Ctoph6
Member
Hello all,
In the process of fermenting my second batch of beer - which is a double IPA extract that used some specialty grains pre-boil. My wife and I did a hydrometer reading and tasted a sample yesterday (been fermenting 3 weeks now), and the beer has a sharp/harsh bitter finish to it. I love IPA's and bitter beers, but this finish isn't a hoppy flavor, just vey bitter and feels dry, and really lingers on your tongue. Also, the beer was very hazy/cloudy. I'll admit, I forgot to filter the beer when I moved it from the boil pot to the fermenter (not sure if this is an issue or not), however, I did move it to a secondary fermenter about a weekago hoping it would provide some clarity, which I think it did but clearly still very hazy.
I wanted to ask what issues could have caused this astringent/bitter off-flavor? From my initial searching, I'm thinking it was an excess of tannins that occurred when I steeped the specialty grains, because I didn't realize that using the full 5 gallons of water when steeping the specialty grains can cause the PH to drive above 6, which from what I've come to understand can lead to excessive tannins in the wort. But would this alone have made the beer so bitter and dry, or maybe something with the tannins in the hops?
Also, is there anything I can do now to balance out the tannins/bitterness? I was planning on bottling on Sunday if my next hydrometer reading shows the same SG (1.020) that was read yesterday, but hoping there is something I can do to help balance the harsh bitter finish.
Thanks all!
Chris
In the process of fermenting my second batch of beer - which is a double IPA extract that used some specialty grains pre-boil. My wife and I did a hydrometer reading and tasted a sample yesterday (been fermenting 3 weeks now), and the beer has a sharp/harsh bitter finish to it. I love IPA's and bitter beers, but this finish isn't a hoppy flavor, just vey bitter and feels dry, and really lingers on your tongue. Also, the beer was very hazy/cloudy. I'll admit, I forgot to filter the beer when I moved it from the boil pot to the fermenter (not sure if this is an issue or not), however, I did move it to a secondary fermenter about a weekago hoping it would provide some clarity, which I think it did but clearly still very hazy.
I wanted to ask what issues could have caused this astringent/bitter off-flavor? From my initial searching, I'm thinking it was an excess of tannins that occurred when I steeped the specialty grains, because I didn't realize that using the full 5 gallons of water when steeping the specialty grains can cause the PH to drive above 6, which from what I've come to understand can lead to excessive tannins in the wort. But would this alone have made the beer so bitter and dry, or maybe something with the tannins in the hops?
Also, is there anything I can do now to balance out the tannins/bitterness? I was planning on bottling on Sunday if my next hydrometer reading shows the same SG (1.020) that was read yesterday, but hoping there is something I can do to help balance the harsh bitter finish.
Thanks all!
Chris