RUNNINGDUMMY
New Member
Could you have had some bottles laying down in the fridge and others standing and settled. The yeast could be mixed up and messing with the taste when you open. Just a thought.
IIPA hops flavor/bitterness gone
- Thread starter Jboggeye
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jjones17
Well-Known Member
I can definately vouch for this as I have experienced it many times. ESPECIALLY when my senses are.... altered... by something other than beer. I also find the beer temperature really affects it, but that is nothing new.
mitch171
Well-Known Member
I wonder if some wine knowledge may help?
I am more versed in wine making than beer making so I am going out on a limb here.
When a wine is bottled it goes through what is called "bottle shock." Right after it is bottled and for about a month it taste bland and thin. Then for some reason it goes back to how it was pre bottling.
I wonder if this happens to beers once they carb up and it is more noticeable in higher IBU beers? I wonder if you let a bottle or two set for a month if it would stabilize?
For experiment sake it would be interested to find out if waiting would be better than finishing faster?
I am more versed in wine making than beer making so I am going out on a limb here.
When a wine is bottled it goes through what is called "bottle shock." Right after it is bottled and for about a month it taste bland and thin. Then for some reason it goes back to how it was pre bottling.
I wonder if this happens to beers once they carb up and it is more noticeable in higher IBU beers? I wonder if you let a bottle or two set for a month if it would stabilize?
For experiment sake it would be interested to find out if waiting would be better than finishing faster?
damdaman
Well-Known Member
Another shot in the dark: would refrigerating the beer slow down/halt the loss of hoppyness? Does the hop flavor/bitterness only dissipate while conditioning at room temp?
Well, as a small update, the rest of the bottles tasted fine.
I also had Racer 5s and Union Jacks with the same problem. Some of the bottles were good, others had a weird cloying, not-so-hoppy flavor, like my problem beers.
So I guess this happens even with some of the big boys...
I also had Racer 5s and Union Jacks with the same problem. Some of the bottles were good, others had a weird cloying, not-so-hoppy flavor, like my problem beers.
So I guess this happens even with some of the big boys...
peacenwaves
Active Member
I am having a similar problem with a batch that is finishing in secondary.. I made a hoppy IPA, around 80 ibus, primaried it for a week, then transfered to secondary over 2.5 ounces of hops..
i tasted it about a week later ( i know, shouldnt have but couldnt resist since it did taste so good after the first week of primary) and now the hop flavor is almost gone!!! i am planning on kegging it in 5 days, and although the beer is good (i dont think there is an infection, besides the abv at the point of transfer was 7.7), its not the IPA that I was hoping for..... I did use some irish moss, maybe too much? the guy at my lhbs said to use the amount I have listed below with my recipe:
10 lbs light lme
12 oz dark munich
12 oz crystal 60
2 oz victory bicuit
boil at 60 1 amarillo, .75 centenial, .25 columbus
15 mins .75 cascade .75 centenial, .5 columbus, 1 tbsp irish moss
5 mins .5 centenial, .5 amarillo, .75 cascade, .25 columbus
dry hop with 2 centenial, .5 columbus
Is there a way to fix this before kegging it??? I was thinking of buying some more hops and making a Hop tea to add to the keg before racking it... anyone have any luck with this??
i tasted it about a week later ( i know, shouldnt have but couldnt resist since it did taste so good after the first week of primary) and now the hop flavor is almost gone!!! i am planning on kegging it in 5 days, and although the beer is good (i dont think there is an infection, besides the abv at the point of transfer was 7.7), its not the IPA that I was hoping for..... I did use some irish moss, maybe too much? the guy at my lhbs said to use the amount I have listed below with my recipe:
10 lbs light lme
12 oz dark munich
12 oz crystal 60
2 oz victory bicuit
boil at 60 1 amarillo, .75 centenial, .25 columbus
15 mins .75 cascade .75 centenial, .5 columbus, 1 tbsp irish moss
5 mins .5 centenial, .5 amarillo, .75 cascade, .25 columbus
dry hop with 2 centenial, .5 columbus
Is there a way to fix this before kegging it??? I was thinking of buying some more hops and making a Hop tea to add to the keg before racking it... anyone have any luck with this??
Ha! my original thread!
Leave it, the hops will be back. the irish moss isn't the problem, and I find hop teas to make more problems than fix them.
Since I posted this years ago, the problem just "went away" so to speak. I've noticed that I have to use more hops at the 10-5 minute mark, and higher gravities make a big difference.
Your recipe, for example, is almost an 8% ABV beer, with a decent amount of Crystal malt. The hops have to cut through alot, compared to a 6% beer with little malt. (don't get me wrong, I love malty/full IPAs- i just hop accordingly)
The other thing, and perhaps the most important part, is that you are tasting the beer uncarbed and unsettled.
give it a week in the keg, where the proteins/yeasts can settle out and leave the hops to come through.
report back, I'm curious as I haven't thought about this in a while.
the fact that this seems to be an on-again/off-again problem for your beers, PLUS the fact that you're tasting variability in commercial beers makes me think the source of the issue here isn't the beer - it's you. i don't know enough about the mechanics of tasting, and what you might be doing that is affecting your sense of taste, but it really sounds like you can be more or less sensitive to hoppiness depending on the day.
peacenwaves
Active Member
Hey my ipa did come back to life and was amazing... And now unfortunately long gone haha... weird how that worked out.... will probably tweak it slightly to add more late hop additions and maybe some more crystal to the mix for some extra maltiness, but other than that it was great!
I know that "drink em fresh" is what we Pliny disciples (I include myself) have been taught, but I (respectfully) would ask how a beer with a 6 week life expectancy ever made the journey in unrefrigerated ships from England to India?
I think drinking IPAs fresh is nice to get the dryhop aroma out of the them, but the flavor lasts much much longer then that, and the bitterness should remain for months on end IMHO.
I don't know why OPs beers are losing their bitterness though, and honestly, I've never read of anyone having a problem like this, I hope he gets it solved, and I'm subscribed cause I want to see what the deal is!
Edit:
I now realize how old this thread is! LOL...
TKOriginal
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Isn't erratic senses a sign of brain cancer? You don't smell burnt toast in your beers do you?
