Will it mellow or is it toast?

[BadIggy]

I brewed a english strong ale and my first taste was quite bitter and had a slight smell of rubbing alcohol. When I tasted a little when racking it tasted great. Think I did something wrong then or do I just need to give it more time?

 

[Cbaddad]

How old is it? High gravity beers almost always mellow with some time.

 

[Thunder_Chicken]

Sounds like a young (but OK) strong ale to me. Strong Ales need some aging. Stash it away for a month or two and try it again then.

 

[BadIggy]

Recipe said it would be ready in 6 weeks total. I'm 2 days short, but there's a blizzard outside, so I figured it was time to taste. I guess I'll wait a bit longer.

 

[rorypayne]

High abv beers need time to get rid of the alcohol taste, even aging at keg serving temps will help this I have realized.

 

[Thunder_Chicken]

Kit instructions often don't suggest enough conditioning time. 6 weeks from brew to glass for this beer is a bare minimum to something drinkable, but more time will definitely improve the beer. Have one every 2 weeks or so and see how the taste and texture and carbonation changes. Try to put some away for a few months - it will blow your mind.

If you keep it someplace warm (~70F or so) it will condition a bit faster.

Brew something else now to get your mind off this batch. Keeping up a good pipeline of conditioning beer helps with your patience and gives you lots of great beer.

 

[rodwha]

Great signature you have there Mr Chicken!

 

[BadIggy]

Thanks all. Happy to be patient. Was scared I'd ruined a complete batch - hopefully not the case.