IPA American

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Piperbrew

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I made the last of my kit beer a couple of weeks ago and it was US IPA. As it happens I screwed the priming up ....for some unknown reason I added to much sugar and its sweet, hence I am going to just ditch it. But at the same time , wow is it bitter. Are American IPAs very bitter? ....really not to my taste at all.

If this is the case what hops are the most bitter in order that when I start partial/all grain brewing I can avoid such beers. To give you an idea I like beers like Doom bar, Speckled Hen, Ringwood Best etc and English IPSs....stuff like Hobgoblin though is starting to get to bitter for me.

Can anyone advise please in order I am not disappointed?

Thanks

Pete
 
Us ipa can be very bitter but the hops and sometimes high abv counteract this. Usually if you over prime you would just get very fizzy beer or gushers or worse....don't know why it's sweet unless you haven't let it carbed up yet? How much priming sugar have you added to what batch size?
 
Us ipa can be very bitter but the hops and sometimes high abv counteract this. Usually if you over prime you would just get very fizzy beer or gushers or worse....don't know why it's sweet unless you haven't let it carbed up yet? How much priming sugar have you added to what batch size?

I cant recall how much it was in weight , normally I use a teaspoon and count the sugar in. I am wondering if it might have not fermented out initially then?
Luckily , as said I don't like the taste of the beer so not such a pain to bin it, still the Rhubarb will love it I am sure.

Cheers

Pete
 
What was the FG before you bottled?
Irrespective of sweetness is it fully carbed? If not leave it longer to see what happens although you need to be wary of gushers etc.
There is also a good case for keeping your beer. If the bitterness comes from a dry hop then this will fade with time, although you may have to wait for a few months for this to happen. Personally thats what I would be doing rather than waste all that effort and what may turn out to be a perfectly good beer. I have an extract brew made with cheap LME that initially had the 'twang' but I kept it and after 8 months the twang has now gone, and its a decent beer
 
If this is the case what hops are the most bitter

You can't really say that a particular beer will be bitter because it has a particular hop in it. It's a combination of the alpha acid content of the hop, the amount you use, and what stage of the boil it's added. If you want to know how bitter a beer Is, you need to know the IBUs (international bitterness units). Some beers have it printed on the label or can, and most recipes will tell you the target IBUs.

IPAs are generally quite bitter, relatively speaking. Certainly more bitter than a standard English bitter, which is what I assume Hobgoblin would be classified as, even if Wychwood do insist in calling it a ruby ale.
 
If you want an at a glance, rule of thumb list of beer styles ranked from most bitter to most sweet, my understanding (which more experienced members may well correct) is as follows:
Double IPA
American IPA
British IPA
American pale ale
British bitter
Pale ale
Stouts/porters
Mild
Brown ale

Lagers are variable, but generally fit between pale ales and bitter, and Belgian styles are tricky because they tend to be dry but not particularly bitter.
 
What was the FG before you bottled?
Irrespective of sweetness is it fully carbed? If not leave it longer to see what happens although you need to be wary of gushers etc.
There is also a good case for keeping your beer. If the bitterness comes from a dry hop then this will fade with time, although you may have to wait for a few months for this to happen. Personally thats what I would be doing rather than waste all that effort and what may turn out to be a perfectly good beer. I have an extract brew made with cheap LME that initially had the 'twang' but I kept it and after 8 months the twang has now gone, and its a decent beer


It was just below the area on my hydrometer which said to bottle, I thought I would be ok as the ferment had finished and left for a few days in hindsight it hadn't I don't think. Saw this too late and the beer was binned today....I think it was far too sweet to be saved though,
 
It was just below the area on my hydrometer which said to bottle, I thought I would be ok as the ferment had finished and left for a few days in hindsight it hadn't I don't think.
I suggest that, at the very least, you wait until the hydrometer has bottomed out on subsequent brews say over two or three days. Better, do that and then wait a few more days to allow the yeast to clean up and the beer chance to clear before you package.
 
Do you mean the Young’s American IPA kit? If so, the priming sugar is supplied with the kit in a separate bag. Why did you add more?
 
Don’t chuck it. Send it to me.

Or give it to friends.
Or keep it for a few months and see how the flavour changes over time.
Or maybe send a bottle to an experienced brewer on this Forum and get their opinion.

Edit: just saw your post saying it was already binned. I was too late with my offer to take it off your hands. Next time please send any unwanted beer to me. :-)
 
Don’t chuck it. Send it to me.

Or give it to friends.
Or keep it for a few months and see how the flavour changes over time.
Or maybe send a bottle to an experienced brewer on this Forum and get their opinion.

Edit: just saw your post saying it was already binned. I was too late with my offer to take it off your hands. Next time please send any unwanted beer to me. :-)


Ha ha.....afraid it was too sweet and I reckon it would have not improved and besides I needed to keg for my forthcoming all grain beer :lol:
 
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