Flat and thin beer?

[josbor11]

So I have brewed and bottled four beers so far. The first three were recipe kits from craft a brew and none of them came out very well. It was a west coast ipa, dipa clone of resin, and a milk stout. Then my fourth batch I created my own custom recipe for a coffee stout. I took a sample of my coffee stout before I bottled it and I thought it was actually pretty good. However, after bottling it and opening a carbonated bottle it seems insanely thin. I'm getting absolutely no head on any of my four batches that I have finished and both my milk stout and my custom stout feel like they were brewed with soda water. I have been using brewers friend priming calculators so I don't think I am over carbing but something is certainly going wrong here. The IPA and DIPA both have the same odd off flavor which I suspect the yeast is responsible for but both of my stouts are very thin and have a flatness and an over carbonated feel to them which really makes no sense.

 

[zchwlsn]

Are you brewing extract? Because when I was brewing extract I seemed to have the same feeling. I liked adding maltodextrin to those batches and it added a bit more mouth feel. If you are doing all grain brewing mashing at a higher temp like 152-154 gives a better mouth feel.

 

[kev211]

You could always try steeping something lie carapils or a crystal malt (assuming you are doing extract batches). Can you describe the off flavor? What were the recipes you used one the thin beers?

 

[Puddlethumper]

However, after bottling it and opening a carbonated bottle it seems insanely thin. I'm getting absolutely no head on any of my four batches that I have finished and both my milk stout and my custom stout feel like they were brewed with soda water ... The IPA and DIPA both have the same odd off flavor which I suspect the yeast is responsible for but both of my stouts are very thin and have a flatness and an over carbonated feel to them which really makes no sense.

The comments you received above are good. I would be interested to know where you are getting your water from. A bad water source can instantly ruin every beer you try to make with it. (Personal knowledge on that one.)

Also, what kind of cleaner are you using to clean your equipment? Household dishwashing detergent may not rinse as completely as you'd like and has been suspected, if not clearly implicated, as being a "head killer" in home brews.

What temperature are you fermenting at and how are you monitoring/controlling the temperature of the beer? Yeast will not give off flavors to a beer, however fermenting too warm or using water with bad water chemistry will do it every time.

Clean your equipment with PBW.
Buy some drinking water for your next batch.
Add a few ounces of carapils for mouth feel.
Add a few ounces of wheat malt or torrified wheat for head.
Mash a little warmer.
Tightly control the temperature especially during the first 72-96 hrs. of fermentation.

Cheers!