Boooo...3 months later, and my pumpkin ale still tastes terrible

[jdlev]

3 months from brew day. Just tried it hoping it would mellow out. It tastes overly alcoholic and overly spiced. There's almost no hop bitterness - well...truth be told...all I can taste is the alcohol, grains, and spices. Here's my recipe:

WLP002
1.3oz Goldings
4 oz special roast
8 oz aromatic malt
8 oz c 40L
8oz c 120L
1lb rice hulls
11lb marris otter
7g water
24 oz libby's pumpkin pie filling
1 cup brown sugar added at beginning of boil
1/8tsp nutmeg (5min left in boil)
1/8tsp all spice (5min left in boil)
1/2tsp cinamon (10min left in boil)

WTF did I DO WRONG??!?!?
70 minute mash

 

[eastoak]

i'm not a fan of pumpkin beer but i can tell you it's probably not going to taste any better. keep it around and see if time heals it. lol.

 

[Yooper]

I think Libbey's Pumpkin Pie Filling is already spiced- so you doubled up on the spices. Usually, if you're adding spices, you'd use just the canned pumpkin and not the spiced pie filling.

As to the alcohol flavors, that could be a function of the ABV (if the OG was pretty high), or temperature during the fermentation, or both.

You wouldn't taste any hops if you only used bittering hops and no flavor or aroma hops, and 1.3 ounces of Goldings isn't much for bittering, depending on your OG.

 

[birvine]

I'm thinking the issue is double-spicing, too. As nice as cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice can be, in excess they actually burn the mouth. Possibly one to dump, or, blend with a bland beer as you pour them to dilute the spices.

B

 

[jdlev]

I guess I'll toss it later tonight, and try, try again

 

[jdlev]

*sigh* there's something so depressing about watching 5g of beer run down your driveway...even if it did suck

 

[70Cuda383]

*sigh* there's something so depressing about watching 5g of beer run down your driveway...even if it did suck

dilute it out with good beer!

mix up another batch with NO spice and blend!


oh well. good luck next time!

 

[Monstar]

Man, 3 months? What a bummer. Sorry for your loss.

 

[eastoak]

dilute it out with good beer!

mix up another batch with NO spice and blend!


oh well. good luck next time!

throwing good beer after bad?

 

[mrduna01]

throwing good beer after bad?

I see no problem with this method. Your simply lowering the spice flavor as you have more of the same beer with the same spice amount.

 

[BrewKnurd]

throwing good beer after bad?

If the only problem is too much spice and too much alcohol, then it seems to me like dilution is not a waste. If he had a lot of off flavors or something, I'd agree with you.

 

[FatherJack]

I wouldn't toss it just yet. Unless you need the bottles/keg hold on to it. I had a Belgian witbier I brewed up and the bitter orange peel was just NASTY in it. I didn't like it at all. I focused the brunt of my drinking attack on my other beers and came back to it about 4 months after I brewed it and it is AWESOME.

The spices will mellow out over time, it just might take a while. I would bet by xmas time you'll have a decent brew on hand.

 

[DrJekyll-HomeBrew]

i think i used libbys and it wasnt spiced but i dont know could be different kind of libbys. did you roast the pumpkin in the oven and then step it in the mash? i made several pumpkin trial and errors, one was i just added the pumkin straight to a boil and it came out weird with tastes of spices and a hint apple. still good and drinkable just not what i was after.