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blefferd

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Are hops the only thing to blame for a bitter beer? or am i missing something else, all my beers are pretty bitter, i use mostly pellet hops and most of the recepies i use do not use the AAU style of hopping they just say "4oz" of Hop A. or 4 oz of Hop A pellets. etc i just put my pilsner urquell in the keg and drank a glass of it after 7 weeks its still quite bitter and if i remeber right i used around 3-4 oz of Saaz Pellet's and i think the schedual went something like this, 2oz at 60 min, 1 oz at 15 and 1 oz at 7min.

i normally dump the hops in before it starts boiling and once the boil starts i start the clock. should i cut the hop time down to say 45mins @boil etc etc for the aroma and flavor hops? I personally dont mind my beer a tad on the bitter side but its a diffrent story when other people go to drink it. any thoughts or suggetions on the matter? or am i just paroniod lol
 
If you don't know what the AAU's are you are putting in your brew, then chances are that you'll over bitter.
You can find out the IBU's if you post your recipie and include the AAU and the amount/times you added.
What PH were you mashing at?
 
If you want to post the recipes and the hops you used, I can run it through beersmith for you to check the IBUs. Or you can download a free trial and try it yourself. I know there are some free beer software downloads, too.
 
You need to pay more attention to the AA% of the hops, not that it's 1 oz or 2.

Let's say the recipe says to use 2 oz of 3.4% AA. That equals 6.8%.

Let's assume you have the correct type of hops but they are 4.3%. When you add 2 oz you are actually using 8.6%AA, not 6.8%.

You need to divide the recommended 6.8 by 4.3. The answer is 1.58 oz of the 4.3%, not 2 oz. That would be overhopping...and extra bitter. ;)
 
Wait for a full boil before tossing in your hops.

Cut your time down to 45 minutes.

Switch over to whole leaf hops.

Mash your grains at a higher temp (156-158) to increase the malt profile and offset the bitterness.
 
One more possibility would be your water profile. High sulfates (SO4-) can increase the perception of bitterness from your hops and if excessive creates a bitterness of it own.
 
blefferd said:
Are hops the only thing to blame for a bitter beer? or am i missing something else, all my beers are pretty bitter,
Click to expand...

What about astringency? Many people interpret that as bitter. Could you be oversparging or could your mash temps be off?
 
blefferd said:
Are hops the only thing to blame for a bitter beer? or am i missing something else, all my beers are pretty bitter, i use mostly pellet hops and most of the recepies i use do not use the AAU style of hopping they just say "4oz" of Hop A. or 4 oz of Hop A pellets. etc i just put my pilsner urquell in the keg and drank a glass of it after 7 weeks its still quite bitter and if i remeber right i used around 3-4 oz of Saaz Pellet's and i think the schedual went something like this, 2oz at 60 min, 1 oz at 15 and 1 oz at 7min.

i normally dump the hops in before it starts boiling and once the boil starts i start the clock. should i cut the hop time down to say 45mins @boil etc etc for the aroma and flavor hops? I personally dont mind my beer a tad on the bitter side but its a diffrent story when other people go to drink it. any thoughts or suggetions on the matter? or am i just paroniod lol
Click to expand...
That amount of hops sounds like it is going to be somewhat bitter. Especially the 60min addition. I think if you want less bitterness it is as simple as using less hops for your earlier addition. Moving your first hop addition to 45min or only using half the amount at 60 and using the extra at 15min should reduce your bitterness and may increase hop flavor.
Craig
 
after all the replies im thinking im just over hopping and not paying attention to the AAU's. if i remeber right ive seen some hops i get from the HBS. Same type with diff AAU's on the package.

im about 100% sure they arent astringincy(sp?) astringincy has a bit more of a puckering affect right?
 
homebrewer_99 said:
:eek: Sorry, the only chemistry I know is H2O is water and K9P comes from a dog...;)
Click to expand...


LOL at first I thought the K9P was a typo, K is potasium, P is phosphorus what the hell was the "9" supposed to be!
 
If you don't pay attention to the AA% of your hops and calculate the HBUs or IBUs of your beer, you'll never be quite sure of what you're going to get.

Astringency is tasted all across the pallet. Think of a bitter-beer-face kind of bitter.
 

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