I Heart IPA (Two Hearted Clone) from More Beer

[6thGoal]

While I should have paid closer attention and bought the extract kit from Bell's I failed and went with the local More Beer shop, I Heart IPA. It wasn't until I was brewing that I realized Bell's sold their own kit and took notice the ingredients were quite different.

Brew day went fine, but I toyed with the idea off adding more hops as it was 1 oz Centennial at 60 minutes, 30 minutes, 5 minutes and 1 minute with 1 oz for dry hopping.

The beer was fermented for 2 weeks, as the airlock and temperature indicated fermentation was over. The beer was bottled on December 12 and I cracked open a bottle last night to give it a taste about 4 days short of 2 weeks being bottle conditioned.

I was somewhat displeased with the BIG caramel sweetness this beer carried. The aroma from the bottle in the in the glass was pleasing, a citrus with grapefruit and a hint of pine with a mild sweetness. However that first sip was anything but fruity, not that Two Hearted has a big fruit component to it. What was very noticeable was the sweetness of the beer, sort of an overpowering caramel near the end of the swallow. It did have a small pine bite.

So I look back on the notes from brewing day and again compare ingredients from the kit from Bell's. Where could I have gone wrong? This is probably the last extract kit I do, as I am piecing together a mash tun to build next month. Is there something else I could or should have done?

It's got a great color and nice head with a good aroma.

 

[IslandLizard]

Half a pound of C20 doesn't add that much sweetness.

What was your final gravity?
What yeast did you use?

Funny that the yeast Bell's uses for 2H (WY1272/WLP051) isn't listed as a yeast option at MoreBeer.

 

[jeremy0209]

In my experience, when I've had a big "sweetness" component, it's been oxidation.

 

[6thGoal]

I used the WY1056. OG was 1.060 and final gravity was 1.014, so it came out at 6% ABV. I did oxygenate the beer when it was cooled in the kettle to the fermenation vessel. Aside from that, there was little to no oxygen caused by splashing. Air bubbles in the bottling, possibly.

 

[RM-MN]

Give the beer a little more time before you write it off. Some beers make a drastic change in the one more week. Some need more than 3 weeks too.

 

[IslandLizard]

The beer looks wonderful, maybe a little dark, but a wonderful thick creamy head!

1.014 may be a little higher than it should be, possible indication of excessive caramelization during the boil, slight under attenuation due to unfermentable sugars, etc.
Did you do a partial boil with top up water?
Did you make a yeast starter?
What extract variety was included in the kit?

Going all grain. You won't regret it, but your brew day will be longer.
Is your kettle large enough for a full boil?

I converted a $25 (Sears) 54 quart, rectangular Coleman Extreme cooler into a mash tun. I put a cpvc manifold on the bottom and it works very well. Batch sparge 2x with equal volumes, easy peasy.

 

[IslandLizard]

Although that wouldn't have caused the off-flavor, C20, generally C10-C30, should be mashed, ideally. They're kinda starchy, not as "glassy" as C40 and above.

 

[6thGoal]

There are some good aspects and I feel good I’ve improved over four batches that have been drinkable.


I followed the Palmer method, so a partial boil then added the last 4lbs of LME after the boil was over. I topped off with water to 5.5 gallons before aerating and closing it up for fermentation. No yeast starter was used. MoreBeer sells Ultralight extract. I can do a full boil have a 7 gallon kettle.

There is only a OG range of 1.056-1.061 but no FG listed in the kit.

 

[BrewnWKopperKat]

Although that wouldn't have caused the off-flavor, C20, generally C10-C30, should be mashed, ideally. They're kinda starchy, not as "glassy" as C40 and above.

I'm finding that one of the joys (or frustrations) of crystal / caramel / roasted malts is that each maltster seems to produce a delightfully (or annoyingly) different product.

I have a range of Briess crystal malts in my "home brew pantry" (http://www.brewingwithbriess.com/Products/Caramel.htm). I also have some "English" crystal malts from a couple of other maltsters.

With Briess Crystal 20, the data sheet lists "Mealy / Half / Glassy: 0% /5% /95%" for a typical analysis. It's likely that other maltsters have different analysis results.

 

[IslandLizard]

There are some good aspects and I feel good I’ve improved over four batches that have been drinkable.

I followed the Palmer method, so a partial boil then added the last 4lbs of LME after the boil was over. I topped off with water to 5.5 gallons before aerating and closing it up for fermentation. No yeast starter was used. MoreBeer sells Ultralight extract. I can do a full boil have a 7 gallon kettle.

There is only a OG range of 1.056-1.061 but no FG listed in the kit.

Yes, you do, keep brewing! It tends to get better each time as you refine your processes and get more versed in the methods.

The beer looks a little dark from the picture, it may be much lighter in reality. Just trying to find possible reasons for the extra caramel flavor you've got.
FG depends on yeast used and a lot of other factors. They should include some expected range, though. With that yeast (73-80% attenuation) an FG of 1.012-1.016 is expected for your 1.060 beer.

Did the kit use the Ultralight extract? Is that made by Briess or another maltster? These products can vary quite a bit among maltsters, too.

Yes, splitting extract additions are beneficial with partial boils. Make sure your brewing water is chlorine/chloramine free. Use Campden if in doubt or when using municipal water.

You should definitely start thinking about making starters when using liquid yeast. It a) proves and increases viability and b) ramps up cell count.
Also harvest your yeast cake for repitches. That yeast can be used in 10-20 brews, easily. Just use good sanitation.

Although you can use a 7 gallon kettle for 5-5.5 gallon all-grain batches, it's a little small, but workable. I have an 8 gallon kettle and it's already a little tricky as the wort volume would fit, but doesn't leave much headroom. Hence, I top up with 3rd runnings during the boil or boil them separately on the stove and add toward the end. Many ways to get what you want.