Chemical flavour

idingle · Joined: 20 Nov 2014 Posts: 28 Location: Alberta

Hey all -

Somewhere between my fermentor and coming out of my tap, my beers are acquiring a bit of a chemical aftertaste.

Possible issue 1:
I am cleaning my kegs with PBW, rinsing with water, and then rinsing with Starsan. I then leave a bit of starsan in the kegs for up to a couple of weeks or so before I swirl the remaining starsan and pour it out just before begging.

Possible issue 2:
I have flushed my beer lines with oxiclean and also with starsan and using a submersible pump for 10-15minutes but have never used a BLC/LLC or ALC.

I am replacing my beer lines(they are a couple of years old) and am buying some BLC at the same time.

Looking for advice. Is there something wrong with my keg cleaning/maintenance strategy?

Thanks

**kal** · Posted: Sat Dec 12, 2020 8:52 pm Post subject:

When you say chemical aftertaste, what sort of flavours are you talking about exactly?

Kal

KB · Posted: Sun Dec 13, 2020 12:22 am Post subject:

I normally pour the first 1 or 2 glasses (12 oz) down the drain.

**kal** · Posted: Sun Dec 13, 2020 3:00 pm Post subject:

Another few questions for idingle:

Is this something that only just started for you (i.e. beers poured fine for a long time and the off flavours from the keg only started some time ago), or is this a new kegging setup you just set up? (EDIT: I noticed you mentioned the beer lines are a couple of years old so I guess it's not new)

What type of beer lines are you using? I.e. What material?

KB reminded me of something that can cause off-flavours: Certain beer lines will throw off flavours if the beer sits in the lines. Years ago when I first set up beer on tap I had issues with this and ended up testing a dozen or so lines. See my research here: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/threads/beer-line-tests-solution-to-the-plastic-taste.60380/

More info: http://www.theelectricbrewery.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=24501

What I do today (no issues with beer sitting in the lines for a long time):
http://www.theelectricbrewery.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=290842#290842
http://www.theelectricbrewery.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=295672#295672

Use good barrier lines and keep the beer chilled throughout the lines like I describe in the links above and you won't need to pour off anything. I have 8-10 taps (varies as an outdoor 2-tap kegerator comes out only for 6 months of the year) and I never pour anything off. Certain less popular beers can (and often will) sit the in lines for months.

Kal

KB · Posted: Sun Dec 13, 2020 9:23 pm Post subject:

Just to be clear my comment about tossing the first glass or 2 only applies to the initial tapping of the keg. Even though I cold crash and fine, there is still settlement in the keg and especially in the first pour.

**kal** · Posted: Sun Dec 13, 2020 11:14 pm Post subject: