Last two pale ales I tried are aromatically exactly what I want. Pungent hop aromas. But the taste just isn't there. I tried two different methods for them as far as late hops goes. First one was 60/whirlpool and heavy dry hop and the latest one was 60/15/whirlpool and heavy dry hop. Still not getting that hop flavor. Any ideas on what it could be?
Lets see the recipes. I still like a 30 min addition. I didn't use one on my last pale ale and found it lacking in flavor. I do fwh, 30, 10, 0, hopstand. Its antiquated, but I like some aggressive hop flavors and bitterness in my pales, so it works for me.
2 row pale/Munich/Carapils/White Wheat - Magnum at 60, Citra, Mosaic, Amarillo at WP and dry hop. 2nd was same grist, Magnum at 60, Citra, Nelson at 15, Citra, Nelson, Hallertau Blanc at WP and dry hop. Like I said, aromatically it's outstanding, just seems like there's little hop flavor.
For taste I like the 15-5-flame out. That gives good flavor to my tastebuds. I also agree with @SFACRKnight On 30 minute additions. The 30 minute addition adds flavor as well as bittering. My favorite hopping schedule is 60-30-15-5-FO and a 3-5 day dry hop. For me it's perfect.
Sure, I used to mash at 160 which leaves a lot of non fermentables in the wort, thus covering up hopping effects. Also, I used to use 1 lb per specialty malt, sometimes up to 3 lbs per 5 gallon batch for a pale or IPA. Now I mash at 148-150 and use half or less ofthe specialty grains and get more Hoppy brews. I have dry hopped for 3 to 10 days sometimes 1 addition and for the longer DH multipal. In the end, you need to experiment and find what combo is best for you. Have fun!!!
Whirlpool i cool down to 185-180 and steep for 20 minutes. This is the method I use as a professional brewer and it works wonders but can't seem to get it done on the homebrew level. Dry hopping i use a mesh bag for 4-5 days. I should say I bag everything to get more wort. Maybe that is effecting my hop utilization?
Yep we bag everything since we're a small system and our plate chiller isn't of the highest quality so it easily gets clogged. Only thing we do not bag is the dry hop.
Assuming the same recipe brewed on the pro system is exactly as the home brew version, I'd guess the bag, but it seems something else may be in play. Again I assume your grain and hops are the same for pro and home brew. Not different sources and or manufacturers. I am not a water adjuster, but if you are, are both waters used the same?
I actually use the water from our brewery and treat it the exact same way. You can see why I'm so puzzled by this haha
I think on the next batch I'm just going to dump the hops in and I will adjust Beersmith for the trub loss. That's definitely the best way to get everything out of your hops.
Yeah, I'm stumped with the info that's been given. Only thing I could guess would be the geometry of the bag vs smaller batch as mentioned before.
