Beer a little dark

[Josh_Voyles]

Good evening gents!

I'm brand new to brewing and looking forward to learning more here!

In the mean time, I have a question about about my brew.

I picked up a Brewer's Best American Light kit and it's looking a little darker than the "straw" color the box is suggesting.

The beer tasted "decent" I guess though it had a little diacetyl off-flavors.

I followed the directions pretty well I think and was meticulous with my sanitation.

Fermenting temp was approx 73 degrees which is one degree warmer than suggested.

I'm sure it will turn out fine, but it is a little darker than anticipated.

The attached pic is just after transferring to secondary.

Thoughts?

 

[dmashl]

Beer in larger containers(carboys, buckets) will appear to be darker than it actually is. If this was an extract kit, they tell you in the instructions to boil the extract 60 minutes, But you should keep some extract till about 15 minutes left in the boil. Carmelization can happen if you boil extract too long, making your beer much darker than you want.

 

[Takuie]

You should be fine, although I must say that is a ton of headspace for a secondary. High risk of infection and/or oxidation.

I have found nearly all my extract brews seemed a tad darker than the original recipe said it would be.

 

[Josh_Voyles]

Beer in larger containers(carboys, buckets) will appear to be darker than it actually is. If this was an extract kit, they tell you in the instructions to boil the extract 60 minutes, But you should keep some extract till about 15 minutes left in the boil. Carmelization can happen if you boil extract too long, making your beer much darker than you want.

Ah, that is likely it. The kit call for the LME to go in at the beginning.

 

[Josh_Voyles]

You should be fine, although I must say that is a ton of headspace for a secondary. High risk of infection and/or oxidation.

I have found nearly all my extract brews seemed a tad darker than the original recipe said it would be.

Yeah, I left a bit of beer in the fermenting bucket. I'm pretty new to using an auto siphon and was worried about about sludge.

I was also starting to get some bubbling in my line so that kind of scared me. I don't think I had the fermenting bucket high enough over the carboy.

 

[dmashl]

Also when you add the LME, take the Pot off the burner, so you don't scorch the LME to the bottom of the pot.

 

[Cider123]

If it's too dark, then just turn the lights on

 

[kh54s10]

I doubt you are tasting diacetyl. That is an off flavor that would be more likely to be encountered with all grain brewing, less likely with extract. You probably have off flavors or fusel alcohols due to fermenting too warm. You were above the top of fermentation range. Most ale yeasts do best in the mid sixties.

The color will look a lot lighter in a glass.

 

[Josh_Voyles]

I doubt you are tasting diacetyl. That is an off flavor that would be more likely to be encountered with all grain brewing, less likely with extract. You probably have off flavors or fusel alcohols due to fermenting too warm. You were above the top of fermentation range. Most ale yeasts do best in the mid sixties.

The color will look a lot lighter in a glass.

Thanks for the tip.

The flavor just struck me as slightly banana like so I just assumed that's what it was.

 

[Puddlethumper]

Thanks for the tip.

The flavor just struck me as slightly banana like so I just assumed that's what it was.

You didn't mention the strain of yeast that was included with your kit, but as mentioned earlier one of the most common problems with kits and instructions given to new brewers involves fermentation temperatures. This is incredibly important and the longer you brew the more frequently you'll hear this subject come up.

Most ale yeasts prefer to ferment in the mid-60's. 5 or 6 degrees higher and you run the risk of off flavors (such as diacetyl). Remember that fermentation generates heat so if you are holding the fermentation chamber at 67F the actual temperature of the fermenting beer may be as high as 72F-75F. If your fermentation chamber is at 72F your yeast may be making banana flavored beer.

Temperature control is most critical during the first 72 hrs or so. After that the flavors are pretty well set. You can even ferment a little cool to start and then add warmth after a few days to encourage the yeast to ferment on out to a lower FG. But it is always better to start the wort at a degree or two below the target fermentation temperature and let the yeast warm it up.

As far as color goes, don't sweat it. It'll be much lighter in the glass. Flavor is what matters (you can't taste color).

Cheers!

 

[kh54s10]

I doubt you are tasting diacetyl. That is an off flavor that would be more likely to be encountered with all grain brewing, less likely with extract. You probably have off flavors or fusel alcohols due to fermenting too warm. You were above the top of fermentation range. Most ale yeasts do best in the mid sixties.

The color will look a lot lighter in a glass.

You didn't mention the strain of yeast that was included with your kit, but as mentioned earlier one of the most common problems with kits and instructions given to new brewers involves fermentation temperatures. This is incredibly important and the longer you brew the more frequently you'll hear this subject come up.

Most ale yeasts prefer to ferment in the mid-60's. 5 or 6 degrees higher and you run the risk of off flavors (such as diacetyl). Remember that fermentation generates heat so if you are holding the fermentation chamber at 67F the actual temperature of the fermenting beer may be as high as 72F-75F. If your fermentation chamber is at 72F your yeast may be making banana flavored beer.

