extract kolsch seems lighter in color than expected

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HoppySatan

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I brewed a kolsch for the first time(only my 6th brew so far) using an extract kit from Williams. I racked to secondary and just kegged it. All hydro readings were good. It tastes fine to me, not sure what a kolsch tastes like, but this is good to go imho. But in my sample glass it seems darker in color with a slight reddish hue. I was expecting a more yellow color. What do you think happened to make it that color? Thanks
 
Extracts, especially liquid extracts, tend to be darker in most cases. Some people recommend adding the extract later in the boil, like when you would add flavoring hops, with 15 minutes or so left in the boil, to help keep the color more "true" to style. Boiling extract does tend to darken it, and carmelize it a bit. When I used extract, I always used the lightest available (dry extract comes in an extra-light color), but I still made beers a little darker than a commercial example would be.

The darker color doesn't affect the flavor, as you've found out.
 
Thanks for the quick response. It was a liquid extract that came with the kit so that makes sense now that you've explained it. I did boil it as long as they said to. Also I like the 'caramel' color better than the 'reddish hue' to explain what it looks like. I'm about a week or so from my first all grain...ya think I would get these kits down to a science before I move on :eek:
 
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