Trying to determine what is causing the flavors I am getting.

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phuff7129

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I just brewed an IPA extract kit and I am getting some flavors that I was not expecting. I don't think they are off flavors, just different than I have tasted before. Here is the recipe.

5 gallon batch
6 lbs Pale LME
3.5 lbs Amber LME
.25 lbs Crystal 60L
Wyeast 1335 British Yeast II with a 2 liter starter
1 oz Warrior for 60
1 oz Amarillo Gold continuously hopped for the last 30 minutes
1 oz Citra continuosly hopped for the last 30 minutes
1 oz Citra dryhop 7 days
1 oz Amarillo Gold dryhop 7 days
1 oz Ahntanum dryhop 7 days
OG 1.070
FG 1.016
3 weeks primary, 7 day secondary, 3 weeks in the bottle.

When I taste this brew I am getting hit really hard with fruit. Almost a Belgian like fruit taste. Then is has a slight citrus finish. It's not unpleasant just surprising. I was expecting more of a citrus, floral, pine. The aroma is not very strong which is surprising with 3oz of dryhop but the aroma is fruit also. This is my first brew using this yeast and it is also my first using Citra and Ahntanum hops. What do you all think is giving me the strong fruit notes?
 
I just think your hops are hitting you hard with fruit notes. Was 67-70 ambient temps or actual fermentation temps? Give them some time im shure it will dry out. Not shure if any of those hops are piney.
Are you letting the beer warm some when drinking,usually you pick up differnt characters with warming temps.
How is the bittering?
 
Citras are not only "citrusy" hops - they also impart some other fruit notes as well, melon, passionfruit, pineapple, papaya, etc. It could be that the Citras are just overpowering the Amarillos and Ahtanums to produce a fruitier flavor at this point. Amarillos are also not a "punchy" citrus flavor, more mellow orange-ey than punchy grapefruit or lemon/lime.

Of the three hops you used, the Ahtanum is the one with the most definable grapefruit flavor (what we all tend to think of as the citrus-y component of most hops), but the lowest AA of the three.

So if you're looking for a citrus punch like a Sweetwater IPA or a Drifter Pale Ale, the combination you used might not be the one (I know Widmer uses a lot of Summits to get their Drifter grapefruit bombs).

There could also be a yeast component to it. Compare these two sets of notes:

YEAST STRAIN: 1272 | American Ale II™

With many of the best qualities that brewers look for when brewing American styles of beer, this strain’s performance is consistent and it makes great beer. This versatile strain is a very good choice for a “House” strain. Expect a soft, clean profile with hints of nut, and a slightly tart finish. Ferment at warmer temperatures to accentuate hop character with an increased fruitiness. Or, ferment cool for a clean, light citrus character. It attenuates well and is reliably flocculent, producing bright beer without filtration.

YEAST STRAIN: 1335 | British Ale II™

A classic British ale profile with good flocculation and malty flavor characteristics. It will finish crisp, clean and fairly dry.
LINK

The British yeast doesn't give you much help in accentuating the citrus qualities you're looking for.

It might mellow and blend a bit more in a few weeks. Only time will tell. But it sounds tasty as is! Drink it and experiment some more!
 
Yes those are the actual temps. Do you think the yeast could be causing any of the fruit? Do citra hops tend to overpower the other hops?
 
Do citra hops tend to overpower the other hops?

in my experience, no. they'll actually get over shadowed by hops sometimes. i have a citra/cascade pale kegged right now that has much more cascade presence than citra. and i used more citra hops late in the boil. the citra's there, but the cascade runs the show.
 
You may be more interested in an american yeast for your ipa's next time then,prrriiide explained it pretty well,sometime its the yeast that will set the overall tone to your beer as well.I think the american stains would give the hops more punch that your looking for. Could possibly be some extract twang also, did you add all of the extract at the beginning of the boil?
 
Yes I did add all the extract at the beginning of the boil. I have done late extract additions and I have read that it will improve hop utilization. I have also been told that is old info and doesn't apply anymore. The malt of this beer is a little sweet almost like it didn't attenuate quite enough.
 
I just did a Citra Pale Ale with Warriors for bittering. It definitely has a fruity quality to it and I used S 05 yeast which is very clean flavor-wise. I wanted the mango-fruit quality though...

I'm sure it is the Citras along with the yeast perhaps.
 
Yes I did add all the extract at the beginning of the boil. I have done late extract additions and I have read that it will improve hop utilization. I have also been told that is old info and doesn't apply anymore. The malt of this beer is a little sweet almost like it didn't attenuate quite enough.

It is my understanding that late extract addition, particularly in partial boil brewing, is still better for hop utilization, but not necessarily for the reasons once thought (though I am not sure where the latest science stands on this - to me, it makes sense that alpha acids will go into solution more easily if the solution is less concentrated).

As for your possible underattenuation, what were your OG and FG?
 
I think you are right about the yeast. I usually use Wyeast 1056 American Ale but this yeast came with the kit I bought so I thought I would try it. I am trying to try different strains of yeast but I think I really have to consider how the yeast is going to complement the rest of the ingredients. I thought brewing beer would be easy!

My OG was 1.070 and my FG was 1.016. Usually I can get a brew like that down to 1.012 or so. I didn't worry about it because it was pretty close and I still have a decent ABV. It's not super sweet. I think the fruit notes make the beer taste a little sweeter. It's not as bitter as I would like but overall very drinkable and it will probably mellow a bit with in a few weeks.

I was just reviewing my notes on this brew and I did a couple of things a little different that I have done in the past. The first thing I did different was to dryhop right in the primary. I let it sit in primary for 2 weeks and then I checked my gravity and put in the dryhops for another week, then bottled. My primary fermenter is an ale pail plastic bucket. Another thing I did differently was I used pellet hops instead of whole leaf for the dryhop. Could this cause the intese fruitiness and I think its possible this might have caused the less aroma. With 3 oz of dryhop i thought i would have tons of aroma. Any thoughts?
 
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