Hi guys. Need some advice. I brewed a West Coast pale ale recipe from Mr. Beer. Got the kit for free, don't judge me. I wanted to alter it and really hop the crap out of it. At the beginning boil I added and .5 oz Centennial pellet hops. Boiled that for 10 minutes. Pulled it off the burner and added the malt extract (can) and another .5 oz of citra. I let that boil for 10 minutes. Took it off the boil and added another .5 oz of cascade. Cooled it. Pitched a dry yeast and threw in roughly .5 oz of all three pellet hops for aroma.
I let it sit for 2 weeks and bottled. Had a great hoppy aroma. I used the Coopers carbonation drops. After a week the beer was surprisingly pretty carbonated. Had a nice head. But I was kind of disappointed with it. The aroma is great but the flavor doesn't really back it up. Very faint hop flavor that finishes caramel and sweet. I was HOPING for a very bitter hoppy flavor up front that finishes crisp and citrus.
So what did I do wrong?
- should I have boiled the hops longer?
- is it just the crappy Mr. Beer malt extract?
- does it need to sit longer in the fermenter?
- do I need to use a grain boil?
First time brewer. Any advice helps.
Cheers.
I let it sit for 2 weeks and bottled. Had a great hoppy aroma. I used the Coopers carbonation drops. After a week the beer was surprisingly pretty carbonated. Had a nice head. But I was kind of disappointed with it. The aroma is great but the flavor doesn't really back it up. Very faint hop flavor that finishes caramel and sweet. I was HOPING for a very bitter hoppy flavor up front that finishes crisp and citrus.
So what did I do wrong?
- should I have boiled the hops longer?
- is it just the crappy Mr. Beer malt extract?
- does it need to sit longer in the fermenter?
- do I need to use a grain boil?
First time brewer. Any advice helps.
Cheers.