SFGiantsFan925
Well-Known Member
Hey all. Just finished brewing my first ever batch today. It was many things. A fun time of course, along with a great learning experience and a bit of work but all in all a success ( I think). So heres my problem. I got a kit from MoreBeer for a Citra Pale Ale. Its a Citra Hop based Pale Ale. I followed the directions perfectly, didnt miss any steps, and all went well. The kit recipe states the OG should be 1.045-1.055. Well, after cooling down the wort to a nice 60 deg F, it was giving me an OG reading of 1.068-1.070. That seems way off to me.
So, I went to tastybrew.com and used their calculator. Using my ingredients, it looks like I am right where it should be. So, heres the thing. Do you think they just used a basic Pale Ale OG reading and plugged it into the recipe? Or do you think I messed it up somehow? Im thinking all should be fine, just a higher ABV. Is it okay???
Heres the recipe:
I started the boil with 6 gal. and ended up with just under 5 gal. in my carboy. Ended with probably 4.9 gal.
Extract:
8lb LME
4oz Maltodextrin ( I did use this, but now thinking I didnt need it)
Steeping:
8oz White Wheat
8oz Carapils
12oz Crystal 15L
Hops:
0.5oz Magnum @ 60 min
1 oz Citra @ 20 min (recipe said 15min, I did 20)
1oz Citra @ 5 min
Whirlfloc tablet @ 5 min (used 1/2 tablet)
Yeast: Came with Safale, but I used a liquid White Labs California Ale WLP001
I steeped the grain for about 30 minutes. Removed. Brought to boil. Shut off heat, added LME, Dextrin, 1st hop. Boiled, Second hop @ 20, then Third hop @ 5 and Whirlfloc. Removed from heat, ice bath to cool.
So, do you think this recipe should be fine? Any concerns with the OG being that high?? It seems rather high for a Pale. I prefer IPA's and Pales, so maybe it will be fine. Just hope its not too malty/ sweet. Any ideas??
Oh and one other question. After cooling the wort, I transfered to a sanitized bucket. I then did back and forth "dumps" from kettle to bucket to aerate. This was a suggested method from the book "How to Brew". This created a LOT of foam. More than I was expecting. Which tells me aeration is happening, but it made the transfer from bucket to carboy interesting as foam was flowing out the top to make room for the liquid. Is this normal? Any other suggested aeration techniques that wont create so much foam??
Thanks in advance! Patience seems to be key to this whole process. Hard not to want instant results with your first brew haha.
So, I went to tastybrew.com and used their calculator. Using my ingredients, it looks like I am right where it should be. So, heres the thing. Do you think they just used a basic Pale Ale OG reading and plugged it into the recipe? Or do you think I messed it up somehow? Im thinking all should be fine, just a higher ABV. Is it okay???
Heres the recipe:
I started the boil with 6 gal. and ended up with just under 5 gal. in my carboy. Ended with probably 4.9 gal.
Extract:
8lb LME
4oz Maltodextrin ( I did use this, but now thinking I didnt need it)
Steeping:
8oz White Wheat
8oz Carapils
12oz Crystal 15L
Hops:
0.5oz Magnum @ 60 min
1 oz Citra @ 20 min (recipe said 15min, I did 20)
1oz Citra @ 5 min
Whirlfloc tablet @ 5 min (used 1/2 tablet)
Yeast: Came with Safale, but I used a liquid White Labs California Ale WLP001
I steeped the grain for about 30 minutes. Removed. Brought to boil. Shut off heat, added LME, Dextrin, 1st hop. Boiled, Second hop @ 20, then Third hop @ 5 and Whirlfloc. Removed from heat, ice bath to cool.
So, do you think this recipe should be fine? Any concerns with the OG being that high?? It seems rather high for a Pale. I prefer IPA's and Pales, so maybe it will be fine. Just hope its not too malty/ sweet. Any ideas??
Oh and one other question. After cooling the wort, I transfered to a sanitized bucket. I then did back and forth "dumps" from kettle to bucket to aerate. This was a suggested method from the book "How to Brew". This created a LOT of foam. More than I was expecting. Which tells me aeration is happening, but it made the transfer from bucket to carboy interesting as foam was flowing out the top to make room for the liquid. Is this normal? Any other suggested aeration techniques that wont create so much foam??
Thanks in advance! Patience seems to be key to this whole process. Hard not to want instant results with your first brew haha.