Temperature control is most critical during the first 72 hrs or so. After that the flavors are pretty well set. You can even ferment a little cool to start and then add warmth after a few days to encourage the yeast to ferment on out to a lower FG. But it is always better to start the wort at a degree or two below the target fermentation temperature and let the yeast warm it up.

As far as color goes, don't sweat it. It'll be much lighter in the glass. Flavor is what matters (you can't taste color).

Cheers!

I may have been wrong about diacetyl not being much of a concern with extracts.

I was probably thinking of DMS which occurs when boiling an all grain batch with a lid on, with extract most of the DMS is driven off during the process of making the extract.

 

[Josh_Voyles]

Thanks guys! I think my next investment is going to be a freezer with temp control.

Is there any issues with CO2 build up in freezers or does it leak out?

 

[RM-MN]

Thanks guys! I think my next investment is going to be a freezer with temp control.

Is there any issues with CO2 build up in freezers or does it leak out?

The CO2 will fill the freezer and the excess will leak out. However, the freezer will still be full of CO2 so don't stick your head in to take a sniff.:rockin:

 

[BKamp1457]

Did you do a full or partial boil? A full boil can lighten the color.

 

[Calypso]

Did you do a full or partial boil? A full boil can lighten the color.

Say what?

Regarding diacetyl, it's a yeast byproduct and thus can occur in both extract and all-grain. But I wouldn't describe it as banana-y. Butterscotch or fake butter, yes, but not banana. Banana is an ester, created by yeast and probably a result of your high fermentation temperature.

 

[BKamp1457]

Say what?



Regarding diacetyl, it's a yeast byproduct and thus can occur in both extract and all-grain. But I wouldn't describe it as banana-y. Butterscotch or fake butter, yes, but not banana. Banana is an ester, created by yeast and probably a result of your high fermentation temperature.

I was responding to the note about your batch being darker than the "straw" color mentioned on the kit.

Partial Boil: Using less water initially in your boil (2.5 or 3 gal), then adding top off water in the carboy to hit your 5 gal (or whatever) goal.

Full Boil: Using more water initially in your boil (5.5 or 6 gal). This accounts for boil off. After steeping grains, adding extract and hops, your full wort amount in kettle will be close to 5 gal (little to no carboy top off water needed).

The closer you get to your desired end volume during your boil, the higher the chance it'll match the color estimate on the kit.

 

[Calypso]

I was responding to the note about your batch being darker than the "straw" color mentioned on the kit.

Partial Boil: Using less water initially in your boil (2.5 or 3 gal), then adding top off water in the carboy to hit your 5 gal (or whatever) goal.

Full Boil: Using more water initially in your boil (5.5 or 6 gal). This accounts for boil off. After steeping grains, adding extract and hops, your full wort amount in kettle will be close to 5 gal (little to no carboy top off water needed).

Oh, full volume boil. I thought you were talking about duration, I was gonna say, get outta here yer drunk.

 

[dwhite60]

As someone else noted, you're asking for trouble with the
airspace in your secondary.

Just bottle it. It'll be fine.

I keep three gallon carboys around to use as secondaries
when I do put something in secondary. Guaranteed to
get it all the way into the neck, minimizing air space.

All the Best,
D. White

 

[Puddlethumper]

Thanks guys! I think my next investment is going to be a freezer with temp control.

Is there any issues with CO2 build up in freezers or does it leak out?

You are on the right track if you plan on making an investment in fermentation temperature control. This is about the most important thing you can do to insure the finished quality of your beer.

I wouldn't spend a lot of time worrying about co2 in the freezer. Misunderstandings about the physical properties of gasses abound in the brewing community. You aren't dealing with an either/or situation between co2 and o2 in the freezer. o2 will diffuse into the freezer and take up its normal space with the co2 as it always does in the atmosphere. There is a natural point of equilibrium which these gasses will assume simply because that is what they do ---we have little or no control over it.

People often read that co2 is heavier than air so they assume it will push o2 out of the space it occupies when in fact this almost never happens. If there is a sufficient amount of 02 in the surrounding airspace and there is no mechanical obstacle to it's diffusion it will readily move into and assume it's normal proportion to the co2 in that space. Studies have clearly shown that even liquid filled airlocks are only a mild impediment to the forces that allow o2 to diffuse into the headspace of a fermentation vessel.

So the best way to avoid oxidation of beer in a fermentation or secondary vessel is to reduce headspace. This will reduce the surface area exposed to o2 thus limiting diffusion of o2 into the liquid. It may not be practical to reduce headspace in a fermentation vessel because you have to leave enough room for fermentation to do its thing. But if you choose to do a beer that requires long-term aging it becomes very important to reduce that headspace. A 5 gal. glass carboy filled into the neck therefore becomes the tool of choice for long-term aging.

 

[Josh_Voyles]

Thanks everyone again for the awesome help!

I think the plan now is to bottle the beer tonight and let it sit for two weeks while it carbonates.

The directions only call for two weeks in the secondary, but I'm taking your guys' advice about oxidation seriously.

I think I'm going to try to re-brew the batch with more than 2.5 gallons in the kettle and better temp control and see what happens.

Thanks again for all the help.