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You are here: Home --> Forum Home --> Brewing Forum --> Recipe Discussion --> Last minute IPA

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Matt
Charter Member
Normal, IL
341 Posts


As some of you know, I'm bad at brewing IPAs. Seriously can't get the hang of it, no idea why. Hopefully my latest batch turns out better!

Anyways, this Saturday I'm going to introduce two friends to homebrewing, because they've been drinking my beer and enjoy it. They're both IPA fans, go figure, so my standard "Super dark and high gravity" bit isn't going to work. 

I decided that, instead of messing around, I was going to use a recipe that has been ranted and raved about, mainly by Ray, Brulosopher's Lil' Slack IPA. Only problem is my LHBS didn't have the hops, so here is what I'm looking at:

Not the Threesome you were Hoping For IPA
OG: 1.062
FG: 1.014
IBUs: 63
Boil: 60 minutes
Batch 3 gallons
Mash @ 154

Grains
2-Row (80%)
Munich-10L (15%)
Honey Malt (5%)

Hops
Cascade @ FWH (35 IBUs)
Cascade & Centennial @ 20 (28 IBUs)
Cascade & Centennial @ 0 
Cascade & Columbus Dry Hop

Yeast
Vermont Ale Yeast

Other
I dunno man, maybe put a gallon on cherry wood?

Would love some feedback from you experienced IPA people!




Posted 34 days ago.

homebrewdad
Charter Member
Birmingham, AL
2480 Posts


I'm hardly an "experienced IPA person", but I think mine turn out really well.    Disclaimer: mine are moderate in bitterness, big on flavor, huge on aroma.

Nothing wrong with a good c-hop IPA.  I'd push that 20 minute addition to 15, or even 10 minutes - but I love aroma.  Don't even worry about the IBUs there.  You'll get a few out of the flameout/whirlpool stuff, too. 

Dry hop the crap out of it.  I've had great luck with half or so at 5 days dry hop, the other half at 3.  Cold crash for a day or so, then bottle. 



Posted 34 days ago.

Matt
Charter Member
Normal, IL
341 Posts


Awesome, great advice!



Posted 34 days ago.

homebrewdad
Charter Member
Birmingham, AL
2480 Posts


Well, I don't know nearly as much about hoppy beers as some do, but I've had some good luck with the above.



Posted 34 days ago.

chino_brews
Charter Member
Eden Prairie, MN
301 Posts


That recipe should be able to make an amazing IPA.

After having read Mitch Steele's IPA (mostly), I am convinced that a huge part of it has to do with the water. There is a reason that it's the only "brewing to a style" book that gets into water and where the recipes for the most part talk about the liquor. Ever since I started adjusting my water and paying attention to SO4/Cl, my IPAs got about 3x better.




Posted 34 days ago.

vinpaysdoc
Charter Member
High Point, NC
321 Posts


Yeah, I'm about to make one for a party my daughter is throwing at my place in a little over a month. I've weighted the hop schedule in the 15-0 time frame. It's going to be Simcoe/Amarillo and Chico (it's really NOT just to irritate Marshall, the compressor dying on the refrigerator has left me with a lot of dead yeast dammit). Here's my hop schedule:


Simcoe 25 IBU @ 60
Simcoe 0.75 oz @ 15
Amarillo 0.75 oz @ 10
Simcoe  0.75 oz @ 5
Amarillo 1.0 oz @ 0
Simcoe 0.5 oz @ 0


Dry hop with 2 ounces each of Simcoe and Amarillo. This will come out close to 50 IBUs and should be lively for a party at the end of February. It also may keep some of them away from the Baltic Porter I'll be nursing in my glass.....








Posted 34 days ago.

hoppybrewer
Joliet, IL
14 Posts


I agree with homebrewdad and would move that 20 minute addition later.  My last brew used a 60 minute addition to about 75% of my IBU target with large additions (2.5 oz for 3 gallon batch) at flameout and 2 oz dry hopped.  The result was nice, the bitterness was smooth with loads of aroma.  

I like my beers on the dry side so I would recommend subbing out some of your two-row for sugar.
Something like 
2-Row (72%)
Munich-10L (15%)
Sugar (8%)
Honey Malt (5%)




Posted 34 days ago.

Matt
Charter Member
Normal, IL
341 Posts


Awesome advice everyone, thanks!

Chino, now that you're back from the dead, what does your target profile for an IPA look like?




Posted 34 days ago.

Matt
Charter Member
Normal, IL
341 Posts


Side note, may go mosaic simcoe because the LHBS just got them in stock and I love mosaic. 



Posted 34 days ago.

chino_brews
Charter Member
Eden Prairie, MN
301 Posts


My water is fairly good for brewing despite its high pH -- good for light beers and easy to adjust for hoppy or dark beers:


Na  K  Ca  Mg  SO4-S    CL  CO3  HCO3  Total Hardness (CaCO3)  Total Alkalinity

11   2   20  12      8          36     9        34                100                                  43


@NickoSuave311 walked me through my adjustments on a couple brews (one malty and one hoppy) a while back.

For an IPA, I focus on something just under the amber bitter profile on Bru'n Water. I just focus on two ions, one ratio, and mash pH: Calcium at over 55-65 ppm, Sulfate at over 110-120 ppm, SO4:Cl at 2.2-2.3, and estimated mash pH around 5.2.

I want a good calcium level so I can be sure my boil pH will drop into range to give me a good hot break, although it's not really essential to the style.

With my water, I can get there with a simple addition of gypsum and lactic acid, 3 mg/ml of each IIRC for a 5-gallon batch (batch sparging).

It could be in my head, but ever since I started doing these small adjustments, my hops seem to "pop" more and I get a crisper finish on the hop bitterness.

Anyway, @NickoSuave311 is "the man" at helping people with their water.




Posted 34 days ago.

homebrewdad
Charter Member
Birmingham, AL
2480 Posts


>Anyway, @NickoSuave311 is "the man" at helping people with their water.

Vinpaysdoc is no slouch, himself.  I know he is responsible for bringing several of us into the light.

Unsung, I keep reading about this beer... I can't wait to hear how it turns out!


Edit: I'm not that clever.  I just can't type.





Posted 34 days ago.
Edited 34 days ago by homebrewdad

vinpaysdoc
Charter Member
High Point, NC
321 Posts


I see what you did there



"brining" 



Arr, arr, arr




Posted 34 days ago.

mutedog
Washougal, WA
29 Posts


I was totally expecting "Last Minute IPA" to be an IPA that consisted of one ridiculous hop addition at one minute before flameout...



Posted 34 days ago.
Edited 34 days ago by mutedog

rayfound
Charter Member
Riverside, CA
313 Posts


Mosaic is fucking stellar as a dry hop. Just split a batch - half got amarillo/citra, other got Amarillo/mosaic.... The mosaic one is better in every way. 



Posted 34 days ago.

Matt
Charter Member
Normal, IL
341 Posts


Awesome, because I just committed and bought a bunch of Mosaic and Simcoe to use!



Posted 34 days ago.
Edited 34 days ago by Matt

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