How do I reduce bitterness in my homebrewed beer during or after fermentation ?

Question

I put too much hop extract in my fermentation bin by accident before adding the yeast!!! (I know I should have added the hop at the end of the fermentation but I messed up) and I am scared the batch will come out pretty bitter. Is there any way to neutralise the hop or adjust the taste before it's too late? I don't suppose the yeast will chew up the hop during fermentation. Today it's the second day of my fermentation. Thanx in advance !!!

Ryan G, thank you for your help, this is an english bitter (dark malt) that I made with regular (top) yeast at 1.055 starting gravity shooting for ~7% vol alcohol content. I am thinking about adding some gypsum to increase hardness and hopefully precipitate some of the hops...what do you think ?

Answer 1

Unfortunately, there is no easy answer here- the only two ways to reduce bitterness are:

-By blending with another beer at bottling time.
-Age. The bitterness will decrease pretty noticably by the time fermentation is over with, and will continue to slowly degrade over time. I've got a batch of raspberry stout right now that I think I put in probably 50% more hops than I really should have, and I plan on letting it sit on the raspberries for another 6 months before I even think about bottling. What type of beer is it & how many IBUs does it work out to now? What was the gravity? Yeast type?

One thing *not* to do is start throwing in al sorts of flavors like fruits or spices, as it will likely compound the problem. Specialty beers like that really require a light touch with the hops.

Answer 2

I'm a hop head, so send it to me and I'll drink it.

Answer 3

drink it with a really spicy dish.. maybe a burning building with a side of gasoline.. you wont taste a thing wrong with your beer.