HELP!!!!
So to continue this thread... I just opened my C&C Hop Factory IPA. Very disappointed...
Here are the beer notes:
1 Gallon All Grain batch based on 70% efficiency:
Brewed 5/10/12
Malts and Fermentables
American (Pale 2-Row) 2.30 lb
American Munich Dark 20L- 0.20 lb
American Caramel/Crystal Malt 40L- 0.10 lb
Hops
Chinook- .10 oz @ 60 min.
Cascade- .20 oz @ 20 min.
Chinook- .20 oz @ 10 min.
Cascade- .20 oz @ 10 min.
Misc.
1/5 Whirlflock Tablet @ 15 min.
Yeast
Safale US-05- Per MrMalty, pitch 0.2 packets (rounded to .5)
Dry Hop
Chinook- .10 oz for 7 days
Cascade- .10 oz for 7 days
(Based on 70% efficiency)
Target OG: 1.067
My OG: 1.067
Target FG: 1.019
My FG: 1.015
Strike temp 156.7
Mash temp 152
I fermented at 64 for 2 weeks to FG, then dry hopped as outlined.
On 5/31/12, I cold crashed until 6/3/12
Bottled using the following info from Tastybrew:
*Note that when I tasted it at bottling time, it was nice, bitter, and tasted like a flat IPA should taste like*
Bottling. Per priming calculator:
Style: IPA
Amount to be bottled: 0.85 gallons
Warmest Temperature achieved: 78 (this was the temp the beer achieved when dry hopping after 2 weeks of primary fermentation)
Corn Sugar needed: .5 oz
Using: Spring water
Due to prior overcarbonation problems, I'm bottling using 25% less than .5 oz, or .38 oz 10.77 grams). Used 11 grams.
Will let condition for 3 weeks and try one. Date to put first in fridge is 6/24/12
I put my first in the fridge on 6/28/12 (25 days of bottle conditioning at 75+ degrees), and cracked it open tonight, 6/30/12 (a full 48 hours after putting the beer in the fridge). Here are my tasting notes:
Appearance: Nice hiss when opened the bottle. Seemed a little aggressive. Was waiting for a gusher but didn't happen. The beer poured a nice fluffy, full finger creamy head. Dark amber copper color in the glass. Not clear, but not cloudy. Looks very nice in the tulip glass. Nice lasting head and some minimal lacing.
Aroma: Aroma smells kind of "clean", a little metallic and a tad bit sour in the nose. A very smalll hint of grapefruit, but not a whole lot coming through. Not a powerful aroma at all for an IPA.
Taste: Taste is fizzy, clean, sharp, and bland. When I burp, I have the same aftertaste as I normally experience. Nothing impressive at all about the taste. Just tastes like a bland, carbonated IPA with some hints of seltzer.
Mouthfeel: Crisp and fizzy. Almost has a seltzer-like quality to it. Tangy, sharp, and a little sour on the sides of the tongue.
Overall: Taste is non-existent. Mouthfeel is sharp and twangy. Unfortunately, not very good.
I
I'd like to revisit this post, and would ask for one of the veterans in here to maybe offer some help.
It seems to me like what I'm describing is this:
ASTRINGENT
CHARACTERISTICS: Unlike bitterness, astringency is present as a stimulation of the nerve endings throughout the mouth. It is not an aroma. The taste is a puckering, dry, unpleasant situation. It is a very acidic, tannic, tart sensation reminiscent of grape skins.
CAUSES: Bacterial contamination (lactobacillus and acetobacter); added astringency from grains or hops.
PROCESS: Caused by: poor sanitation; excessive hopping; excessive wort attenuation (small dextrin content) giving greater perception of astringent; boiling grains; excessive grain crushing; too high a lauter run-off temperature (170 degrees max); to much run-off in lautering; letting beer sit too long on trub; non-blowoff primary fermentation; alkaline mash or runoff water; too much sulfate, magnesium or iron; excessively high acidity.
REDUCTION: Process changes to eliminate the above. Crack grain properly, watch mash/runoff pH, 170 degrees maximum for lauter runoff water, use blowoff fermentation; good sanitation practice.
EXAMPLES: Young wine and grape skins; blowout from primary fermentation.
I'm very careful with sanitizing, however, there is 1 thing that I do that may be causing me problems. Since I only brew 1 gallon batches, I value my hydrometer samples, and therefore, pour them GENTLY back into my beer. I oftentimes try to pour it gently against the glass of the carboy so it drizzles down in, rather than splashing. However, I've read that oxidation tastes like wet cardboard, and I've never experienced that flavor. So is pouring the hydrometer sample back in really causing an astringent off flavor?
The only other thing I could see is that since I'm only doing 1 gallon batches, and leaving ALL of my beers on the yeast for a minimum of 3 weeks. Per the above, it says under "Process"- "letting the beer sit too long on trub." Maybe because my batches are so small, 3 weeks is too long, and it's causing this flavor?
I can't think of anything else. I use bottled spring water. My kettle is cleaned with a soft sponge (stainless steel kettle). I use spring water for my priming sugar.
While I still do have inconsistent carbonation, my plan is to use the syringe idea previously mentioned. I think I'm going to make my priming sugar water as always, then measure out how much of it I have. Then I'm going to divide it by 9 (the normal amount of beers I get out of my batches), and use that measurement to fill each bottle with priming sugar water before I rack to each bottle. Once capped, I'll turn them upside down a few times to have everything mix in. This will assure equal distribution of priming sugar.
I HOPE to eliminate that issue, but now I'm wondering about this astrigency thing. However, several people have told me that overcarbonation can lead to "carbonic bite," which could also be what I'm experiencing.
Would appreciate any thoughts...Thank you!