Ales end up always more bitter than id like

[Covey]

Its seems ever time i do an AG ale, i end up with a very bitter pale ale which smells nices but the hop aromas are losing out to bi tterness, i have tried using hops only from 30 min but still seem to over bitter. Any suggestions please, were talking about normal cascade citra etc
Thanks
Covey

[irish_goat]

Can you post up a recipe?

[DEMPSEY]

If you use high alpha acid hops and the new types of varieties then they want to shine. Try using fuggles and goldings for a good standard ale. Is your ale pale or red and how low are you fermenting it. A beer with a finish of 1015/16 will have a good malt sweetness that will shine.

[Covey]

Astronaught Ale

5kg Pale Malt
0.3kg Crystal 40
50g Crystal 80
75g Bicsect malt
30g wheat



10g of Citra and Galaxy @25
30g Citra and Galaxy @ 15
3030g Citra and Galaxy @ 0

OG:0.1065
FG:0.1005




I just let my beers finish where they like gravity wise, should i be stoping them from droping too low, was also thinking of using some honey malt if i can get some to add some sweetness

[irish_goat]

That seems quite low. I'd guess that more malt character would balance out the beer and you'd not perceive the bitterness as much.

How quick do you chill? If it takes you a while to get the beer chilled the hops are sitting longer in hot wort and more bitterness ends up getting extracted as well.

[Garry]

Your mash temp might be a bit low? That would give you a more fermentable wort and a lower final gravity.

I don't think that would have any effect on the bittering though.

[Covey]

Takes about 30 min to cool, which seems ok, are the hop adittion ok not to crazy, i did want a hoppy beer, in the end i could dry hop beacuase i thought it would have worsen the taste.

[Garry]

I assume the last hop addition (0 min) is 30g and not 3.03kg?

If so, it doesn't sound like a lot to me. Do you have any bittering hop addition at 60min?

[Eoin]

As Dempsey says, try an English old school hop, Challenger is great in bitters. The hops you are choosing are forward types.

[DEMPSEY]

was thinking that 3030g of hops would be the killer here alright . All the nice malt sweetness is fermented awat at 1005. You must be mashing a bit low. Try the same beer again doing all the the same temp's again and use Windsor yeast.

[TheSumOfAllBeers]

How are you chilling the beer? Do you use a chiller, when do you start it chilling, and how long does it take?

I passively chill, and I am noticing a trend that my beers always come out over bitter, unless I really dial back the 60 minute hops, and extract the hop bags at flame out.

Also - Galaxy is a high AA hop, you need to be a bit careful with it.

Also, your yeast may be stripping out your late additions. S-04 flocs fast, but that means it also takes a lot of hop oils with it as the yeast drops out.

[delzep]

Try US-05 instead

[TheSumOfAllBeers]

Try US-05 instead

Yes, that is a good idea. It will isolate any problems with your process that is promoting bitterness rather than hop flavour. There is a really good aussie beer out there, (Stone & Wood Pale Ale) that uses US-05, but with all galaxy. Clone recipes for the galaxy use are within your schedule.

[Covey]

I use an immersion Copper chiller takes about 20-30min to cool, last brew I did I added
15g Cascade @ 60 I like an bit of bitter bite (betty ate a bit of bitter butter :.....)
15g Cascade @ 30
30g Cascade @ Flameout then
Then when I tried experiment where when i was draining to the fermenter I put a muslin bag full of hop so the cool wort had to drain through the hops before getting to the fermenter, I am hoping this will give a fresh hop zing.

[TheSumOfAllBeers]

Then when I tried experiment where when i was draining to the fermenter I put a muslin bag full of hop so the cool wort had to drain through the hops before getting to the fermenter, I am hoping this will give a fresh hop zing.

No Chillers have another similar option - dispense with all late hop additions, and just put a muslin bag into the cube, full of all your late hops.

Might try it tonight with a Kiwi hopped pale ale I am doing tonight.