Golden Porter problems

[Millsy]

So I brewed a porter and it has been fermenting for around 2 and a half weeks. I took a sample to check gravity and the color of the beer is golden like a ale. It is fermenting in a bucket so I was unable to see the color of it at all until now?

How is this possible

 

[wailingguitar]

Post your recipe, please

 

[Millsy]

2 cans light malt extract
1/2 English crystal malt
1/2 chocolate malt
1/4 biscuit malt
1oz perle hop pellets
1oz tetnang hop
Burton water crystal
Irish moss
American ale yeast

 

[wailingguitar]

That should have been enough Chocolate to, at least, make the beer brown. Who crushed your grain? When/how was it added?

 

[Millsy]

Crush by the home brew store guy. I heated the water to a boil then took it off heat and steeped for 15 min. The recipe says 15 min but that seems kind of short now that I look at it.

 

[JKaranka]

Sounds like you didn't extract enough colour. The grist looks ok, a brown porter. I bet it will still taste good, maybe more like a British strong ale. Shouldn't be light gold unless something went wrong, though.

 

[Millsy]

Ya it's not too light maybe similar to an ipa look I guess

 

[Millsy]

So is it best to always steep grains for 30 min or so. Or just stick with the recipes

 

[rodwha]

Was the whole thing milled at once or separately? Maybe the chocolate malts weren't crushed? But 15 mins is quite short...

 

[McGarnigle]

I assume those grain measurements are in pounds, right? It just says "1/2 chocolate malt."

 

[Sailingeric]

Golden Porter.. that sounds like it could be yummy. Worst case, you made beer.

 

[kh54s10]

Assuming 5 gallons and not knowing the crystal I went with c-40. I put the recipe in Beersmith and it is a light beer. 7.2 SRM. That is on the light end for an American Pale Ale.

You made beer. But it definitely does not classify as a Porter by any means. Unless you started a new style - Golden Porter.

 

[Millsy]

Well I guess at the end of the day it will get the job done. Thanks for the info guys

 

[blackbeer]

the way i do it is to steep the specialty grains separately for the duration of the mash, which is usually 60 min and then add the tea to the boil. for extract brew i would steep for an hour at 150-ish.

 

[McGarnigle]

Assuming 5 gallons and not knowing the crystal I went with c-40. I put the recipe in Beersmith and it is a light beer. 7.2 SRM. That is on the light end for an American Pale Ale.

You made beer. But it definitely does not classify as a Porter by any means. Unless you started a new style - Golden Porter.

Wait, how does a beer with 1/2 pound of chocolate malt get to be 7.2 SRM? That can't be right.

 

[kh54s10]

Assuming 5 gallons and not knowing the crystal I went with c-40. I put the recipe in Beersmith and it is a light beer. 7.2 SRM. That is on the light end for an American Pale Ale.

You made beer. But it definitely does not classify as a Porter by any means. Unless you started a new style - Golden Porter.

Wait, how does a beer with 1/2 pound of chocolate malt get to be 7.2 SRM? That can't be right.

OOPS!! I must have typo'd. I put the ingredients in BS again and get over 21 SRM

 

[TitanJimi]

Like a few others have pointed out...I'd bet that your grains (especially the chocolate malt) wasn't crushed. I had a friend do this exact thing a few years back to a Porter.

 

[hanuswalrus]

Crush by the home brew store guy. I heated the water to a boil then took it off heat and steeped for 15 min. The recipe says 15 min but that seems kind of short now that I look at it.

That is short for steeping. Also, if you steeped right after you took it off heat from a boil, your water was probably still up around 200F. You should be steeping between 150-160F.

The color issue is odd though. I would have to guess it was the crush, or lack there of