Thought id post here since this forum is practically a brewing water thread. So I made an ipa using 1 oz of 13% AA Nelson saucing hops for bittering. Theoretically my recipe was supposed to come out at 70ish IBUs but I barely detect bitterness at all, the aroma and flavor are there but not bitter. I put a tablespoon of gypsum into the water (I don't know the numbers on it) So, is there anything else that could be to blame aside from water profile to kill the bitterness?
Hop bitterness muted
- Thread starter HopOnHops
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Well, it also depends on the ingredients, and the OG of the beer. As an example, a 1.090 barley wine with lots of crystal malts would actually taste a bit sweet with only one ounce of 13% AAU bittering hops. It's about balancing the sweet malt with enough bittering hops.
So, if you post your recipe (and if you know your water chemistry, that too), we could take a look and see why it's not bitter enough.
One thing to do now is pour a beer, and add a little gypsum to it. Stir it up, and see if it tastes better. If it does, more gypsum would help. If not, something else is going on.
Water chemistry can definitely diminish hop and bittering perceptions. You would have to provide a little more on the water used, adjustments to the water, and the particulars on the grist.
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