Another numpty query!!!

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mark bruce

mark bruce

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Hi guys, another newbie query.
I had my 2nd and 3rd brews (Young's APA and Razorback IPA) finish fermentation at roughly the same time and have now bottled them both.
I've checked both brews for carbonation after around a week and they are both carbonating nicely.
They both tasted really boozy though if that makes any sense?
My first brew was an American amber which had carbonated and tasted good after around 10 days.
Is it normal for beer to taste like this at this point? Will it mellow after a few weeks?
Thanks for any input!
 
A few weeks can make a great difference... Rule of thumb... 2 weeks fermenting, 2 weeks conditioning, 2 weeks maturing = good beer... Hope you got some will power!
 
Hi!
Patience is the homebrewer's most effective tool.
As @ACBEV wrote, leave your beer to ferment for two weeks, even when it appears to have finished - the yeast needs time to clean up after itself.
 
The Youngs APA kit and Razorback kits both come with hops for dry hopping. After time you will notice that the impact of the dry hop is decreasing; my experience is that it is noticeable after two months and can be almost gone in some cases at four months. So the balance is drinking it before the dry hop starts to diminish, but after the beer has conditioned properly which could be any time from three to six weeks or longer in bottle. My suggestion is to sample your beer after about 3 weeks and if you are happy with it start drinking it. My Youngs APA was ready to drink at three to four weeks in and I am drinking it now. The same goes for the Youngs AIPA which I have done in the past which is the similar to the Razorback from what I understand. Finally my rule of thumb is that darker beers come good later which probably explains why I can be drinking the Youngs beers 'early'.
 
Just an update on this thread. Ok, so, after almost 4 weeks in the bottle the Youngs APA seems to be mellowing out nicely but the Razorback IPA is still has a very strong alcoholic tang. Pretty much undrinkable but I will leave it for a few more weeks to see what happens.
Also, it isn't very well carbonated at all. Can I do anything about that at this stage?
 
Sounds good;) congrats, it may be your taste is broader than some ;), or you have hit the sweet spot so far with brewing 2x in a row and are well on the way to becoming a master brewer, or beginners luck??, who cares if the beers good..

And Taste is totally subjective after all.. Just dont be disheartened if brews 3 n 4 need a wee it longer on the shelf to mature,,

Or if you have the will power to leave a couple of bottles to lay down for a few weeks/months even.. you may be in for a real treat..

personally most of my brews benefit from at least a month on the shelf, tho i did once brew a ekg smash brew that was quaffed down with relish within a week of kegging but that was a one off (so far..)

But if you have acquired that balance of skills to brew a fresh beer then you can probably look forward to making the most of potential hop bombs that dont need to mask the green malt ;)
 
What temperature did the razorback ferment at? Did you take hydrometer readings? Harsh alcohol tastes can be caused by fermenting too warm, stronger beers seem to be more susceptible too but 5.7% isn't really that strong. Unfortunately, the only remedy for this would be time, maybe several months, and even then it might not age out fully.
 
I reckon it did get a little hot for a few hours at one point Maybe up to 28. Guess that's what it might be then. I'm going to bring it indoors to try to get the carbonation up and then just store it for a couple of months. Give it another try in June.
 
Yeah 28c is very high, was this near the start of fermentation? If so then that's your issue, the high temp causes fusel alcohols to form. Over time, they can lessen but might never fully clear. Keep it, try a bottle a month and see if it improves. What was the temperature the rest of the time?
 
As Zephyr suggested, fermentation temperature is the most likely cause of the "boozy" taste.

The taste is caused by fusil alcohols and elevated ester levels, fusils impart a hot/boozy/fuel like taste at high levels.

Your fermenter, at its most active can easily be 2°C or more above ambient room temperature. So it's worth keeping an eye on the temp inside the brew. Stick on thermometers give a reasonable indication of temps.

Ideal fermentation temperatures vary depending on yeast strains and target beer style. For example;

American West Coast Style IPA's and Pales typically use a clean yeast strain( US-05 is popular) fermented at the lower end of an ale fermentation temperature range to really let the hops shine.

As others have suggested extended time in the fermenter really does aid beer that is produced without temperature control as it gives the yeast time to clean up.
 
What kind of temperature should I be aiming for with the pale brews then? My airing cupboard tends to sit between 18 and 22. I'm considering getting a brew fridge and an inkbird thermometer jobby in conjunction with the brew belt I have in the garage. Good idea?
 
18c - 22c is a good range for a lot of yeasts, but fermentation could easily push that up to where yeast might get stressed or just make a fruitier beer than expected. I've had good experience with Wyeast West Yorkshire yeast, but I've kept it at 18 - 19c for both brews so far (porter and stout so could be masking esters), some folks have said it gets very estery at 20c+ to a point where they don't like the beer. I'm brewing a bitter soon and I'm gonna test this yeast at 20c which should give a fairer example of the esters.

Look up the yeast you're using and the manufacturer will give ideal temperature ranges.
 
Ok, thanks for that. I'd been getting it all wrong in thinking 18-25 was what I needed. Might rethink where I'm storing my fermentation vessel.
 

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