Recipe Double-Check

Mashing
1

I’m trying to make a sessionable pale ale that tastes like a grapefruit bomb went off in your mouth. Here’s my first draft. Ideas and feedback appreciated:

[code]BeerSmith 2 Recipe Printout - http://www.beersmith.com
Recipe: Aught Seven
Brewer: Larry Tate
Asst Brewer:
Style: American Pale Ale
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (35.0) Use a plane to remove the peel from two ripe grapefruits. Place the peels in with the dry hops.

Recipe Specifications

Boil Size: 13.61 gal
Post Boil Volume: 12.48 gal
Batch Size (fermenter): 12.00 gal
Bottling Volume: 12.00 gal
Estimated OG: 1.046 SG
Estimated Color: 5.7 SRM
Estimated IBU: 36.4 IBUs
Brewhouse Efficiency: 75.00 %
Est Mash Efficiency: 75.0 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:

Amt Name Type # %/IBU

19 lbs 4.0 oz Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 2 94.3 %
1 lbs 2.7 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt - 40L (40.0 SRM) Grain 3 5.7 %
1.25 oz Chinook [13.00 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 4 27.9 IBUs
1.50 oz Chinook [13.00 %] - Boil 5.0 min Hop 5 6.7 IBUs
1.00 oz Cascade [5.50 %] - Boil 5.0 min Hop 6 1.9 IBUs
2.00 oz Cascade [5.50 %] - Aroma Steep 0.0 min Hop 7 0.0 IBUs
2.00 oz Chinook [13.00 %] - Aroma Steep 0.0 min Hop 8 0.0 IBUs
1.0 pkg California Ale (White Labs #WLP001) [35. Yeast 9 -
2.00 oz Cascade [5.50 %] - Dry Hop 7.0 Days Hop 10 0.0 IBUs
2.00 oz Chinook [13.00 %] - Dry Hop 7.0 Days Hop 11 0.0 IBUs
2.00 Items Grapefruit Peel (Secondary 7.0 days) Spice 12 -

Mash Schedule: Single Infusion, Full Body, Batch Sparge
Total Grain Weight: 20 lbs 6.7 oz

Name Description Step Temperat Step Time
Mash In Add 6.38 gal of water at 168.2 F 156.0 F 60 min

Sparge: Batch sparge with 2 steps (2.87gal, 6.80gal) of 168.0 F water
Notes:

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2

Looks pretty straightforward. The 12gal volume makes it tough to convert to a 5gal recipe (I think in terms of 5 mostly). Modest hop schedule, all in all. I’ve used that much for 5gal batches. I’d maybe bump the IBUs enough to get a BU/GU pof 1.0 anyway (46IBU). Maybe with a FWH or 15min addition to add to flavor. But you know what your taste buds want better than I do.

Definitely want a starter too, but you knew that.

3

that mash temp seems awfully high. Why 156? Most of my hop-forward beers I go 151 (just cuz it sounds so much cooler than 152)…saisons/pilsners I am in the high 140’s.

IMO some of the ‘grapefruit’ character in American ‘hoppy’ beers comes from a med hi-hi hop bitterness combined with the citrus of the “C” hops, which when combined, essentially equal grapefruit.

4

Where’s the Amarillo? :wink:

For the grapefruit, be sure to scrape off all the pith (white stuff) from the inside surface of the peel so you see only oily skin (the pith is bitter).

5

On the modest hops:

I’m a little gun shy on Chinook. I’ve heard it said that you can really overdo it easily and end up with something really harsh tasting. I’m going for the grapefruit, so I wanted to try and avoid boiling the Chinook for a long time.

I’m not entirely sure how to treat the hops to get the grapefruit character. Do I need to massify the late editions (which is the current plan) or move the hops earlier in the boil for that? Any lore or anecdotal stories would help! Thanks, guys.

PS Shadetree, I do have some Amarillo burning a hole in my pocket. I could throw them in somewhere…

6

Hops will degrade quickly if you store them in your pocket.