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As for the bitter aftertaste you mention - and I assume it is not hop related - maybe it could be caused by either bacteria or chlorine contamination. Whenever I have a bad flavor in a beer I consult a troubleshooting list found at: http://www.kroc.org/Links/TroubleshootingGuide.htm Do you...

I would suggest you add specialty grains to your brew water as it is heating up - grains such as carapils or caramel 10L. Steeping these grains will add unfermentables that will increase the body of the beer and increase head retention. Steep them for at most 20 minutes in water under 170...

Boiling for 10 minutes will sanitize the water and the extract and help prevent bad germs from ruining your beer.

I would suggest sticking mostly with American Ale Yeast. It ferments with the cleanest taste at your temp range. Either Safale US-05 or one of the liquid varieties.

A few things you might be missing... For the mash use about 1.5 quarts water per pound of grain. Stir the mash good after adding the water then adjust the mash temperature to around 154 degrees. Either Insulate your "mash tun" with towels/blankets OR put it in an oven warmed to at most 150...

It should be acceptable, just don't let it happen again :-)

Adding extract late in the boil also increases hop utilization, which means you can use a little less hops for bittering your brew.