Citra IPA off taste and consistency

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ShaunLK

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This is my first attempt at a home brew.
I have made a Citra IPA with a starter kit, Dry malt extract and citra hops.
Beer was fermented for 10 days, fermented slowed and hops were added. Bottled unfiltered after 13 days when hydrometer reading stabilised. Kept at room temperature that read 20-22 degrees Celsius. I made a mistake of adding the priming sugar before fermentation during initial setup. I used 140g of boiled sucrose to prime the bottles after.

I only left the bottles to condition for one week at room temperature no cold crashing before tasting as I was eager to see how it’s going. The beer is quite cloudy and nearly has a thickness to it, there is a slight nearly off taste to it. Beer is still very nice but I’m wondering, do the bottles just need more time to condition?
 
Yes. Give the bottles at least two weeks at normal room temperature to carbonate and then store cool for another 2-4 weeks to clear and condition. The beer may never fully clear depending on the recipe but it will be more clear than it is at the moment.
 
I continue to bottle and keg, but for the last four batches I have bottled I have introduced a mandatory two weeks in fridge after the two weeks at room temperature ( as advocated by HB above) which seems to make a difference over my previous process of just storing in garage and drinking.

Stick with it sounds like you like your first go
 
Kept at room temperature that read 20-22 degrees Celsius..... there is a slight nearly off taste to it.
That's a bit warm and probably explains the off-flavours. Fermentation produces heat so your wort can be several degrees above room temperature. Depending on your yeast strain, you can start getting off-flavours at liquid temperatures above 19-20C or so.

But it's not easy at this time of year if you don't have temperature control - historically brewing just stopped over the summer, there are strains adapted to higher temperatures (but have their own issues) or you just use a really clean yeast like a 34/70 where an increased level of off-flavours is coming from such a low base that it doesn't really matter.
 
Try using Novolager Yeast it will tolerate higher temps but if you have a garage they are usually a bit cooler even in the hot weather. I have used it and it is good for me as I have no full temp control and produces a reasonable Lager
 
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