Brew Tastes light or watered down

I just finished my 3rd batch of homebrew from extract, a pale ale. I got it from a store that puts together their kits from fresh grains in store so I'm pretty sure it was a high quality kit, but I've gotten the same results from all 3 of my brews.

The beer tastes light of watered down. I did the 1-2-3 method and I just feel like I'm missing something so that my beer has fuller flavor.

My recipe :
Malt Extract:
Pale 6 lbs.
Corn sugar 0.5 lb.
Grain Bill:
Caravienne Malt 4 oz
Carafoam Malt 4 oz
Aromatic Malt 4 oz
Biscuit Malt 4 oz
Hopping Schedule:
#1 Saaz (4.2%) 1.2 oz 60 min
#2 Saaz (4.2%) .4 oz 15 min
#3 Saaz (4.2%) .2 oz 0 min

You're not alone. I had the same problem when I was brewing extract beers. I just never got the mouth feel that I thought it should have. I ended up switching to all-grain after 4 or 5 batches because I wasn't happy with the beers. The flavor was great...but it wasn't enough.

All-grain brewing solved my problem.

If you can't jump to all-grain, you might want to try full boils.

Are you doing 5 gallon batches? How much water are using? Are you doing partial boils and then topping off?

I'm doing partial boils with about 3gal of water. I'm thinking about trying a partial mash to see how that comes out, but I've heard conflicting reports between AG and extract as to improvements between one and the other.

I didn't think a full boil would make that much of a difference. I might have to get a bigger kettle.

I didnt like the results from my extract batches because I thought they tasted a little thin myself. They just didnt have the mouthfeel I wanted. Once I switched to all-grain the mouthfeel was great and I also noticed better head retention too.

I also made the switch b/c I wanted to do full boils. Something about diluting the wort with water just sounded like it would thin it out and the sugars wouldnt mix evenly. Not sure if this is true or not, but I just didnt like the sound of diluting anymore.

I too have to agree that i could not get the results i wanted when i did extract, HOWEVER, i noticed in your recipe that you're using Corn sugar 0.5 lb. in your recipe, try buying extra dry malt extract, or liquid malt extract from your homebrew supplier and substitute the corn sugar. IMO corn sugar has NEVER been a good idea to put in beer and there's no need for it other then lower the price tag of your batch. just put more malt instead.

also, what is your starting gravity? your water content might be a bit too high.. you could either put less water, or a bit more malt/hops

I'm assuming the .5lb. of corn sugar was put in by the brew shop to be used for priming bottles.

I've done all extract batches and find that if you use the right amount of malt it can have plenty of mouthfeel. I don't use kits though, I think the kits were a bit watery.

I agree with Suthrn...corn sugar is likely for priming.

My all grain APA's taste watery too.

Suthrncomfrt1884 said:

I'm assuming the .5lb. of corn sugar was put in by the brew shop to be used for priming bottles.

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Probably not. For an APA you'd only use four or five ounces max, not a half pound.

The corn sugar was for the wort. The kit came with corn sugar and priming sugar. I assumed the corn sugar would boost the alc content during primary fermentation.

It just needs to sit for 1-3 more weeks. I have done 6 extracts so far. All taste watery at first. Maybe this is what green beer is considered, I don't know. With the ones that I have done, just waiting longer, made the beer have a much fuller taste.

rygo796 said:

The corn sugar was for the wort. The kit came with corn sugar and priming sugar. I assumed the corn sugar would boost the alc content during primary fermentation.

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Sugar can thin out brews a bit. If I want to boost the gravity for a higher ABV, DME works better plus it adds some body to the beer because of the unfermentables.

G_Brew said:

IMO corn sugar has NEVER been a good idea to put in beer and there's no need for it other then lower the price tag of your batch. just put more malt instead.

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While I think I agree in this case about the sugar not being needed I would vehemently disagree with the NEVER. Some high grav beer (especially Belgians) simply cannot be made dry enough without simple sugars. Just to pick a nit... This beer certainly would be fine (and probably better) with all malt.

Julohan said:

It just needs to sit for 1-3 more weeks. I have done 6 extracts so far. All taste watery at first. Maybe this is what green beer is considered, I don't know. With the ones that I have done, just waiting longer, made the beer have a much fuller taste.

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I don't agree with this. Waiting longer has no effect on the body of the beer. It may meld the malts and make it a better beer as far as flavor goes, but the mouth feel will not improve with age. Just my opinion though.

Well, i guess it has been a coincidence, that after 3 weeks the taste was watery, then letting them all sit longer, the taste was not watery at all, they were full bodied taste.

Oh, I think that waiting a bit longer does improve the body and mouthfeel. I think the co2 becomes better dissolved into the beer and that the beer feels "fuller" after a couple of months.

This recipe sounds thin to me. You don't have to go all grain. Just lose the sugar and up your extract/grains to your next brew.

YooperBrew said:

I think the co2 becomes better dissolved into the beer and that the beer feels "fuller" after a couple of months.

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+1 to this!

I've found that the first few bottles I crack open(1-3 weeks) are usually a bit watery and lacking that good mouthfeel.

Maybe if you leave them in the fridge at least a couple days before opening they'll get a bit better too.

Suthrncomfrt1884 said:

I'm assuming the .5lb. of corn sugar was put in by the brew shop to be used for priming bottles.

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I think you meant 5 oz not 8...

Anywho...I always drink a sample glass of the brew that makes it to the bottling bucket. This is your last chance to make changes before bottling.

If your brew is too thin then just add 1-2 oz of Malto Dextrin in with your priming sugar and gently stir it in. The brew should get better.

homebrewer_99 said:

I think you meant 5 oz not 8...

Anywho...I always drink a sample glass of the brew that makes it to the bottling bucket. This is your last chance to make changes before bottling.

If your brew is too thin then just add 1-2 oz od Malto Dextrin in with your priming sugar and gently stir it in. The brew should get better.

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I guess I didnt think that through fully before posting. I havent botted in awhile but .5lbs. does seem a bit excessive for priming.