Anyone ever brewed MW Fuggles IPA?

[foxual]

Just cracked open a bottle of my first batch ever, Fuggles IPA, after ~12 days. I understand the standard advice here is let it sit! And I will, but as it is now I'm worried about the flavor. The description says it is "buttery, creamy, earthy and aromatic" It is none of this things. The mouthfeel is lacking and not at all buttery or creamy. It is not earthy. There is little aroma. This beer is too malty, finishes harsh (not quite astringent, but...), and doesn't have a lot of hop taste or aroma.

This was our first beer and we weren't expecting perfection, but I was hoping. Instead, it looks like I may have a beer that's drinkable but not fantastic. We had some trouble with the boil (we never got it to a good boil and I think the hop utilization suffered), and generally made some rookie mistakes. I know (or at least am fairly sure) the sanitation was fine from brew to bottle.

I don't care much for English beer/hops (I don't know what possessed me to buy this kit, I think I just saw IPA and said, "SOLD!"), but I am hoping this is a one off problem and the next batch will be fine (a Cream Stout in secondary).

I guess this was more of a rant than anything, and I'm in no way giving up yet, but I feel a little discouraged

 

[Poindexter]

At day 12 your carbonation should be just beginning to take hold,the flavor is going to change a lot in the next week or two. Leave them sealed up, BRB with linky.

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[kyleobie]

Give it time! I posted something similar here about a month ago. It will become much better very quickly - in two weeks you'll wonder how your beer could be the same as the one you tried just recently.

Trust me, I know. I drank too many of my beers when they were too green. I had a BBQ about 4 weeks after bottling and my beer was so good my guests drank the rest of it. All of that harsh finish you describe vanished into a crisp, hoppy, smooth finale.

 

[VTBrewer]

Do you have two primary's? If so I recommend getting a session beer going every other batch until you get your pipeline where you want it and slowly acquire more equipment.

 

[foxual]

Do you have two primary's? If so I recommend getting a session beer going every other batch until you get your pipeline where you want it and slowly acquire more equipment.

I don't have two primaries right now. I'm getting married in a few months so money is tight. After the wedding I'll be able to add more. Next on my list is a glass carboy so I can primary the heavy stuff in it and the lighter stuff in the bucket.

 

[david_42]

A Fuggles-based IPA will never have that 'in your face' aroma of an American IPA. If you were expecting a typically citrusy, tastes like grapefruit juice, left-coast IPA, I can understand your disappointment. Give it another couple weeks and adjust your expectations to the type of hops you used.

 

[foxual]

A Fuggles-based IPA will never have that 'in your face' aroma of an American IPA. If you were expecting a typically citrusy, tastes like grapefruit juice, left-coast IPA, I can understand your disappointment. Give it another couple weeks and adjust your expectations to the type of hops you used.

Yeah, I understand that now. It's just it didn't have any hop aroma, not even a light one.

 

[foxual]

Update. Man did this thing come around. Good flavor, good aroma, harshness disappeared. Got good reviews at a family picnic!

 

[rico567]

Do you have two primary's? If so I recommend getting a session beer going every other batch until you get your pipeline where you want it and slowly acquire more equipment.

This is sound advice, and it took me a while to think logistically in this fashion. I was feeding my pipeline with just one plastic bucket primary (up to 4 carboys for secondary), then I got religion and now have 4 primary buckets, too. Get to work and build that pipeline! Once you're there, and brewing into the business end, being tempted to drink green beer will become a thing of the past.

Lots of folks on this forum list their pipeline in their sig. Here's mine:

Inventory: Parts of 8 batches: an imperial stout, a Saison, three varieties of pale ale, a nut brown, two hefes, an ESB. Oh, and an apfelwein conditioning.

Secondary: A Winter Ale, been sitting there for a few months, and an Amarillo Ale.

Primary: A Hank's Hefeweizen and an Ed Wort's Haus Pale Ale.

On Deck: A porter, a rye IPA, and a player to be named later.

The pipeline is your friend.

 

[boydak]

I have had beers that were just "drinkable" after 3 weeks in the bottle but after 8 weeks they were great.