Blonde Ale turned very dark

[BeckyRS]

Help! I am a new to home brewing and I have a question about the 5 gallon batch I just made. The recipe was a Honey Blonde Ale but the color is very dark. I used a Golden Light liquid malt extract and did my best to not scorch the boiling wort. Can anyone shed some light to what I did wrong?

 

[ratinator]

Help! I am a new to home brewing and I have a question about the 5 gallon batch I just made. The recipe was a Honey Blonde Ale but the color is very dark. I used a Golden Light liquid malt extract and did my best to not scorch the boiling wort. Can anyone shed some light to what I did wrong?

Using an extract could be the main problem, from what I have been told the longer they sit on the shelf the darker it will get. That being said I brewed an all grain huell melon blonde a couple years ago and it look like an ice tea color in the primary, couple days later it lightened up

 

[d3track]

Is dark in the fermenter or in your glass?

 

[FatDragon]

Beer is also darker in bulk than in the bottle or glass. A brown ale often looks like a stout in the fermenter, an amber like a brown, a pale like an amber, and so on.

 

[khannon]

Yeah, maybe send a sample to those who reply to this thread.. A "Pro" will provide feedback on how dark it is. Or I suppose you could post a picture.

 

[BeckyRS]

I knew that it would be darker but this seems a little too dark for me

 

[BeckyRS]

As long as it tastes like it should I won’t worry too much but any feedback would be appreciated. Thanks!

 

[khannon]

How did it look in the hydrometer sample? It looks dark there, but there is also a fair amount of it, and it will settle and clear a bit when the yeast is done. It does not look as dark as any of the amber ales I have done in the carboys, I think you will be surprised when it is done, and cold in a glass to enjoy. Make sure to post a pic after fermenting, and when you pour your first pint/glass/etc..

[edit]
Also, people may give you a hard time about fermenting in glass. I only do stainless steel or glass myself(other than barrels for secondary). I might suggest putting it in a milk crate for moving it around. Other than that, I am always more comfortable knowing that I can get things clean even if I have to be careful, than having an (un-intentionally) infected beer. Also, I know the equipment I use can be (from my cold, dead hands) passed on to my children.

[/edit]

 

[camonick]

As FatDragon pointed out, beers always tend to look darker in bulk while in the fermenter than they do in a glass or hydrometer sample jar. I have been brewing extract recipes for years and always feel like they are darker than expected... especially when using LME. Are you boiling the extract for the full boil? Doing late additions or switching to DME could help with lighter colored styles. It will still probably be a fine beer to drink.

 

[BeckyRS]

Thank you all! I will wait patiently to see how the final result turn out!

 

[BeckyRS]

Is dark in the fermenter or in your glass?

The glass is clear

 

[NGD]

+1 what @camonick said. I brew extract as well and can say doing a full boil (60-90 min) with all your LME will result in a darker beer. Its also true that age does play into it, but as others have stated wait for awhile and pull a sample to test gravity. Observe the color then. shorter boils and late addition LME (Adding LME right after boil, before cooling) seems to have lightened up my beers. DME can also be lighter in color.

Remember LME is basically wort thats been reduced into a syrup. You dont fully recook leftovers. Nor should you with extract beers.

 

[BeckyRS]

Beer is also darker in bulk than in the bottle or glass. A brown ale often looks like a stout in the fermenter, an amber like a brown, a pale like an amber, and so on.

The problem is that it’s a blonde ale and it looks like a brown

 

[BeckyRS]

+1 what @camonick said. I brew extract as well and can say doing a full boil (60-90 min) with all your LME will result in a darker beer. Its also true that age does play into it, but as others have stated wait for awhile and pull a sample to test gravity. Observe the color then. shorter boils and late addition LME (Adding LME right after boil, before cooling) seems to have lightened up my beers. DME can also be lighter in color.

Remember LME is basically wort thats been reduced into a syrup. You dont fully recook leftovers. Nor should you with extract beers.

So would you recommend boiling the wort for 45 min instead of 60 as the recipe calls for?

 

[camonick]

So would you recommend boiling the wort for 45 min instead of 60 as the recipe calls for?

You still boil for 60 minutes to utilize your hops. You just don't add all the LME at the beginning of the boil. LME darkens significantly the longer it's boiled. There is a debate about the amount required to properly utilize your hops but most (myself included) will typically add 1/4-1/2 the extract at the beginning of the boil then add the remainder towards the end of the boil at about 10-15 minutes left just to pasteurize the remaining extract. Research "Late addition extract" and it will make more sense to you that what I can peck out here.

 

[NGD]

So would you recommend boiling the wort for 45 min instead of 60 as the recipe calls for?

Absolutely...you could even drop it down to 30 minutes. Thats basically what I’ve been doing last few batches with good results.

My process simplified is to figure out a condensed hop schedule from 60 minutes to 30 minutes.
1. Steep grains of there are any
2. Add 1/4-1/2 extract the recipe calls for
3. Set timer and add 60 min hops
4. Add hops as figured for condensed schedule
5. Flame off when times up. Wait a minute or two then add rest of extract. Stir like crazy with sanitized spoon. Let sit for 10-15 minutes to pasturize prior to cooling.

If you dont feel comfortable messing with the hop schedule for your second brew, just keep the 60 min boil and use half of the extract and add the rest in at flameout

 

[BeckyRS]

Awesome!! Thank you both!

 

[camonick]

This is the strawberry blonde in my signature and it was brewed with a Pilsner LME (which is even lighter than the golden LME you used) with the late addition technique and you can see it’s not exactly a light colored beer. It’s hard to brew a really light straw colored beer with extract.

 

[NGD]

Awesome!! Thank you both!

Absolutely and best of luck with your next batch.

Let us know how this one turns out.
If your kit didnt come with a sample tube and a hydrometer, I’d recommend them. Since your using a glass carboy, I’d also suggest a wine thief to get the sample out.

 

[BeckyRS]

This is the strawberry blonde in my signature and it was brewed with a Pilsner LME (which is even lighter than the golden LME you used) with the late addition technique and you can see it’s not exactly a light colored beer. It’s hard to brew a really light straw colored beer with extract.

Thank you for sharing! That gives me some hope. I really don’t care too much about the color as long as it tastes how it should. Cheers!

 

[camonick]

I think you’ll be ok. You mentioned in your original post that you did your best not to scorch your boiling wort. Just make sure you cut your heat and stir like crazy when you add your LME (no matter when you add it) so it doesn’t scorch. You will be able to tell if that happened when you taste it... it will have a slight smoky or burnt flavor. I know because I scorched my very first batch. It will all get easier as you get a few more brews under your belt. This is a good place to get advice and it’s very interesting to see all the different ideas and techniques to get the same end product.

 

[Jag75]

You know how ladies can be. The Blonde just dyed her hair that's all

 

[balrog]

Mainly, what @FatDragon said.
Patience.
It will look and taste different in 2 weeks, when in a glass than in carboy.
Easier to drink that way too.

 

[camonick]

How did this brew turn out? It’s been about 3 weeks since you said you brewed this. Have you bottled or sampled it yet?