[ Alcoholic - Astringent - bitter - Body - Clarity - Color - Carbonation - Diacetyl - DMS - Fruity/Estery - Head Retention - Husky/Grainy - Lightstruck - Metallic - Oxidation - Phenolic - Salty - Sour/Acidic - Sulfur - Sweet ]
To read this table the term "high" or "low" means that the profile being described is either high or low in your perception. For example in table 1 Alcoholic; if you are perceiving a high alcohol flavor or aroma and you were not shooting for that, check the troubleshooting guide to try to see maybe where you may have gone wrong. Same holds true for if you were wanting more alcohol, if it is low, maybe you can use an ingredient or process next time to increase it.
| Profile | Ingredients | Process | Equipment | Handling/processing | |
| Alcoholic: A warm prickly sensation in the mouth and throat. | High: Increase Fermentable sugars through use of malt or Adjuncts.
High: Healthy and Attenuattive yeast strains |
High: Within the general 145-158 degree F range of mashing temperatures
the lower mash temperature produce more fermentables, thus more resulting
alcohol.
High: Aeration of wort before pitching aids yeast activity. High; Fusel (solvent-like) alcohols are procuded at high temperatures |
Age and oxidation will convert some of the ethanol to higher solvent like alcohol. | ||
| Profile | Ingredients | Process | Equipment | Handling/processing | [ Back to the Top ] |
| Bitter: A sensation generally percieved on the back of the tongue, and sometimes foof of the mouth, as with caffeine or hop resin. | High: Black and roasted malts and grains
High: Great amounts of boiling hops High: Alkaline water can draw out bitter components from grains |
High: Effective boiling of hops
Low: High fermentation temperatures and quick fermentation rates will
decrease hop bitterness |
low: Filtration can remove some bitterness. | ||
| Profile | Ingredients | Process | Equipment | Handling/processing | [ Back to the Top ] |
| Body: Not a flavor but a sensation of viscosity in the mouth as with thick (full body) and thin (light body)beers | Full: Use of Malto-dextrin, dextrinous malts, lactose, crystal malt, caramel
malt, dextrin (CaraPils) Malt
Thin: Use of highly fermentable malt Thin: Use of enzymes that break down carbohydrates in mash, fermentation
or storage. |
Full: High Temperature Mash
Low: Low Temperature mash |
Low: Age will reduce body
Low: Wild Yeast and bacteria may reduce body by breaking down carbohydrates |
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| Profile | Ingredients | Process | Equipment | Handling/processing | [ Back to the Top ] |
| Clarity:Visual perception of the beer int he bottle and after it is poured. | High: Use of protein reducing enzymes
Low: Chill haze more likely in all-malt beers because higher protein than malt and adjunct beer Low: Wheat malt and unmalted barley cause more chill haze than malted barley and corn and rice adjuncts. Low: Poor flocculent wild yeast may cause poor sedimentation Low: Bacteria causes cloudiness and haze. High: Use of polyclar or activated Silica gelatin. |
Low: Over milling/Grinding of grain
High: Long, Vigorous boil and proper cooling |
Low: Bacteria from dirty plastic equipment, especially siphon and blow-out
hose, scratched fermentor
High: Filtration |
Low: Unclean bottles can cause bacterial haze. | |
| Profile | Ingredients | Process | Equipment | Handling/processing | [ Back to the Top ] |
| Color: Visual perception beer color. | Dark: Use of dark malts. Crystal, Munich, Chocolate, Roasted barley, Black
Patent.
