I just brewed my first NB extract and I chose the Pliny Legacy due to my love of the original and IPA’s in general. I just had my first drink day and it came out ‘almost’ perfectly. I would say every aspect of the beer was a ‘10’ except the finish. The finish was extremely bitter. Unlike anything I have tasted before. An intense bite. Felt great on open, and tasted great, but intense bitterness in the end. How do I fix it in future batches? Please note I did the extended version of the instructions in each stage–2 weeks primary, 4 weeks in secondary, maxed the dry hop stages, etc. I could not help but wonder if going the extra time was why. Are certain hops in the recipe more bitter than others (maybe even the Hop Shot)? Do I need to give it more time to mellow? The beer is somewhat hazy, which could be hop suspension, is this why? I don’t want to suggest this came out bad because I will drink them all, but just looking for ways to improve future batches. Thanks for any advice!
It could be a water composition issue, but the simplest fix would be to cut the bittering addition by 25-50% or so. Do I recall correctly that this beer has Columbus bittering hops added @ 90 minutes? I am not in favor of doing that AT ALL on a homebrew scale. The longest I will boil hops is 60 minutes, even on the biggest baddest IIPA. Better yet, use a hop shot/hop extract at 60 minutes.
It is a 90 minute boil. Hop Shot is added at the beginning plus 1/4 oz Amarillo hops. 1 oz. Columbus goes in with 45 minutes to go. 1 oz. Simcoe with 20 minutes to go. After the boil one does a hop stand before cold crashing which also adds 1.5 oz Centennial and 2.5 oz. Simcoe. Someone at NB told me that the bitterness can only really come from the boil. Is that true?
this is true if what you are perceiving is hop bitterness and not bitterness caused but something else. If the bitterness is more of an “astringent” bitterness then this could come from tannin extraction from your steeping grains. What temp and volume of water did you steep your grains in?
It feels like a ‘hop’ bitterness. It does not feel unusual as in caused by something else. If that helps. I followed directions on steeping: 20 minutes with a temp that rose from about 120 to 170 in that time. Also, taste test done after primary and secondary did not exhibit the bitter I am noting now if that helps.
You can get bitterness at temps over 185.
The temp is definitely above 185 as it is a 90 minute full boil.
I believe this is referring to flameout/whirlpool additions. I usually add those after bringing the wort temp down to about 180 degrees so as to not add bitterness, just flavor/aroma.
I believe this is referring to flameout/whirlpool additions. I usually add those after bringing the wort temp down to about 180 degrees so as to not add bitterness, just flavor/aroma.[/quote]
That’s what I was referring to.
This is not true. Like I said earlier if the temp is over 185 you can get ibu’s. Some beers are made with only flame out/whirlpool additions and they are plenty bitter. Also I’ve heard vinnie from Russian river talk about dry hopping giving perceived bitterness (I.e. Beer taste more bitter after dry hopping even though ibu’s stay the same).
Most people talk about dry hopping giving aroma(which it does), but I find I get as much added flavor as I do aroma. Ymmv
