First AG brews coming out watery

[Derick_Z]

I just tried my first two AG brews, and they're both...disappointing. I'm fairly sure the first is because of a bad recipe that swmbo tried to invent, but the second was a hefe. I used 6lbs Pilsener and 6lbs wheat, with 1oz of hallertauer at 60 mins with a 90 minute boil. Mashed for an hour, but I don't quite recall the temp. I believe it was about 154 or 153. It has the clove taste I was expecting, but is much cloudier than anticipated and has a very watered down taste.

Any ideas? I'm not sure what went wrong.. I just brewed an extract hefe before these two and it was delicious, but these are both quite bland and watery.

 

[SiriusStarr]

is much cloudier than anticipated and has a very watered down taste.

Cloudier than anticipated for a heff?

I assume you checked your OG to make certain you hit your desired OG?

 

[Derick_Z]

I've had hefes, but this is *really* cloudy. Maybe it's because I'm kegging and it's drawing sediment off the bottom, but that still doesn't explain the watery flavor. It's also quite a bit lighter than I expected. My OG was a bit low, but still like 1.048 if I remember correctly (my brew sheet is in another city right now).

I believe the ABV is like 4.8%

 

[SiriusStarr]

Mashing at a lower temperature (149-152 F, to pick an arbitrary range) during the sacch rest can lead to a more fermentable wort, and thus less residuals sweetness and potentially less body in the final product, so if your temperature was lower than you thought, that could cause some perceived "wateriness". Extract often (though not always) is less fermentable, so would lead to more residual sweetness (and potentially less body) than an equivalent AG beer. However I personally have not had any issues since switching to AG.

EDIT: My AG brews have been more cloudy than my extract ones initially, but have cleared up equally if not better after a week in the fridge in bottles, so if this is a brand new beer, it's possible there is still some stuff floating around that will crash out. FWIW, I also use Whirlfloc, so that may or may not help.

 

[Derick_Z]

Yeah I had read that on another site, but I'm fairly certain my temp was good.. It was frigid out during the brew, so it dropped 2 or 3 degrees during the mash, but I started at about 156 and it dropped to 153ish. I'm fairly confident about the temp, as I put the probe directly in the middle of the mash and stirred every 20 or 30 minutes.

 

[BigRob]

Did you check to make sure your thermometer was calibrated before mashing? Also, if it's one of those Oven/bbq thermometers, and you haven't waterproofed it beyond how it came out of the box, water can get inside the probe and make the readings wholly inaccurate.

 

[Derick_Z]

I compared it to my glass thermometer and they both returned the same result earlier today in a glass of water in the kegerator at 40 degrees. It has a metal probe about 4 or 5 inches long then curves and the wire goes into it. I made sure to not submerge the entire probe and just put the metal part into the mash, but I have had issues with submerging it before. I fixed it by putting it in the oven low heat for a while and it works like a charm now.

 

[Spintab]

Pretty sure this is fairly common till you get your all grain legs. I know my first couple were pretty watery too but they got better over time. Keep in mind, extract is "perfectly" mashed and tortured until it contains the most sugar possible. Like SiriusStarr said, the torture leaves is less fermentable and your beer with more body.

How long have they been in the keg? Key there is let it sit for a couple weeks then use your first pint or two to clear out all the crap on the bottom. I guarantee the last pint from both will be clear as glass.

 

[Derick_Z]

I kegged them both on the 8th and transported them on the 9th by car for about an hour drive. They've been in the fridge at 40 degrees for 2 days now. I know that's way too little time, but my last extract hefe (and the first beer I ever kegged) was in the fermenter for 5 days then kegged, started drinking less than 24 hours later and it was amazing. The carbonation is good because I burst it for a bit at 30.

So you think time will solve it? What should I do in future batches to correct it if it never gets better?

 

[Spintab]

Yeah, give them both a couple weeks and a few pint pulls each before getting too worried. I usually use whirfloc too except on hefes. It definitely helps. Time will help fill the wateryness out. I've got a scotch ale that I thought was going to be watery and not good at first. A month or so in the keg and it's considerably more full bodied.

Edit: If time doesn't help, try mashing a little hotter but use a bigger mash to account for less fermentable wort.

 

[SiriusStarr]

I kegged them both on the 8th and transported them on the 9th by car for about an hour drive. They've been in the fridge at 40 degrees for 2 days now. I know that's way too little time, but my last extract hefe (and the first beer I ever kegged) was in the fermenter for 5 days then kegged, started drinking less than 24 hours later and it was amazing. The carbonation is good because I burst it for a bit at 30.

So you think time will solve it? What should I do in future batches to correct it if it never gets better?

Time will definitely help cure the cloudiness issue. My AG beers have taken 1-2 weeks at fridge temperatures to reach maximum clarity. It's possible time will help with the wateriness issue too.

All I can say is stick with it; it's definitely worth it and beats the pants off of extract, personally.

 

[Derick_Z]

I usually use whirfloc, but forgot to pick it up this time. Should I leave the kegs in the fridge or take them out and let them age at room temp?

EDIT: Thanks so much for all the help! I'll stop drinking them for a little while and see how they taste later.