Insecure about my brewing. What's going on?

[soccerdad]

...
As far as getting the "right" extract, that is a limiting factor of extract. You never know what went into it. Asking your supplier is a good bet. But I always say just use the lightest you can find. Briess Pilsen Light DME is what I use for starters, and I used it in extract beers in the past.

When you're using something like rye extract, it gets harder, because you aren't going to know the rye percentage and that could change between manufacturers. I know I've seen rye LME from a number of sources, but I don't think I've seen rye DME, although I haven't been looking...

http://www.madalchemist.com/chart_bitterness_ratio.html

Just for giggles, here is what Briess uses in their Rye extract (it appears that both Northern and Midwest use the Briess extract)

70% Base Malt
20% Rye Malt
10% Caramel Malt 40L

 

[GRBC]

Nah, this is yeasty. Like I said a few pages back, I'm not an expert, but I'm not a novice. I've got a fairly popular review show on YouTube, though I know that's not exactly a mark of excellence. The reason it's so hard to pick out this flavor/aroma is because you just can't find it in the commercially available brews.



Out of curiosity though, what's the best way to ensure a good hop to malt ratio in recipes? Or is it one of those "experience" things? I use BrewToad, and I keep the numbers within my selected style.

Yeasty, like smells like a vial of white labs yeast? Haven't seen that one before.

Following the style guidelines in BrewToad is a good reference. What did BrewToad tell you your estimated IBUs where for the recipe I quoted? Were they in the range?

Also, read up on the bitterness unit to gravity unit (BU/GU) ratio. It compares the IBUs to the starting gravity. The essence of it is that a ratio of 1 bittering unit for every 2 gravity units, or 50% is balanced. Less than 50% is more malty than bitter, and greater than 50% is more bitter than malty. A very malt forward beer might be .2; and intensely bitter IPA might be 1.0+.

If your beers IBU were 16 and your starting gravity was 1.060, your BU:GU was 16:60 or .26

Here's a good reference: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/lv?key=0Ai1Yv492QZYUdFN1YWpYZTFxUm1reWN2WEx2a0xpUkE

EDIT: or what Qhrumpf said...

 

[joshesmusica]

larz, if you're still checking in. i just want to go on record and say that i didn't automatically suggest for him to switch to all-grain because i knew he was brewing extract. in fact nobody did. that's why i suggested that you read everything before you comment. i said that the only variable in his process that seemed off was temperature control. if he got that fixed and the off-flavor persisted, then i suggested trying all-grain because it's possible he was getting ahold of old extract, which then the other guys suggested was the only reason extract would cause a twang, which i agreed with.

qhrumphf, i'm glad we finally agree about beersmith. it's my favorite tool.
i also wholeheartedly agree with the IBU:OG ratio. great indicator of perceived bitterness. but i will also add that one must factor in FG as well. makes it more complex i guess, but if you have a 1:1 ratio with an FG of 1.020, it's going to taste significantly sweeter than a 1:1 ratio with an FG of 1.010.
i also asked him if he was pouring the yeast into his glass. i think his response was that he was being careful, but by now i'm not wholly sure! haha.

 

[HBKidJr]

Here's a question that I stupidly didn't think of until now, for your bottled beers, were you leaving the yeast sediment behind in the bottom of the bottle, or pouring the entire thing in?

Yep, leaving all of that in the bottle.

Following the style guidelines in BrewToad is a good reference. What did BrewToad tell you your estimated IBUs where for the recipe I quoted? Were they in the range?

Comes out to 26 IBU. My IBU/OG (if that helps) is .42, almost right in the middle of the "range".


For those still wondering, my cream stout, which is currently fermenting, while all the fuss over my Irish ale is going on, is doing fantastically. I drew a sample and checked the gravity. OG was 1.060 and it is currently 1.030, so I'm at about 4% after 4 days of being in my fermenter. I've been fermenting this one at about 62 degrees. Tastes great, exactly how it should. Perhaps a bit on the hoppy bitter side for a cream stout, but that'll smooth out after some age. I haven't tasted the Irish tonight though, but last night, it was better.

 

[lazarwolf]

Joshesmusica, it's all apples mate. No worries.

 

[sxghxs]

I may have missed it, but what is the description of the small and flavor you are attempting to eliminate (presumably)?

 

[HBKidJr]

I may have missed it, but what is the description of the small and flavor you are attempting to eliminate (presumably)?

Explained in detail in the first post. With my first few beers I made, they all had a similar flavor, something that I've been having a hard time to compare it to or describe. I stopped brewing for a while and when I started again, I made a string of really good beers. Now, though, the flavor seems to have returned. Although since that post, the beer I was talking about seems to have improved with a bit of age.

 

[fhsfht]

obvious alcohol flavor, clove, home brew twang...this all points to fermentation temp.