To bitter problem

[integlikewhoa]

I have made two batchs so far (months ago) and both came out way to bitter. What is the general problem that causes the beer to be to bitter? Thanks JIM

I stop making beer after my first to trys cuz it came out so bad. Im now going to give it a try again. I also Keged the beer if the problem could have come from that. (which i dont think so)

 

[drengel]

either too many hops boiled too long, or boiling specialty grains. if you followed a recipe for it the hops were probably ok. did you use grains?

 

[integlikewhoa]

Yes i did use grains. So if i boil the hops to long and what about the grains?

 

[wild]

Hops boiled longer than 45 minutes are the bittering hops. What kind and quantity of bittering hops were used? What style of beer were you attempting? None of the grains should be boiled. In fact, the temperature of the grains should never exceed 170°F.

Wild

 

[Kaiser]

None of the grains should be boiled. In fact, the temperature of the grains should never exceed 170°F.

I don't think that this ruined his beer. I boiled the grains (1lb crystal) for my first batch, because AB did so. And it came out ok. Not as good as the beers I'm making now .

Let's see the receipe and instructions you followed. I have to see people abandon home brewing just because the first batched come out crappy. When paying attention to a couple of things (and sticking to simple recipes), it pretty hard to render a brew undrinkable.

Kai

 

[KopyKat]

Also if you used too much water in the boil. I found out the hard way recently when I went from a 2 1/2 gallon boil that the recipe called for and upped it to 5 gallon boil. I should have cut the bittering and flavor hops by 50%.

 

[Catfish]

Also if you used too much water in the boil. I found out the hard way recently when I went from a 2 1/2 gallon boil that the recipe called for and upped it to 5 gallon boil. I should have cut the bittering and flavor hops by 50%.

I did a few of those too. I never found them to be too bitter, but chilling them was a pain in the butt.

in...whoa What kind of beer do you like/ What are you used to drinking? What did you expect from your homebrew?

 

[drengel]

1) more water shouldn't do anything but make the beer better. a full boil (5 gallons) is one step towards better beer, and won't effect any ingredient ratios in your recipe.

2) NEVER BOIL ANY GRAINS--thats a surefire way to a bitter, astringent tasting beer. boiling extracts tannins, which you do not want at all.

3) what would be helpful, if you really want to figure out what went wrong so you never do it again, is if you write the recipe here and your procedure. that way we can tell what hops you used, how long, and whether you boiled your grains. also, th question about what you drink and what you expected is important. if your used to drinking lagers and brewed an IPA it will surely taste bitter to you.

 

[El Pistolero]

1) more water shouldn't do anything but make the beer better. a full boil (5 gallons) is one step towards better beer, and won't effect any ingredient ratios in your recipe.

Except for the bittering hops, which you might want to cut down some, due to the increased utilization at lower gravity.

 

[integlikewhoa]

Well guys im sorry i dont have alot of the info. Both were kits i bought. Its been a few months and i dont know excatly what was in them. I got my first batch from www.steinfillers.com (its local to me, i picked it up) and this is what it says on their website.
Honey Wheat
An Oregon-style American Hefeweizen similar to Widmer and Pyramid, strengthened by the delicateness of orange blossom honey. Light and slightly sweet with plenty of flavor and aroma.
OG: 1.054 FG: 1.015 SRM: 8 IBU: 25 ALCOHOL BY VOLUME: 5.2%

This one was bitter but not as bad as my 2nd batch which was just a basic beer. It was bought from www.homebrewheaven.com . Actually heres the link it gives full ingredient list there.
https://secure3.nexternal.com/share...2=197593331&CategoryID=56&Target=products.asp

 

[integlikewhoa]

ok that link didnt work. But its the "BACK TO BASICS" kit on their website under beer Ingredient kits.

 

[ahoym8e]

I have made two batchs so far (months ago) and both came out way to bitter. What is the general problem that causes the beer to be to bitter? Thanks JIM

I stop making beer after my first to trys cuz it came out so bad. Im now going to give it a try again. I also Keged the beer if the problem could have come from that. (which i dont think so)

Maybe your spelling made your beer bitter? I know mine sure turned my English teacher bitter...

LOL no offense intended. just having a good time.