Light:Use of lighter malts and starch adjunct |
Dark: Scorching
Dark: Carmelization from long boil |
Filtration can reduce color. | ||
| Profile | Ingredients | Process | Equipment | Handling/processing | [ Back to the Top ] |
| Carbonation: Amount of dissolved Carbon Dioxide in the beer. | High: Bacteria and wild yeast may break down carbohydrates not normally
fermentable and crate over carbonation and gushing
High: over priming |
Low: Cold temperatures inhibit ale yeast
Low: Long lagered beer may not have enough viable yeast for bottle conditioning. |
High: Unsanitary equipment can introduce bacteria which can cause over carbonation and gushing | High: Unclean bottles cause bacterial growth and gushing
High: Over priming kegs: prime kegs at 1/3 normal rate. High: agitation Low: improper seal on cap |
|
| Profile | Ingredients | Process | Equipment | Handling/processing | [ Back to the Top ] |
| Diacetyl: Butter or butterscotch flavor. | High: Unhealthy, non-flocculating yeast
High: Not enough soluble nitrogen-based yeast nutrient in wort. High: Not enough oxygen in wort when pitching yeast High: Bacterial contamination High/Low: Yeast strain will influence production of diacetyl High: Excessive use of adjuncts such as corn or rice, deficient in amino
acid (soluble nitrogen-based nutrients) |
High: Chilling fermentation too soon
High: High-temperature initial fermentation High: Premature fining takes yeast out of suspension too soon Low: Agitated extended fermentation. Low: High temperature during extended fermentation. Low: Kraeusening |
High: Bacteria from equipment.
High/Low: Configuration and size of fermenting vessel will influence
production. |
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| Profile | Ingredients | Process | Equipment | Handling/processing | [ Back to the Top ] |
| DMS (dimethylsulfide): Cooked cabbage or sweet cornlike aroma. | High: High-moisture malt, especially six row varieties
High: bacterial contamination of wort. Low: Use of two row English malt High: Under pitching of yeast. High: Bacterially infected yeast slurry. |
Low: Longer boil will diminish DMS
High: Oversparging at low temperatures (especially lower than 160 degrees) |
High: Bacteria from equipment. | High: Introduction of unfiltered co2 produced by fermentation. Bottle priming will produce small amounts. | |
| Profile | Ingredients | Process | Equipment | Handling/processing | [ Back to the Top ] |
| Fruity/Estery: Flavors similar to fruits such as: Strawberry, ban ana, raspberry, apple, pear, plum, raisin, dates. | Yeast strains produce various esters
High: Loaded with fruit. |
High: Excessive trub
High: Warm Fermentation High: high pitching rates High: High gravity wort. High: Excessive wort aeration. Low: Opposite of all above. |
Low: Age will reduce esters to closely related fusel alcohols and acids. | ||
| Profile | Ingredients | Process | Equipment | Handling/processing | [ Back to the Top ] |
| Head Retention: Physical and visual degree of foam stability. | Good: High malt content
Poor: Use of overmodified or under kilned malt Good: Mashing in of barley flakes Good: Licorice, crystal malt, dextrin (CaraPils)malt, wheat malt Good: High bitter hops in boil. Poor: Hard water Poor: germ oil in whole grain Poor: Elevated volumes of higher alcohols. Good: High Nitrogen content. |
Low: Oversparging (releases fatty acids)
Low: Excessive aeration of wort before pitching. Low: extended enzymic molecular breakdown of carbohydrates in mash. Low: Fatty acid release during yeast autolysis. Low: High fermentation temperatures (production of higher alcohols) High: Good rolling boil in kettle. |
Poor: cleaning residues improper rinsing of fats, oils, detergents, soaps.
Poor: Filtration can reduce head retention. |
Low: Oxidation/aging breaks down head stabilizing agents.
Low: Dirty bottles, improperly rinsed. Improperly cleaned glasses |
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| Profile | Ingredients | Process | Equipment | Handling/processing | [ Back to the Top ] |
| Husky/Grainy (astringent) : Raw grainlike flavor, dry, puckerlike sensation as in grape skins. |
High: Alkaline or high sulfate water.
