Very Booring Amber/ Red Ale, Help me understand grain selection

[forces]

I just tried the first of a Red Ale I brewed, and for lack of a better word, this beer is just plain boring. Its a little Caramelly, light hop nose, medium bitter finish, but the middle of the flavor, the malts in particular, are just missing something.

Here is the recipe:

6.00 lb Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 41.38 %
3.00 lb Munich Malt - 10L (10.0 SRM) Grain 20.69 %
1.00 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 40L (40.0 SRM) Grain 6.90 %
0.50 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 80L (80.0 SRM) Grain 3.45 %
0.50 oz Columbus (Tomahawk) [17.90 %] (60 min) Hops 18.4 IBU
1.00 oz Amarillo Gold [10.70 %] (30 min) Hops 16.9 IBU
1.00 oz Amarillo Gold [10.70 %] (10 min) Hops 8.0 IBU

O.G. was 1.060 and F.G. 1.010.... So it finished out VERY dry. I am wondering if this isn't the reason it lacks complexity, or if I could have added anything else to make this more interesting. I was thinking of maybe replacing all of the 2-row with marris otter, but I am still very much a novice when it comes to designing my own grain bill; especially for ambers, reds and pale ales.

Ay ideas on what would make this recipe stand out a little (other than adding adjuncts or flavorings)?

 

[Ichthy]

Looks like a good recipe. What yeast did you use and what were your ferment temps?

Maybe add more caramel malt next time.

 

[Yooper]

Looks like a good recipe. What yeast did you use and what were your ferment temps?

Maybe add more caramel malt next time.

That's what I was thinking- I was looking at the recipe, thinking about brewing it!

I think the recipe is solid. I might add more late hops but overall it looks solid.

What's your water like?

 

[forces]

Looks like a good recipe. What yeast did you use and what were your ferment temps?

Maybe add more caramel malt next time.

I used US05, and not for any other reason than that's just the yeast i got used to using for american IPAs, so I just kind of stick with it for most of my american style ales.

My fermentation temps are usually between 68-72 degrees.

That's what I was thinking- I was looking at the recipe, thinking about brewing it!

I think the recipe is solid. I might add more late hops but overall it looks solid.

What's your water like?

Portland, Oregon Tap water; Here's what Beer Smith has to say about it;


Calcium: 2.0 ppm
Sulfate: 0.0 ppm
Magnesium: 1.0 ppm
Chloride: 2.0 ppm
Sodium: 2.0 ppm Bicarbonate: 9.0 ppm
PH: 6.7

Water Additions Needed
Gypsum: 0.0 gm
Baking Soda: 0.0 gm
Salt: 0.0 gm
Chalk: 0.0 gm
Epsom Salt: 0.0 gm Calcium Chloride: 0.0 gm

 

[Yooper]

I used US05, and not for any other reason than that's just the yeast i got used to using for american IPAs, so I just kind of stick with it for most of my american style ales.

My fermentation temps are usually between 68-72 degrees.




Portland, Oregon Tap water; Here's what Beer Smith has to say about it;


Calcium: 2.0 ppm
Sulfate: 0.0 ppm
Magnesium: 1.0 ppm
Chloride: 2.0 ppm
Sodium: 2.0 ppm Bicarbonate: 9.0 ppm
PH: 6.7

Water Additions Needed
Gypsum: 0.0 gm
Baking Soda: 0.0 gm
Salt: 0.0 gm
Chalk: 0.0 gm
Epsom Salt: 0.0 gm Calcium Chloride: 0.0 gm

Without any additions, your water is very boring. Low in everything. Great for some lagers, but maybe some CaCl2 and/or gypsum could bring up your calcium and give you some "crispness" in the hopping and more malt flavor.

Do your APAs and AAAs usually come out better?

 

[stevedasleeve]

Let it age a bit, I bet it tastes better next week and even better 2 weeks after. Maybe mash higher next time, and me, if you're asking, I'd substitute a bit of pale chocolate malt - say 4 oz for some of that Munich.

 

[Conesus_Kid]

At what temperature did you mash?

 

[shamrockdoc]

At what temperature did you mash?

+1 on this. Due to the temp of your mash increases(with a higher temp) said "Dry" to your beer or produces a more malty characteristics (lower temp) Replace 2 row with Maris ........my own opinion.

 

[nepatsfan1]

I hate to say this but was it domestic malts or were the malts from England or Germany. Only reason I say this is most domestic malts are shall I say flavorless (flame me if you want, I think domestic malts cannot touch the quality of either Muntons or Weyermann). Depending on what style Amber you wanted it could go many ways. You could always brew again and use a different maltser and hop profile. say use Perle for bittering and some Saaz or Mt Hood to finish with. Just my two cents.

 

[ajf]

I would try using a different yeast (such as S-04) rather than the US05. US05 is renowned for its clean fermentation characteristics, whereas S-04 adds some esters that make a very big difference to the flavor.

-a.

 

[forces]

I don't know my specific mash temps because I found out shortly following that batch that my thermometer was on the fritz. but I know I got a lot more attenuation out of this batch than usual, so I am sure that I fluenced the dryness. Really ny question was I regards to that actually- whether it's "boring" because it is too dry, or because of the grain selection. I had brewed an Oktoberfest ale that used a lot if Munich malt, and it had a similar tasteless forgetable quality as well.

I don't know a helluva lot about water chemistry, but I do know that a couple years ago the city was going to change some amount of something (maybe floride ppm??) and a lot of the Oregon breweries were up in arms about it. Considering the warrant, I would infer that Portland water is suits le for brewing.

 

[emribecky]

I like my red's a little on the malty sweet side, so I tend to follow a lot of the suggestions here... Mashing a little hotter for a bigger body, adjusting my water for a little extra alkalinity, and using a yeast that finishes a little higher. All of this lends towards a nice profile for that particular style of beer... I like that grain bill.

 

[beeber]

I would add 2 to 4 ounces of roasted barley and maybe back off on the munich. That works well with a red ale. I also use .5 to 1 lb of CaraRed.