Bock is too Sweet

[dnelson1025]

Hi all,

I just finished kegging a bock and during some tasting it seemed too sweet. OG was 1.072, FG was measured at 1.018 - right on the estimated value.

Are bocks supposed to be so sweet? Is there something with the fermentation that could have gone wrong? I made a huge starter and the yeast took off fast.

Recipe
Pilsner liquid extract: 9.0 lb
Vienna malt: 2.0 lb
Crystal 20 malt: 1.0 lb
Black patent malt: 0.25 lb

Perle hops: 1.5 oz @ 60 minutes (23.1 IBU)

3.15 gallons of starter from two yeast packs (one from Omega and one from Wyeast)
Fermented at 57°F, lagered at 32°F

Thanks for any insight.

 

[TX_Brewing]

IMO, the recipe is a bit heavy on the crystal malt. That may be giving you the sweetness you detect. In my bock I use 0.625lbs of caramunich and find the residual sweetness level to be nice.

I should also add that there are many things that can give the impression of sweetness while not actually having a lot of residual sugars.

 

[Yooper]

IMO, the recipe is a bit heavy on the crystal malt. That may be giving you the sweetness you detect. In my bock I use 0.625lbs of caramunich and find the residual sweetness level to be nice.

A pound of crystal 20L in an 1.072 OG beer isn't really too much. Your OG and IBUs are actually in the "dopplebock" strength area, and yes to me a dopplebock is pretty sweet tasting. I can barely drink one. It should be better once it's carbed up, though, as the carbonic acid from carbonation will make it seem far less sweet.

Oftentimes a "too sweet" beer isn't really too sweet but instead it could be underbittered. What were the IBUs of this beer? 23? If you look at the IBU/SG ratio, that's a ratio of .318 and definitely leans towards the sweet, as a balanced IBU/Sg ratio would be .500 while a very bitter beer would be .850 (as examples).

 

[dnelson1025]

Thanks TX. I'll have to remember this next time I brew a bock. I'll lay off on the crystal a bit and see if that changes anything.

Yooper - I'll also make some bitterness changes. If I find it too sweet after carbonation, I may try boiling some hops in water and adding to the finished beer. Thanks.

 

[Cyclman]

+1, wait until it is carbed. Carbonation significantly changes the perception. Could it be DMS, I sometimes detect that as sweetness, don't care for it at all.

I would also up the hops, to me German beer is primarily about balance and those classic hop flavors.

 

[blackbeer]

i've spent a lot of time in germany and specifically sought out as many different bock/doppel/wheat bocks as i could find and have probably tried maybe 3 or 4 dozen. they almost all exhibit some cloying sweetness. i have never been able to duplicate them in homebrew. they are best served pretty cold and are not what i could consider a session brew.

 

[Cyclman]

I just drank a few Maibocks last night. I drink 'em fairly warm (mid 40s) maybe that's the difference. Or, maybe eating too many jellybeans this time of year tilts my palate.

 

[SeraW]

I'm in the camp of "I like a good doppelbock because of its sweetness." Could just be exactly what was intended.