High: Stems and skins of fruit. High: Six row more than two row malt |
High: Oversparging grains
High: Boiling grains High: Excess trub High: Poor hot brew (improper boiling) High: Over milling/grinding High: High temperature sparge water (over 175 degrees) |
Low: Aging reduces astringency. | ||
| Profile | Ingredients | Process | Equipment | Handling/processing | [ Back to the Top ] |
| Lightstruck/Skunky/ Catty: Aroma like a skunk. |
High: Some varieties of hops. | High: Fermenting in glass carboy in direct light. | High: Light striking beer through green or clear glass and over a prolonged
time in a brown glass.
NOTE: Effect is instantaneous with clear or green glass. |
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| Profile | Ingredients | Process | Equipment | Handling/processing | [ Back to the Top ] |
| Metallic: Tinny, coinlike, bloodlike. | High: Iron content in water is high | High: Mild steel, Aluminum, cast iron.
High: Cleaning stainless steel or copper without subsequently oxidizing
surfaces to form a protective layer of oxide on metal. |
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| Profile | Ingredients | Process | Equipment | Handling/processing | [ Back to the Top ] |
| Oxidation: Paper or cardboardlike, winy, sherrylike, rotten pineapple or rotten vegetables. | Low: Addition of ascorbic acid | High: Aeration when siphoning or pumping.
High: adding tap or aerated water to finished beer. |
High: Malfunctioning airlock. | High: Too much air space in bottle.
High: warm temperatures High: age. |
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| Profile | Ingredients | Process | Equipment | Handling/processing | [ Back to the Top ] |
| Phenolic: Medicinal, band-aidlike, smokey, clovelike, plasticlike. | High: Chlorinated (tap) water.
High: Wild yeast High: Bacteria High: Wheat malt (clovelike) or roasted barley/malts (smoky) |
High: Oversparging of mash
High: Boiling grains |
High: Cleaning compound residue
High: Plastic hoses and gaskets High: Bacterial and wild yeast contamination. |
High: Defective bottle cap linings. | |
| Profile | Ingredients | Process | Equipment | Handling/processing | [ Back to the Top ] |
| Salty: Sensation generally perceived on the sides of the tongue as with table salt. | High: Brewing salts, particularly those containing sodium chloride (table salt) and magnesium sulfate (epsom salts) | ||||
| Profile | Ingredients | Process | Equipment | Handling/processing | [ Back to the Top ] |
| Sour/Acidic: Sensation generaly perceived on the sides of the tongue sort of like with lemonjuice or sour candy. | High: Introduction of lactobacillus, acetobacter and other acid forming
bacteria.
High: Too much refined sugar. High: Addition of citric acid. High: Excessive ascorbic acid. (Vitamin C) |
High: Mashing too long promotes bacterial growth and acid byproducts in mash. High: Bacteria in wort, fermentation. High: Excessive fermentation temperatures promotes bacterial growth. Low: Sanitize all equipment. |
High: Bacteria harbored in scratched surfaces of plastic, glass, stainless,
improper welds, valves, spigots, gaskets, discolored plastic.
High: Use of wooden spoon in cooled wort or fermentation. |
High: Storage at warm temperatures.
High: Unsanitary bottles or keg. |
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| Profile | Ingredients | Process | Equipment | Handling/processing | [ Back to the Top ] |
| Sulfur:Sulfur Dioxide, hydrogen sulfide (rotten eggs), sometimes a yestlike flavor. | High: Various yeast strains will produce as a byproduct
High: Malt releases minor amounts. |
High: Yeast autolysis; sedimented yeast in contact with beer in fermenter
too long
High/Low: Yeast strains will influence. |
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| Profile | Ingredients | Process | Equipment | Handling/processing | [ Back to the Top ] |
| Sweet:Sensation generally perceived on the tip of the tongue as with sucrose. Sweet like sugar. | High: High malt content.
High: Crystal malt, munich malt and toasted malt create sweet malt flavor. High: Low hopping. High. Licorice High: Low attenuation or unhealthy yeast strains |
High: Within the general 145-150 degree F range of mashing temperatures the higher mash temperatures produce more unfermentable carbohydrates. | Low: aging reduces sweetness. | ||