I recently brewed a Northern English brown ale using Mangrove Jacks M03 Newcastle dark ale yeast. I use a passive cool box and I’m ashamed to say that within the first 24 hours I forgot to change out my ice bricks. First time ever but it had less than optimal results. Once I realized what was going on, the external temp probe was reading 79F. I’m sure it was higher inside the better bottle. I was able to get it back down to about 68-70 within 35 hours but I think the damage was done. I just tasted a sample at the 2 week point and it had a funky, musty Belgian like character, not terribly pleasing at this point. I’m wondering if I should just cut my losses and dump this one. I’m feeling like more time in the fermenter is not going to significantly improve the flavor at this point. Has anyone ever resurrected a brew from this type of situation?
Thanks for any help
Doesn’t sound like much could save it. The flavor may still clean up a little but your description sounds like not enough. If you have space though I would keep it and child condition if possible. At worst you’d learn if that helps. You could also bottle some and rebrew. Them do a side by side to learn or teach a friend about hot fermentation flavors.
Once those fermentation off flavors are created it is impossible to get rid of them. Either dump it of find a friend who can distill it for you. 
Ouch!
This weekend I started a fermentation and accidentally unplugged the chest freezer instead of the drill I used to aerate the wort. The temp rose from 56F to 62F in the 12 hours it took me to notice my mistake. I was quite mad at myself. I feel better now.
Sorry about your beer! Those tastes suck.
This will be my first dump ever. I may need therapy. Better drink a beer first.
I had to dump 372 gallons of beer a week ago due to a stupid employee mistake. About a 10K financial loss, maybe more. Maybe that will keep things in perspective.
We’ve ALL dumped a batch,man. Best thing to do is brew another batch, learn, and put it in the rear view.
If you like Brett, add Brett to it and see what happens. In 3 months, you might have something that you pour down the drain, something that is weirdly wonderful, or something unusual you take to your homebrew club to discuss.
ARGH!! I just had a little brain aneurysm. Sorry to hear that…
Yeah, fusel alcohols can really ruin a beer. Hangover central! Dump it! Fusels don’t go away nicely.
If you can wait it out, there’s a good chance that fusels wll age out into esters.
Yeah, but never turns out to be the beer you had initially hoped for.
True that, but at least it often ends up drinkable.
Learn AND react. Rig up some temp control.
My temp control is a passive cool box. works great… when I remember to switch out the freezer bricks, doh. I usually brew on a Friday or Saturday so I can babysit the first 48 hours. this one was on a Monday and had to work the next day. live and learn… and remember the ice!
I’ve seen some stress compounds age out in high gravity beers, but it takes a LONG time. A NEB (and most average gravity beers) will be very much over the hill before this happens.
Relying on age to ‘fix’ fermentation off-flavors is a bad habit to start.
I agree and I would never rely on it nor urge anyone else to. But it might be worth hanging on to a batch for a while to see if it improves. If not, then dump it.
Very true. It’s only been in primary for 2.5 weeks. I don’t need the fermenter any time soon, a couple more weeks on the yeast certainly isn’t going to hurt. Then a re-eval.
For the record: I have had a few batches get out of hand on fermentation temps on Chico strain and reach temps of 80 degrees that turned out fine. But I pitched the yeast in the low 60s. Pitching and starting the fermentation out cool can really save your beer if a mistake like this happens.
+1