Irish Red w/ mouthfeel & carbonation problem

[Heathro]

My first Irish Red. It is a specialty grain steep with malt extract. I hit the the target OGs and FGs in the recipe. The specialty grain was almost busting out of the muslin bag, and was a little slimy after I pulled it out of the steep.

My problem is the beer has a milky consistency (it is ALMOST crystal clear). When I pour it, it is thick. It also has no head, what so ever but it had carbonation in the mouth.

Two weeks in the carboy, two weeks in the bottle three days in the fridge. The rest of the batch is still in my pantry though. I never move a whole batch to the fridge until I get a good test bottle.

So, do I have a problem or do I leave it sit and relax?

 

[Heathro]

BTW taste is good, it is just a head and viscosity problem in the glass.

 

[Croyzen]

The standard questions, What kind of water did you use? Yeast? What did you prime with and did you rack the beer onto the priming sugar? What temp are the bottles being stored at? How did you cool it and to what temp? The "milky" texture may be chill haze/proteins that have not settled. The lack of carbonation could be from storing the bottles too cold, improper racking technique, not enough priming sugar (rare for new brewers), or simply because they need more time. Also, extract brews have a tendency of having a thinner mouthfeel.

 

[Heathro]

The standard questions, What kind of water did you use?
Arrowhead bottled water

Yeast? A pack of dry yeast s-04

What did you prime ? 5 ounces (to five gallon brew) White table sugar

did you rack the beer onto the priming sugar? Yes into a bottling bucket

What temp are the bottles being stored at? 72°

How did you cool it and to what temp? Refrigerator to 36°

 

[te-wa]

one more week in bottles. the carbonation you're looking for will appear damn near overnight. keep an eye peeled.

 

[Heathro]

Does chill haze effect head retention? The carb levels now move the taste on the tongue well, I think it's more a zero head problem. If I toss the beer between glasses it will let off bubbles, but I can't get a foam. This is my first beer that isn't pure extract.

 

[flars]

I would say the only thing you can do is let the bottles condition longer for any noticeable change.
I don't know if flaked oats was in the recipe, but the description of the grain bag being slimy possibly indicates an overload of flaked oats or a similar grain. This would give you a milky or creamy mouth feel.

The grain bag being almost busting and slimy says the bag was to small for the contents. Flaked oats will expand quite a bit. This could be the main reason for the beers consistency.

 

[Heathro]

Thanks guys. I know to (almost) never dump, so I guess I will RDWAHAHB

 

[JohnSand]

And let them sit longer in the fridge too. A week or more will improve the head.