Brewing Master

Question:

I have brewed about six abstract brews and one partial mash.  All have a distinct bitterness that I believe is due to astringency.  It also may be due to the brewing temps (ale brews at 70 – 75 F).  The flavor is much stronger with the partial mash, and what I have read on the net is that this could be due to the tannins in the husks of the grain. How do I reduce the amount of tannins in my final product? Thanks, Will

You wouldn’t be getting astringincy due to tannin extraction from extract brewing. Since it is stronger with a Mash, it could be a factor. However, the underlying cause is most likely your water. How high is its Sulfate content? Sulfates combine with the Hops compounds to produce, what is described as, a harsh dry bitterness. Your water could also be encouraging tannin extraction if it is too alkaline during the mash.   Read Miller, The Complete Handbook of HB for more info. Metallurgist for International Space Station Alpha My file, How to Brew Your First Beer, containing info on equipment, terms, brewing processes and troubleshooting, is available via FTP from Homebrew/Docs at sierra.stanford.edu or via WWW on Spencer’s Beer Page at

http://guraldi.itn.med.umich.edu/Beer/

Response:

I have brewed about six abstract brews and one partial mash.  All have a distinct bitterness that I believe is due to astringency.  It also may be due to the brewing temps (ale brews at 70 – 75 F).  The flavor is much stronger with the partial mash, and what I have read on the net is that this could be due to the tannins in the husks of the grain. How do I reduce the amount of tannins in my final product?

Astringency and bitterness are not the same thing.  Astringency is the drying effect of some substances on the inside of your mouth. If your problem is really with astringency and is worse with partial mash beers, I am guessing that you are either overheating your grain (e.g. following a certain person’s advice to bring water to a boil with the grains in it) or that you are sparging too hot or with high pH water. Check out the files at Sierra for the proper way to treat grains. If you problem is bitterness, there are three sources that I can think of: 1) Too much bittering hops.  Use less. 2) Too much Mg/SO4 in water.  Are you adding gypsum or epsom salts?  Stop. 3) Is the bitterness harsh and clinging rather than clean and crisp?  Then maybe the trouble is allowing trub into the fermenter.  Change your methods. Jeremy Bergsman

Response:

 WB I have brewed about six abstract brews Those darn abstract brews.  So hard to pin them down.  Mostly academics are responsible for the abstractness, but sometimes it is the federal government, too.  <grin  (Sorry)  WB All have a distinct bitterness that I believe is due  WB to astringency.  It also may be due to the brewing temps  WB (ale brews at 70 – 75 F).  The flavor is much stronger with  WB the partial mash, and what I have read on the net is that  WB this could be due to the tannins in the husks of the  WB grain.  WB How do I reduce the amount of tannins in my final product? Well, you have no control over tannins in your extract-only brews.  With partial mashes you can control the tannins extracted by keeping the temperature down or keeping the PH in the safe range. You can also get astringency from bacterial infection. Another source of astringency is oxidation.   I would check your procedures carefully for the latter two–sanitation and introduction of air. John Fidonet:  John DeCarlo 1:109/131

Response:

I have brewed about six abstract brews and one partial mash.  All have a distinct bitterness that I believe is due to astringency.  It also may be due to the brewing temps (ale brews at 70 – 75 F).  The flavor is much stronger with the partial mash, and what I have read on the net is that this could be due to the tannins in the husks of the grain. How do I reduce the amount of tannins in my final product? Thanks, Will

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