Finished beer not the color or clarity you expected bother you?

I mean if it tastes good, whats the difference right?

Wish this was the case, but the fact that my Dale's Pale Ale is way darker than expected still kind of irks me. Ive read some of the threads on adding LME at knock out will result in a lighter finished beer(larger boils will help also), I'm just disappointed I didn't figure this out till after I brewed my Two Hearted Ale clone. Now I can't help but be worried this one will be darker as well.

Cheers

at this point in my brewing life, im still just glad if it tastes like beer when its done.

to date, the pale ales that i've done have been darker than some, but still in what i would consider and acceptable pale ale copper color.

Not yet. I get a little bothered by not hitting my OG, but if it's good beer, I'm pretty happy.

After a few more batches, I'll start to worry about the details.

I have never ever been worried about cloudy or color - it's all about flavor and drinkablity.

Besides, judging a beer by color alone would be, well, a bit racist.

Grinder12000 said:

I have never ever been worried about cloudy or color - it's all about flavor and drinkablity.

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My sentiments exactly.

To the OP, it's hard to compare an extract direct fire beer to a commercial version. The late extract addition will help with the appearance. If it tastes close you did well.

Color doesn't bother me so much. Lack of clarity irks me a little.

At what point are you judging your beer's color? If you haven't gotten to the point where you're looking at a frothy pint-glass worth of the stuff, I'd say withold judgment. I brewed a Belgian White recently and thought it looked way too dark and muddy when I got it into the carboy to ferment. Seeing it in one big mass will make it look darker than it is. When I saw a glass of the stuff, it looked spot on.

If you're still disappointed in the color when you pour a glass, you can do several things: add your extract at flameout, increase boil volume, be more careful about kettle caramelization by reducing the heat you're using, etc.

But with extract, it hear that it's tougher to produce a lighter color than with AG. Never Ag'd so I can't confirm this.

Thankfully there's a SRM range that gives a little leeway in the final product. I'm sometimes bothered by the resulting color but agree with a lot of the comments that if the beers tastes good than it doesn't matter so much. However, I started using Beersmith for my last 3 batches and have been able to tweak the recipe and make it a little lighter and hit my SRM goal with greater accuracy. It might be worth considering investing in some brewing software.

axr

Only if it is a recipe I put a lot of thought into.( but still screwed up color/clarity) Otherwise tastes is everything to me.:rockin:

It's my third batch I've brewed, 1st 5 gallon batch, and I'll admit, it tastes damn good. My first two Mr beer kits were terrible, so I'm not following the my kid is cutest when it's really not rule.

Being a culinary student, I guess it's more the question of why did it do this, instead of disappointment of it turning out darker. Being new to the craft Its good to know there are several techniques you can try to improve on the next batch.

The only time this would bother me is if the brew was intended for a competition. Otherwise if it tastes good then it doesn't bother me much.

I get miffed when the color isn't what I expected...but its usually cause I screwed up somewhere.

Like when a blonde i made was darker then I wanted it was because I bought the stuff from my LHBS and it was all in whole pounds but I only needed 1/2 lb of Caramel 10.

It dawned on me later...and the beer was fine and dandy everyone liked, but I always saw it from the same view a painter or builder will only see the flaw in what they did.

Money said:

Being a culinary student, I guess it's more the question of why did it do this...

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Keep brewing and you'll ask yourself that question a lot.

As a general rule, liquid extract is darker than dry extract. Partial mash brewing is lighter than extract. All grain brewing will give you the most control over your color and clarity if and when you move to that process.

Never bothered me. I've tried various ways of cleaning it up, and they are all more trouble than they are worth except in a few specific situations. As long as it tastes good to you, it's good beer.

My try at an original Irish Red recipe turned out burnt orange... If the style didn't have RED in the name, it might not have bothered me so much. oh well, I'll nail it next time.

TheGeek said:

My try at an original Irish Red recipe turned out burnt orange... If the style didn't have RED in the name, it might not have bothered me so much. oh well, I'll nail it next time.

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My first Irish Red attempt looked like a porter. I was annoyed until I tasted it and found it to be the best beer I had brewed to date. After a couple of bottles, I stopped calling it a red and the problem was solves!

When all else fails, rename your brew!

The final color doesn't bother me much. Unless of course my stouts turn out looking yellow... The clarity thing does however. I go to great lengths to ensure my beers are clear. Those that haven't been do irritate me.

My last brew was an AHS American red ale. it was a PM and i added my extract late, so my color was more of an orange, and it took it quite a while to clear.
but it was a DAMN GOOD BEER! so that didnt bother me too much at all.
though in the future i will still strive to get get spot on color with brilliant clarity.

I've noticed the color has been lighter and closer to expected after switching to DME from LME. Also the late extract additions helped some. It's sort of expected to happen when brewing with extracts, but you can control to a certain degree.

If it was a choice between having a clone taste and a properly colored beer, I'll go with the clone taste and to hell with the color.

Cloudiness is a whole nother thing though.

I've made plenty of mostly liquid extract brews that have come out as light and clear as biermunchers's pic... One I make fairly often is NB's Patersbier (or LHBS supplied ripoff thereof)...

LME gives the potential to scorch and darken, but it's hardly a rule that LME brews all come out darker than intended.