.

Scrape out as much as you can with the plastic mixing paddle. Maybe brew a little short to make up for any thats left. It would be worth it to get rid of the dreaded twang.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

I've always thought te forum could do with a smilie with a banjo

 

[Tanzanite]

Anyone tracked down exactly what causes it yet?

Usual suspects seem to be cleaner, water (chlorine in particular), sugar, etc but I'm wondering if anyone has got to the point where they think they have cracked it and can make beer with no twang. Im thinking could it be a plastic taste from fermenting in a plastic bucket or something like that which would be simple (but expensive) to rectify?

I can only speak for kit makers , i only make kits (alter and play around with some ) and have some beautiful stuff no twangs or off tastes. i believe you only get out what you put in, and one tin kits made with sugar combined with manufactures instructions and some kit yeasts are the culprits. Kits made with spray malt and the 2+2+2 method then left to condition for a good while should make excellent drinking. with out this home brew twang

 

[terrym]

Do any of you who do all grain ever get the homebrew twang with your AG brews?
Please answer honestly :whistle:
My point being that if no-one does, then its more likely to be malt extract than anything else.
Cos that's the defining difference between kit and extract brewers with AG brewers.

 

[Gunge]

Do any of you who do all grain ever get the homebrew twang with your AG brews?
Please answer honestly :whistle:
My point being that if no-one does, then its more likely to be malt extract than anything else.
Cos that's the defining difference between kit and extract brewers with AG brewers.

Last time I got 'the twang' was when I followed some joke of a recipe to the letter and chucked in 800g white sugar.

 

[strange-steve]

I think sugar is getting a bad rap again. Yes too much can cause off flavours, but I don't know if it's necessarily the typical homebrew twang, and also I think "too much" is a lot more than most people believe. I use it a lot in my Belgian beers, my last 2 quadrupel recipes had around a kilo or more of sugar in them and there was no twang. If you ever read "Brew like a monk" it'll change your opinion on sugar. Fwiw I have a feeling LME is the most likely culprit for HB twang.

 

[shepp]

Always had it with kits, never had it with all grain.

Last kit that finished it for me was a Woodford Wherry, it was nice and clear, good carbonation but had absolutely no depth of flavour except for a slight twang.

 

[MyQul]

Do any of you who do all grain ever get the homebrew twang with your AG brews?
Please answer honestly :whistle:
My point being that if no-one does, then its more likely to be malt extract than anything else.
Cos that's the defining difference between kit and extract brewers with AG brewers.

Never. Apart from the one time I mentioned when I used stale malt

 

[chub1]

Do any of you who do all grain ever get the homebrew twang with your AG brews?
Please answer honestly :whistle:
My point being that if no-one does, then its more likely to be malt extract than anything else.
Cos that's the defining difference between kit and extract brewers with AG brewers.

In short No.
Nor have i with my extract brews or partial mashes.
Twang is an old enemy of kits. Way back years ago my mate made kit brews and they always had that certain twang to em.