60 min hopping ... Or less?

[bfgcdub]

I am currently brewing up Midwest's Raspberry Red Ale. I am at the point where it says to add 1oz Cascade and boil for 60 minutes for optimum hop utilization. I keyed in on the word optimum. Would less time be ok? Would less time = less bitter? I know that the recipe is designed to balance the malt with the bitter, but I don't like bitter beers.

 

[McGarnigle]

Shorter boil time = less bitterness. You can find an online brew calculator to determine the actual levels.

 

[unionrdr]

Less bittering hops equal less bitter as well. That's the way the recipe calculators typically work.

 

[McGarnigle]

He's getting 1 ounce of cascades in the kit, so if he must reduce the bitterness, using them all later is probably the way (unless he has another use for a small amount of Cascades).

BTW, as is, the recipe is ~20 IBUs. If added at 45 rather than 60, it looks like it knocks it down to ~17 IBUs. That's not much.

 

[unionrdr]

20 IBU's isn't that much either.

 

[bfgcdub]

The recipe called for 1oz cascade for 60 minutes and 1 oz Fuggles for 2 minutes. Which apparently gives about 38 IBUs according to Midwest. I decided that since this was my first ever brew that I would just follow the recipe since I don't really know much yet. Based on the hydrometer sample I think this will end up more bitter that I prefer but only time will tell.

A secondary/related question is: will a beer taste more bitter after fermentation since much of the sugar will be converted to alcohol? As I said, the sample was bitter but not beyond my bitterness tolerance, I'm just curious if the beer will taste more bitter after the sugar is gone.

I know, I know, RDWDAHB!

 

[Demus]

Looks like a pretty low bitterness recipe, I'd stick with the 1 oz for :60 and see how it turns out. That said, the other posts answered your questions about hop utilization. It's a curve that peaks around :60, and then flattens out. That's why so many recipes use a :60 hop addition...

 

[dgr]

The fuggles might have added 1 unit of bitterness. It takes boiling and time to extract the bitterness from hops. The two minute addition was mostly for aroma.

 

[Toy4Rick]

Your beer should be less bitter after it ferments and conditions.

In my experience, I use more hops for 45 mins rather than the traditional 60 mins. For me I get the same IBUs but with less bitterness. My IPAs are full of flavor and aroma but less bitter, just the way I like them

Enjoy
Rick

 

[dgr]

... In my experience, I use more hops for 45 mins rather than the traditional 60 mins. For me I get the same IBUs but with less bitterness. My IPAs are full of flavor and aroma but less bitter, just the way I like them

Enjoy
Rick

You get the same International Bitterness Units with less bitterness?

 

[RM-MN]

I am currently brewing up Midwest's Raspberry Red Ale. I am at the point where it says to add 1oz Cascade and boil for 60 minutes for optimum hop utilization. I keyed in on the word optimum. Would less time be ok? Would less time = less bitter? I know that the recipe is designed to balance the malt with the bitter, but I don't like bitter beers.

My experience is that as I continue to brew and try different recipes I've come to like beers that are slightly more bitter. I still don't care for any of the IPA's I've had but pale ales with more bittering than what your kit calls for do a great job of quenching my thirst on a hot day.

 

[ozzyboybrews]

He's getting 1 ounce of cascades in the kit, so if he must reduce the bitterness, using them all later is probably the way (unless he has another use for a small amount of Cascades).

BTW, as is, the recipe is ~20 IBUs. If added at 45 rather than 60, it looks like it knocks it down to ~17 IBUs. That's not much.

could anyone tell me why my homebrew beer is foaming at airlock???? Pls

 

[flars]

could anyone tell me why my homebrew beer is foaming at airlock???? Pls

Are you saying the krausen is coming through the airlock?
Could be a couple of basic reasons; Fermentor is to small for the batch size. Fermentation temperature to high leading to overly aggressive fermentation.

 

[ozzyboybrews]

Ok so is over aggressive fermentation a bad thing??? Temp was 27.4 °c at yeast adding but also added twenty five litres to the carboy...

 

[unionrdr]

No,it's not a bad thing at all. It can also happen with a healthy yeast pitch That causes a more aggressive initial fermentation. Using a blow off rig till initial fermentation is done will alleviate some messes. And 27.4C is too high for a ferment temp. That equals 81.32F. Get the temp down to 18-20C for a better ferment temp range.