What to expect tasting green beer?

[okoncentrerad]

I've been reading how people taste their beer when for instance taking gravity samples from the fermentor, to know if it's going to be a nice beer or not. I've been reading comments like "wow tastes great", "this is going to be super" etc. I've seen threads about people taking tasting samples to know when they reach "That Flavour" in their fermenting process where they change/stop the fermenting process to keep "That Flavour" to their finished beer.

Whenever I taste the green beer I can honestly say that's not a taste I want in a finished beer, usually it just tastes bitter and/or just not right. I've been trying to take samples in different stages in the fermentation process and I can't say none have made me really excited. So I see two possibilites here, either the beer simply isnt't good, or it's a learning thing...being able to extrapolate green beer aroma/flavour to finished beer aroma/flavour.

So am I just brewing lousy beer or am I just not used to taste beer early in process? What should I expect it to be like?

As an example, I'm right now having a british best bitter and a dark mild in fermentation (on day 8). Both have reached their FG, a bit lower even. Yes I know it's a british yeast with all it's ifs and buts, but I've really have had a good fermentation control on these ones and I've been thinking things has gone rather smoothly with them this far. But tasting today wasn't a WOW, it was bitter, not much malt character and not much of the flavor/aroma from the EKG I had hoped for. I know what I would like the finished beer to taste like, but this is far from it.

 

[Ozarks Mountain Brewery]

the bitter your tasting is called co2 burn, its common because the yeast is still putting off gas, when you test it let it sit for a few minutes to degas and when you carbonate the flavor changes anyway, the only thing you want to check for is any off flavors and possible a hoppy taste or not, to me if its clean tasting thats all that matters

 

[Hogarthe]

Really for me it was a try it every time and compare it to when the beer was finished. I learned what to expect from the batches that turned out good. The first time I tasted non finished beer it was just gross and I couldn't tell if it would be good when done or not. Just took experience.

 

[Hawkbox]

My saison after 6 days tasted wrong to me, like tart or something but I lack the vocabulary to explain it. It was brewed professionally as part of our big brew day so unless everyone is unhappy it's something I did. Which was literally just pour started yeast in after I got the carboy home and ramp the heat on it after 3 days of fermentation.

I'm hoping when I keg it everything tastes good because I would hate to have my first dumper be the professionally made beer.

 

[Mark D Pirate]

Experience will be the best teacher here .
You wont really taste the final beer until its served but you're looking for off flavours mainly .
With my last stout I was concerned I didn't get enough roast during early samples but it was just hiding behind other flavours .
Remember that brewing is an art and a science so don't expect to master it overnight

 

[okoncentrerad]

Thanks guys, yes I guessed a lot of it is down to experience, or hoped so...will just look for weirdness right now and perhaps in time be able to make more sense of what early taste means to a finished beer.

 

[Ozarks Mountain Brewery]

one thing to consider is gravity is a constant in beer making meaning any loose partials will eventually fall out of suspension so tasting the wort early is tasting beer with everything in it and half or a quarter will be gone when it’s done

 

[Nosybear]

one thing to consider is gravity is a constant in beer making meaning any loose partials will eventually fall out of suspension so tasting the wort early is tasting beer with everything in it and half or a quarter will be gone when it’s done

And some of the junk that settles out doesn't taste good.

 

[AsharaDayne]

I guess green beer is a bit like a small child. In the very early stages it'll basically just puke on you; a bit later it's still too early to know how it's gonna turn out exactly, but you can already tell if there's some serious handicaps in it.