Homebrewing Update: Imperial Pale Ale and a Hefeweizen

I unveiled my first ever homebrew for some friends this past weekend.I tasted it about a week and a half ago and was pleased that it tasted like beer, was carbonated and good, but tasted a bit too strong alcohol wise. I knew it would be a strong beer, it’s an Imperial Pale Ale, but it tasted too much like alcohol. I let it sit in the bottles a while longer (the kit I used  recommended aging it a month which it has know been) and it mellowed out a bit. I like how it turned out. It’s hoppier than most pale ales, but not as hoppy as an IPA. It tastes a bit stronger alcohol-wise, but I don’t know what it is for sure as my hydrometer broke when I was brewing it so I didn’t get an original gravity reading. According to the kit I bought it should be around 6-7% ABV. Everyone that tried it liked it and I was pleased myself.

So before even drinking a substansial amount of my first brew, I started a second. A couple weeks ago I brewed up a hefeweizen, and bottled it a few days ago. I’m not a big fan of wheat beers, but we’re planning on throwing a Fourth of July party and this beer will be more mellow and easier to drink for most people. It should come in around 4.5-5% ABV.

I’m looking forward to seeing how this one turns out, should be ready just in time for the Fourth. I haven’t decided what to brew next, but I’ll get started on something in the next couple of weeks.

Tags: brewer's best kits, fourth of july bayfield colorado, hefeweizen, homebrewed beer, homebrewed imperial pale ale, homebrewing, imperial pale ale

This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 23rd, 2009 at 2:48 pm and is filed under Beer, Homebrew. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.