I made an Irish Red again as I usually do this time of year because one of my dads friends always requests it for his party.
Well my father in law thinks it's a little bland. It was just carbonated and hasn't cleared up totally yet. I was getting plenty of bready and toast malt flavors with a bit of bitterness to back it up. Overall I think it's a very well made beer. I changed the recipe up a little. I usually use roasted barley to get the color, but it's really easy to get the acrid roast to come through too much. So I switched up to midnight wheat. I think it was a good change. The toast flavor is good and the color is pretty red.
I'll post a pic when I can get a clear glass.
I'm serving some this weekend and I need to transfer to a smaller keg. I'm thinking about using the hop rocket and pushing it through with some english hops to really give a nice earthy hop character and make it a little more interesting. The event is a competition, but I'm not sure my beer will stand out enough to come close to winning. It's a combination judges choice and peoples choice comp. I'm thinking a little hop character in the nose might help. It's a completely quaffable beer.
Recipe...92% Maris Otter
6% C-55
2% Midnight Wheat
Nugget @ 60, 21 IBU
EKG @ 20, 5 IBU
OG - 1.052
FG - 1.012
14.5 SRM
WYeast 1084, Irish Ale Yeast
Mine finished a little lower at 1.010. Might be a little too dry if anything, though the esters add some sweetness.
Any ideas?