Opened the first batch tonight and...

[Doliss]

...somewhat disappointed. The taste has a sharp bitterness to it, and something just seems off. I boiled off a bit more water than what I should have, so instead of a gallon recipe I ended up with about 3 quarts. FG was 1.021, a bit high but I chalked it up to the beer being a bit more concentrated than it should be. I wonder if that's where the taste is off now? It sat in primary for 5 or 6 days, transferred to secondary where it stayed for 2 weeks, then carbed in bottles for 3 weeks.

I read a lot of posts how people say don't throw out the beer, and I couldn't bring myself to dump it. Do y'all think that the off and bitter taste is due to the brew being about a quart short of liquid? For what it's worth this is the white house honey ale recipe. I did a full boil in a 5 gal pot so the wort got a little darker due to that (as well as the steeping done a bit too high of a temp).

Do y'all think that it will improve taste in time or just make this batch a lesson learned (which I have already fixed before doing 2nd and 3rd batches of other recipes)

 

[jonnyp1980]

Did you scorch the extract? It could be you just have a stronger beer due to Volume loss. What's was your calculated ABV? Might be worth letting them sit for a bit if time usually heals all.

 

[BrewerBear]

I would give them more time,it does not cost anything to let them sit longer and if they don't improve you don't have that many to choke down.

 

[sumone]

what temp did you ferment at? I know my first batches were way to hot and had a very sharp alcohol taste because of it.

 

[Doliss]

The temp in my basement is between 68-70, beer was out of any light source as well

 

[PeteNMA]

I found that my batch if extract White House honey ale needed a surprisingly long time to mature to full tastiness.

I started drinking mine at three weeks, but really it was only after two months in bottles that it really clicked and became extremely drinkable.

 

[Brewstrodamis]

Id say wait it out, I completely didn't follow directions on my first ever batch, steeped my crystal at 170 instead of 150, the hops ingredients to make ranger IPA I was given were wrong I had a bag of mystery hops and just added it in on schedule.

After all that I had successful fermentation just moved to secondary today and even though the beers green, tastes better than any IPA I've ever had.

Only thing that sucks is that I can never make it again given I don't know the mystery hops pellets that were given. I know the final was cascade but have no idea what the other bag of hops were.

Going to have to bottle it and label it, mystery IPA.

 

[beertroll]

An ambient temperature of 68-70 is a bit warm. You can assume that the internal temperature of your fermenter is several degrees warmer than the air, so your yeast will start throwing some rough flavors. Letting it sit in primary for a little longer would help somewhat (unless it's a really light session beer, I'd say 10-12 days minimum), and more aging in the bottle might mellow it out.

The bitterness could be overhopping, or you might have gotten some fusel production due to the warm ferment. Look into putting together a swamp cooler and let your primary sit a little longer, and I suspect you'll be happier with your results.

Edit: Just noticed that you steeped hot. If you got up above 170 or so, some of the bitterness might be tannins from the grain husks. And if you boil off too much, you can always top up with some clean water to get back to your proper volume.

 

[xfjxdgykfdhu]

what temp did you ferment at?

 

[GrogNerd]

another LoCo brewer! welcome to the obsession!

I'm a member of 2 local brew clubs, they're definitely helping me improve my brewing. you are more than welcome to come to some meetings & check them out

the Wort Hogs have monthly competitions and meet at the Carpool in Herndon on the 2nd Wednesday of the month, but the August meeting is a non-comp and at the Lost Rhino in Ashburn

NoVA Homebrew is more of a tasting club; bring your homebrew, bring something commercial that you like and want to share, bring whatever. meet the 3rd Tuesday of the month at the Sterling Silver Scuba shop on Church Rd.

 

[antony]

2nd the comment that honey ales take a bit longer to taste right. Honey wheat that a friend made wasn't great until a couple of months had passed. Stick the bottles in the back of the closet and keep moving, in a few months you'll be curious to compare it to what you've brewed since.

 

[Doliss]

Thanks for the advice, the air temp down there is usually closer to 66, the fermenter stayed in the 68ish rage the whole time.

Just started a new position at work which will involve some classwork and training, but once the schedule gets down to a more consistant timeframe i'll absolutely check out the meetings in sterling!

 

[ballsy]

An ambient temperature of 68-70 is a bit warm. You can assume that the internal temperature of your fermenter is several degrees warmer than the air, so your yeast will start throwing some rough flavors. Letting it sit in primary for a little longer would help somewhat (unless it's a really light session beer, I'd say 10-12 days minimum), and more aging in the bottle might mellow it out.

The bitterness could be overhopping, or you might have gotten some fusel production due to the warm ferment. Look into putting together a swamp cooler and let your primary sit a little longer, and I suspect you'll be happier with your results.

Edit: Just noticed that you steeped hot. If you got up above 170 or so, some of the bitterness might be tannins from the grain husks. And if you boil off too much, you can always top up with some clean water to get back to your proper volume.

Doesn't it also depend on the type of yeast used though? I have seen that certain strains actually prefer the 68 to 75deg range. My guest bedroom/brewery stays at 71-72. So I wonder if a Swamp cooler is in my future?

 

[beertroll]

Doesn't it also depend on the type of yeast used though? I have seen that certain strains actually prefer the 68 to 75deg range. My guest bedroom/brewery stays at 71-72. So I wonder if a Swamp cooler is in my future?

True, saisons and belgians like the warmer temps. I often forget about them because I don't particularly like them.

 

[ballsy]

True, saisons and belgians like the warmer temps. I often forget about them because I don't particularly like them.

Not a fan of those types either. ..I guess if I notice extra bitterness twang in my beers, I will need to cool it more than ambient 72...

 

[Doliss]

So i'll let the ale age a bit more to see if that evens out the taste a bit (even though it seems that the strength of the beer is the problem)

Will I run into any issues with aging a couple bottles in the back of the fridge (where they are now) or should they be back down in the basement with the others?

 

[Cyclman]

Sharp bitterness like a solvent, it's no good and dump it, it will take forever and still it might not smooth out.

If it's super hoppy bitter, give it time, it'll improve.

Seeing as most brewers are hop heads, my guess is it is Fusel Alcohol- the solvent flavor, mainly from fermenting too hot.