Pumpkin Ale - Too Spicy?

[nolimits67]

I brewed this 5 weeks ago

4 lbs 10.9 oz Pumpkin (Boil Last 10.0 mins)
8.0 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt - 20L
6.0 oz Pilsner (2 Row) Ger (2.0 SRM)
2.0 oz Cara-Pils/Dextrine (2.0 SRM)
6 lbs 9.6 oz Briess Sparkling Amber Liquid Malt Extract (10.0 SRM)
7.0 oz Brown Sugar, Dark (50.0 SRM)
1.00 oz Mt. Hood [6.00 %] - Boil 60.0 min
2.00 tsp Vanilla Extract (Boil Last 5.0 mins)
1.50 tsp Ginger Root (Boil Last 5.0 mins)
1.00 oz Cascade [5.50 %] - Boil Last 5.0 min
1.50 tsp Nutmeg (Boil Last 5.0 mins)
2.00 tsp Cinnamon Stick (Boil Last 5.0 mins)
1.0 pkg Safale American (DCL/Fermentis #US-05)

I left it in a 6.5 gallon plastic bucket for 6 days. Transferred it to a 5 gallon carboy and left it there for 16 days. Moved the brew to the bottling bucket and did all that with 5oz corn sugar. Tasted pretty good at that point. Kind of on the spicy side, but I figured it'd mellow out with a few weeks.

1.060SG - 1.010FG

Checked a bottle after 5 days. Was flat and the spice overpowered any possible pumpkin flavor that may be there.

Checked one today (12 days from bottling) and carbonation is getting there, but still quite spicy. Well, more spicy than I had planned for it to be. Is this a result of a still young beer yet to mature, or did I overdue the spice in the recipe?

The brew is quite cloudy in the bottle at room temperature, and even after being in the fridge for 48 hours it sat pretty cloudy in the glass. Couldn't see through the glass.

Thoughts?

 

[zzARzz]

It's a good mix of spices, but, yes, probably a bit much. I usually start at 1/2 tsp of spices on a 5 gallon batch, allow it to steep for 10 minutes, taste and add more if necessary, especially when I have a subtler flavor like pumpkin I'm using them to enhance. It's easy to add spices but impossible to take them out, especially when using strong flavors like cloves, allspice and nutmeg. The flavors may meld a bit with age, but will probably still have the same intensity.

I recently did a pumpkin ale, but a 3 gallon batch. I used 1 whole nutmeg I crushed up a bit (about 5-6 chunks), 1/2 of a cinnamon stick I broke into strips and 1/4 tsp of Allspice. The spices balance well with the pumpkin in the forefront without being overpowering.

 

[Husher]

I haven't brewed anything like what you've got but recently I tried a hoegarden clone which called for orange peel and coriander. Had to guess at the quantity since I didn't ahve a scale and everything in the recipe was in ounces.
I cracked one open after 4 weeks and it had to go down the drain as the spice was overpowering. Though I ruined it.

Even debated dumping the batch but I sat on it for a while. At 4 months, it's really quite good now. The spices mellowed out and it's very similar to the commercial version. I imagine at 6 months it'll be optimal but we'll see.

Lesson Learned: Spices mellow over time. Age the beer and time will improve that too.