Anther failed attempt

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Evilinfidel

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How goes it all, well I have tried for the 2nd time and failed for the 2nd time. The first time was just a total beginner error. but this next go around i followed the recipe to the T except 1 step. So I have a few questions for anyone that can assist. the recipe came from a book called "Brewing Made Easy" by Joe Fisher and Dennis Fisher. the recipe was called California Common and everything went very well except at bottling. I noticed at the end of the recipe it called for aging from 4 to 6 weeks at 55 degrees. I thought ohh man this is not going to work. I did not have a storage unit that can hold a consistent cold temperature. I found the coldest part of my basement and let it site for 5 weeks and my fears were realized. the color was great, it had a great head but the taste was sweet and it finished with a slight sour. my first question is probably VERY obvious but does the aging temperature matter? for my 2nd question, I am in the market for 2nd hand fridge but until i come up with one and the funds, are there any recipes out there that do not require cold bottle aging and for that matter were can I research reliable recipes ? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated
 
We'd need to see the recipe in a bit more detail.
The aging temperature doesn't really matter as long as its not at an extreme..anywhere from 60-80F should work, higher or lower for short durations are probably fine too, just not in a 100 degree garage for weeks on end.

Beers age faster at higher temps, so aim for 70ish and you should be fine...not sure why they would tell you 55 for that long.
 
Sure, from the book as follows
4lb's Ironmaster Imperial Pale Ale Kit, 2lb's light dry malt extract, 1/2 oz cascade hope pellets, 1/2 oz Willamette hope plug (I had to use the pellets), 1 pk Yeastlab L35 California Larger Yeast and 3/4 cup corn sugar for priming
boil 1 & 1/2 gal of water add extracts, bring back to a boil for 20 min. Add cascade hopes boil 15 min. remove from heat add Willamette hopes. steep 5 minutes. strain hot wort into fermenter containing 1 & 1/2 gal chilled water, rinse hops with 1/2 gal boiled water into fermenter. pitch yeast when cool. I fermented 7 days in a primary and 10 days in a 2ndary glass carboy. bottled and let set for 5 weeks in the bottle. All the gravity readings were within specs. initial gravity was 1.045 and finish gravity was 1.011
OK after reading this again, I realized I used a package of corn sugar and I failed to measure 3/4 of a cup of it. So that is my first error.
 
It looks at first glance like no bittering hops, 15 minute addition is usually flavoring and 5 minutes would be aroma, That would produce a sweet brew.
Maybe try a recipe for a pale ale, they are pretty easy to brew and have a nice hops bite.
 
Also, if you added all of your extracts (kit and DME) to 1 and a 1/2 gallons of water, brung to boiled for 20 mins, added cascade hops and boiled for another 15 mins you might have scorched your extracts, possibly leading to an extract "twang", which could be what you're describing as the slight sour aftertaste.

Have a look around for threads about late extract addition and partial boils for some good tips and advice. Also, if you haven't already, check out John Palmer's http://howtobrew.com/intro.html
 
My suggestion is to do some more reading about beer recipes and brewing processes and understand exactly why you are doing every step that a recipe or kit instructs you to do. Kits and recipes will have mistakes in them and with a little more knowledge you can catch little errors in recipes, such as no 60 min. hop addition. Don't take offense, I just believe you will be in a far better position to succeed if you completely understand what you are doing.
 
I am new at this as well but the sweet sounds like bot enough boil time for the bittering hops. And the sour is most likely the corn sugar. Bit too much makes it a bit cidery. My first batch was 2 liters of glucose and 1 liter of pale extract. All hallertau 40 mins and flame out. Tasted like sweet and sour.
 
The extract was pre hopped so it might not be to bad with the amount of bitter. I haven't used them but you usually don't have to boil them very long if they are pre hopped. That is probably why it wasnt a 60 min boil.
I would stop buying pre hopped extract, and start following a more traditional hop schedule of 60 min bitter, 20-10 min flavor and 10-0 min aroma. More control for you and you know what's in it.
Also the sugar could have changed the flavor, but it should have all fermented out, no sweetness. It all became head and carbonation.
Check on here for recipes, lots of users have them posted, do a search.
 
The best advice I can give is... keep trying. The worse thing a new brew can do is get discourage and throw in the towel. I would also suggest if you know someone with more experience brew with them, that way you can ask questions as you go. You may also want to try a pre-made extract kit, come with the instruction and all of the proper ingredients; they make pretty good beers as well.
 
I did two brews from Mr. Beer a few years ago. I had a great time doing it and was so excited to have friends try it. For my first batch (just in case), I tried it alone. It was terrible. Kind of like a strong version of BMC. Bad aftertaste that I can't exactly remember. Pretty much bad all around. So instead of sharing it, I drank it myself alone (imagine violin music in the background...I was so depressed).

So I took another stab at it. At the time, I hadn't found this forum and I didn't know anyone who brewed. All I knew was that if you get a bad aftertaste, it might be an infected batch. So I tried the new batch being extremely careful of sanitation. Followed instructions to a T. Told my friends about it. We were all excited.

Second brew very similar to the first. Sharp bite, same bad aftertaste. I threw Mr. Beer away. My friends still give me a hard time about it (especially after the BW3 commercial).

Fast forward two years and here I am on my first batch with a different system (5 gal setup). Just bottled my first beer which even flat and warm, tasted fantastic and was similar to the beer it was supposed to be cloning (Bell's 2 Hearted Ale).

I totally regret giving up a couple years ago. Can't wait to let my friends try it but not give them any extra...teach them a lesson.

Keep at it. Read as much as you can. Follow instructions on here if there is a discrepancy with kit instructions. Pick a recipe that clones your favorite commercial beer and be patient. It's totally worth it. Good luck.
 
thanks everyone for the feed back. I have read several books on the subject and I have brewed with a friend who is new at it also, but he has several successful brews. So I just need to give it another go with a good recipe. I just need to find a good recipe first !!
 
The best place to go for good recipes is any of the homebrew stores near you or on line that sell kits. Instructions are usually included. My only advice on the kits is to read the instructions three or four times. Familiarize yourself before beginning.
 
I'd go with a good, simple recipe. My first beer was simple, and while not necessarily very interesting, wasn't likely to come out badly.

The recipe was just 12 ounces of 40L crystal and 4 pounds of light DME. Hops was all Kent Goldings, and I used Nottingham yeast. If you are interested in the process, I'd be happy to give you the details of what I thought was a simple, fairly foolproof method. But you can find the information on this site, that's where I got most of it.
 
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