Just popped the cap on my irish red

On 3/22 I went to my favorite not-so-L HBS and asked for some help putting together an Irish red. Gentleman at Weak Knee Brewshop in Pennsylvania near my inlaws (and I don't say gentleman ironically. He's truly wonderful to do business with) was a whirling dervish, grinding grains, writing down the recipe and grain bill, and being a general mensch. He bagged me up 2 gallon batches worth in separate bags. I am drinking the fruits of this labor (the first batch at least) as I type.

Problem. Abbreviations. I dont know what all of these abbreviations mean.

Grainbill:

2oz RB
2oz SpB
4oz CR
4oz ARO
2.5 lb Pale ale malt (he wrote that one out... thank god)

A little help with abbreviations would be appreciated.

So... I did a 3 week ferment and then the rest of that time (sans the 48 hour "chill" period, was spent bottle conditioning. I used just under .8oz corn-sugar in the priming.

Things I noticed. It primed nicely, but the head died almost immediately. The beer is as cloudy as mud. Flavor, as is typical with a CreamyGoodness brew... is excellent, but visuals (and head) are lacking.

Any suggestions?

Thanks folks.

RB is roasted barley
SpB is special B
CR is Carared
ARO is aromatic.

All pretty common in an Irish Red.

Give it some more time at 70 degrees for the carbonation to get better. A low carbed beer like that will improve with a little more time.

Welcome to the addiction errrrrI mean hobby.

Sounds like those bottles need more time at room temp.

Is the slow carb'ing typical of this beer? I have an Irish Red that's been in the bottle for 3weeks. So far two bottles have been carb'ed okay & three have been almost flat. I've been assuming the priming sugar solution just didn't mix well and that may very well be true but is there a tendency for Irish Reds to carb up slowly?

Sorry, don't mean to hijack the thread...

Now that I think about it, with the other batch still in its fermenter... should I wait for that one to clear IN PRIMARY before bottling? I know these are all n00b questions, but I spent the first year brewing making JAOM .

boondocksaint said:

Is the slow carb'ing typical of this beer? I have an Irish Red that's been in the bottle for 3weeks. So far two bottles have been carb'ed okay & three have been almost flat. I've been assuming the priming sugar solution just didn't mix well and that may very well be true but is there a tendency for Irish Reds to carb up slowly?

Sorry, don't mean to hijack the thread...

Click to expand...

No, My Irish reds always carb within 7 days.

CreamyGoodness said:

Now that I think about it, with the other batch still in its fermenter... should I wait for that one to clear IN PRIMARY before bottling? I know these are all n00b questions, but I spent the first year brewing making JAOM .

Click to expand...

It is best for the beer to settle clear before botting, you can speed this process up by cold crashing a few days before bottling. Also if you do not get the beer chilled fast enough, chill haze will keep the beer looking cloudy until the beer has been chilled in the fridge for 1-2 weeks.

So perhaps next week Ill put my fermenter in an ice bath rather than the fridge for more rapid chilling.

Its like... a flash lagering... I think...?