Second batch - did a Drakes IPA clone. Man, seems like I got the boil, hop additions right. 2 weeks in primary, one week dry hopping in secondary. Kegged it, got the carbonation right (that's one out of 2 times), and it's sweet. The hops taste right, and the couple guys I've shared it with love it, but it's not right. Too sweet. Beginning and ending gravities were both right on. The one thing I don't know for sure is the temp of the fermentation. I put it in a 'cold' closet, but I live in California, so maybe not cold enough?
Too sweet
- Thread starter mhansman
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It's possible that your "cold closet" is too cold and your yeast went dormant before they were done. It may help to let your beer warm up after the initial fast part of the ferment is over, usually after 3 to 5 days. At this point higher temperatures within reason won't give you any off flavors.
http://www.brewgeeks.com/the-life-cycle-of-yeast.html
http://www.brewgeeks.com/the-life-cycle-of-yeast.html
I was thinking the temp might've been too low myself. That can cause under-attenuation issues, making the beer sweeter than normal.
It sounds like a recipe issue. If a finished beer is too sweet, often it's because it's underbittered.
I'm guessing that this beer was a partial boil, and was topped off with water, which would change the IBUs (bittering measurement) of the beer alot- sometimes by 1/2 if the boil was 2.5 gallons, as an example.
While partial boils can make great beers, it's almost impossible to make a firmly bitter IPA with a partial boil due to the way hops oils isomerize.
I'm guessing that this beer was a partial boil, and was topped off with water, which would change the IBUs (bittering measurement) of the beer alot- sometimes by 1/2 if the boil was 2.5 gallons, as an example.
While partial boils can make great beers, it's almost impossible to make a firmly bitter IPA with a partial boil due to the way hops oils isomerize.
SteveLikesBeer
Well-Known Member
Could you post (or link to) the recipe?
Here's the recipe:
Fermentables
0.5 lb Dry Malt Extract - Light
9 lb Liquid Malt Extract - Extra Light
Steeping Grains
1.25 lb American - Caramel / Crystal 15L
1 lb American - Caramel / Crystal 40L
Hops
1 oz Cascade Boil 70 min
1 oz Cascade Boil 55 min
0.5 oz Magnum Aroma 0 min
1 oz cascade Dry Hop
1 oz Columbus Dry Hop
I doubt the closet was too cold, but alas, I did not measure the temp. It was a very vigorous fermentation.
I agree with the fact that it seems there were not enough bittering hops, but the recipe on morebeer.com gets positive review after positive review.
Fermentables
0.5 lb Dry Malt Extract - Light
9 lb Liquid Malt Extract - Extra Light
Steeping Grains
1.25 lb American - Caramel / Crystal 15L
1 lb American - Caramel / Crystal 40L
Hops
1 oz Cascade Boil 70 min
1 oz Cascade Boil 55 min
0.5 oz Magnum Aroma 0 min
1 oz cascade Dry Hop
1 oz Columbus Dry Hop
I doubt the closet was too cold, but alas, I did not measure the temp. It was a very vigorous fermentation.
I agree with the fact that it seems there were not enough bittering hops, but the recipe on morebeer.com gets positive review after positive review.
2 1/4lbs of crystal will give extra sweetness that's a bit grainy, caramel or more as the "L" number goes up.
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