Headaches

Stupid question does anyone get bad headaches from there brew? If I drink one or 6 I've been getting bad headache. Just seeing if anyone else has ran into this.

I haven't but I vaguely recall someone on here before mentioning something about it. Think he said it turned out to be a gluten issue? Or something I don't recall properly but your not the first I've heard someone complaining about headaches from Homebrew.

My understanding (and my experience matches) is that fusel alcohol will give you a hangover-like headache. My first brew, I had no temperature control or chiller, so I pitched the yeast too warm ad fermented at the top and above the yeasts ideal range.

I would be almost through my first beer and feel a hangover coming on. I wasn't even feeling buzzed yet, and I felt like I had been out the night before.

Temp control is better now and no more headaches. Anecdotal, I know. But I believe it.

I get an instant headache after getting half way through a bud light platinum. I don't have gluten issues, so I assume its something else in the formula and stay away. Trial and error would be my suggestion.

This is more to wine, but a few of my wino friends can't handle tannins. Maybe allergies?

Brew2 said:

Stupid question does anyone get bad headaches from there brew? If I drink one or 6 I've been getting bad headache. Just seeing if anyone else has ran into this.

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this does sound like it might be related to fusel alcohol. what temp do you pitch at, and what is the room temp where you ferment (considering your beer will be around 5 degrees higher internally)?

Another vote for fusels.

Which yeast and what temp did you ferment at?

+1 fermentation.

Control your temps, don't pitch too warm. Keep the fermentation in the 60s as a general rule. 68 seems to be the sweet spot for ales. Of course there are exceptions. After fermentation has slowed, not as important. I have a plastic rough tote bin that I fill with water. In the winter I use an aquarium heater to warm up, and in warmer months I use some 1liter soda bottles with ice inside to cool down.

Sorry, I should have mentioned that I put the fermenter in the rough tote and water to control temps. And this probably works better with a glass carboy. I might not do it with plastic.

glugglug said:

+1 fermentation.

Control your temps, don't pitch too warm. Keep the fermentation in the 60s as a general rule. 68 seems to be the sweet spot for ales. Of course there are exceptions. After fermentation has slowed, not as important. I have a plastic rough tote bin that I fill with water. In the winter I use an aquarium heater to warm up, and in warmer months I use some 1liter soda bottles with ice inside to cool down.

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68*F is more like the sweet spot at which to finish most ale fermentations. Pitch and begin in the low-mid 60's. Keep it there a week before slowly raising it up to finish. These are fermenter temps, not surrounding air.

The OP's headache issue is likely fusel alcohol from warm pitching/fermenting. Bad news, that doesn't condition out.

lumpher said:

this does sound like it might be related to fusel alcohol. what temp do you pitch at, and what is the room temp where you ferment (considering your beer will be around 5 degrees higher internally)?

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I pitch it about about 65 and the temp on my fermenter was around 62-65. This was my beer I will take any advice

I don't think its fusel alcohol if the headeachs from one beer, I would think you would notice something way way off and simply dump it, now 6 that maybe a different story, slow ingestion of bad booze, ever have a bad or poor quality wine hangover?

Allergic to anything?

doby said:

I don't think its fusel alcohol if the headeachs from one beer, I would think you would notice something way way off and simply dump it, now 6 that maybe a different story, slow ingestion of bad booze, ever have a bad or poor quality wine hangover?

Allergic to anything?

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I don't drink wine can't stand it. I'm not allergic to anything that I know of.

Scroll to the bottom and see sinilar threads, maybe there is somthing in there that will help you, alchol can raise blood presure quickly so if you have history of that and your beer is fairly strong, thats why I asked about the wine

Brew2 said:

I don't drink wine can't stand it. I'm not allergic to anything that I know of.

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Don't drink on an empty stomach.

Are you prone to migraines often?

I've had massive headaches from 2 sips of fusel laden beers. It absolutely sounds like fusels to me. Pitch lots of healthy yeast and control ferm temps.

Oh, and wheat beers. I get headaches from all wheat beers. I've also tested negative on gluten allergy tests.

chumpsteak said:

I've had massive headaches from 2 sips of fusel laden beers. It absolutely sounds like fusels to me. Pitch lots of healthy yeast and control ferm temps.

Oh, and wheat beers. I get headaches from all wheat beers. I've also tested negative on gluten allergy tests.

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Me and my wife can't handle wheat beers. I'm a little more resilient to them, but my wife will drink one and feel hungover. So I probably won't be brewing wheat beers very much. Which is perfectly fine with me

I'm not saying I am definitely right, but I HAVE had hangover-like headaches from less than a full beer (like 6-8oz through my first 12oz). Pretty severe. Again, it is anecdotal.

However, I did not store my beer in any particular order (I am not specifically drinking the first blotted first or the last bottle last or anything like that) and I did notice that it went away after a while. So either the fusels faded, it wasn't fusels, or it was something completely different that DID fade away. Or my body just or used to homebrew. Not sure.

Are you used to drinking beers with 5% or more alcohol? I know when I first started drinking craft beer after swithcing from the typical Light American Lagers... I would get headaches after a couple beers.

Not anymore.

Gary