Keep or dump?

[JamieRex]

I've only made 2 brews so far (a Pale & Red Ale) and I went to my local brew supply store looking for some help making Pumpkin Ale.

I've only used their kits in the past, where all of the grains have been pre measured and a basic step by step recipe to follow. With the pumpkin ale they put together a custom kit for me. In doing so they sold me Pale Chocolate, Crystal & an aromatic malts, each in one pound bags. In my rush to get it made I put all 3 pounds of grain into my steeping bag and boiled them forgetting that they are not pre-measured like my other kits had been from them.

Last night I re-read my recipe sheet they made up for me and realized I should of only used 1/3 of a pound of the aromatic and chocolate malts!! Should I even let this batch finish fermenting( it's only been in for 3 days) or should I dump it out and redo a new batch this week.

 

[stru]

Of course you should let it finish! The end result will still be beer.

 

[rodwha]

It may not be what you intended, but it'll still be beer indeed!

I've never used aromatic so I'm uncertain what overdoing that becomes. The pale chocolate I'd think would become more roasty, though I've generally only overdone (slightly) the regular chocolates.

 

[flars]

Did you really mean to say you boiled the grains, or did you steep? If you boiled the grains, I would dump it. The astringency from tannin extraction, due to boiling in water of pH over 5.8, would be extreme.

 

[JamieRex]

You are correct - they were steeped, not boiled.

I know it will still be beer, at the end of the day. Just wanted to see how drinkable it's going to be at the end of all of it and that the flavors won't be too overpowering.

 

[flars]

You are correct - they were steeped, not boiled.

I know it will still be beer, at the end of the day. Just wanted to see how drinkable it's going to be at the end of all of it and that the flavors won't be too overpowering.

Ah, good. Take a sample with your thief or turkey baster in a few more days. Give it a taste.

 

[giraffe]

The aromatic will be fine, It will be a tad darker, and noticably more malty, you will probably like it.

The pale chocolate is more of a problem. It is quite toasty, and in that quanity the beer will have a coffee like flavor. And the beer will probably come out in the dark amber, light brown range. For a pumpkin ale, this may be ok. People like pumpkin and coffee together.

I would ferment it out. It its a little rough, the pale chocolate will fade with age, just let the bottles/keg sit for another month or 3, if you taste it and its not to your liking.

 

[wsmith1625]

Very curious what your original gravity reading was. Did you take a reading? You're going to have a lot of sugar to ferment with all that grain. Don't wast it. You're flavor is going to be way off for what you were aiming for, but this could end up being a decent brew. Always take notes on your brew process. Some "mistakes" are worth repeating!

 

[Kblandfo]

I have no idea how it will finish but definitlly finish it! You might like it so much that you will have designed your first beer! As above, some mistakes are worth repeating!

Even if you dont like the first couple bottles store them away and try it every few weeks. Likely you will find someone who likes the flavor any way.

 

[AkTom]

Being a noob myself... If after conditioning you don't like it, you try mixing its bottle at a time with (as I tip my my beer snoot up), with a BMC. Who knows? Not me.

 

[Devin]

Definitely keep it. I think that there have been quite a few great beers developed throughout history exactly by this method: screwing up the recipe. :cross:

Who knows - it might end up awesome.

 

[soccerdad]

Just MHO, but I think it was dick-ish for the brew shop to make you buy full pounds when their own damn recipe was calling for a third pound.

 

[Foosier]

Just MHO, but I think it was dick-ish for the brew shop to make you buy full pounds when their own damn recipe was calling for a third pound.

+1000 to this...

My LHBS sells in the increments I am going to use. I have actually bought and had them crush a couple of ounces for a 2 gallon batch of Graff. You would rarely need full pounds. Besides, if they sold you pre-crushed pounds... who knows when they were crushed.

To the OP. Let it ride. don't dump it. If it is a bit strong when fresh, let it age a few months and see how the flavors change. Strong malty flavors can mellow out over time.