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Run a quick one by everyone

Beer Recipe Design
#1

Need to make sort of a house IPA. Wanted to try to stick to one hop throughout. Here is what I’ve come up with. Want to brew it in the next couple of weeks. I know it’s fairly basic but that’s what worries me a little.

5 Gallons - House IPA

10 pounds american 2-row
.50 pounds Crystal 120L
.50 pounds Carapils

1oz Chinook for 60
.50oz Chinook at 30
.50oz Chinook at 15
1oz Chinook Dry hop.

Us05 or 1056 or WLP001

Can I get an honest opinion? I’m not looking for an 8% beer or anything, this should come in just under 6% I think. Maybe up the 2-row slightly?

#2

I agree up the 2 row. 1-2 more lbs would do. Thats where I begin with my IPA’s. Or you could just lower the crystal slightly. That would let you get a more dry finish maybe? I think Chinnok is a great choice for a single hop IPA. Personally, I would go with the 1056. I like that yeast for american style IPAs. Oh one last thing. I’d say dont waste your hops at 30. Do something near flameout instead. Personal prefference though

#3

If I were you, I would also consider swapping out the C120 for something lighter. C60 would be my choice. Then again, not sure what profile you are going for.

#4

I typically use Crystal 60 in my Amber brews. I don’t want a ton of malty flavor in this one. I want to highlight the hops mainly. My goal will be to brew the same exact recipe but using different hops to try to figure out what I like best and take solid notes on each hop. It will just help in future formulation.

#5

If you are trying to do the same malt bill but change hops each time, I personally think that the dark crystal is going to clash with the hops. Honestly, there is no reason why you couldn’t even just go with C40 too.
I don’t think you are really going to get that much more malt flavor from a crystal malt. If you used biscuit, victory, or aromatic malt…then you would get those strong malt flavors/aroma.

Really, you could always just go with a SMASH…all 2-row and all one hop. Boil longer for darker color you are looking for.
Is there a particular color you are looking for though? Assuming you have something in mind since you chose the C120.

#6

[quote=“HummelBrew”]If you are trying to do the same malt bill but change hops each time, I personally think that the dark crystal is going to clash with the hops. Honestly, there is no reason why you couldn’t even just go with C40 too.
I don’t think you are really going to get that much more malt flavor from a crystal malt. If you used biscuit, victory, or aromatic malt…then you would get those strong malt flavors/aroma.

Really, you could always just go with a SMASH…all 2-row and all one hop. Boil longer for darker color you are looking for.
Is there a particular color you are looking for though? Assuming you have something in mind since you chose the C120.[/quote]

Good points. I want it slightly orange in color, not at all golden which is why I was thinking the 120. I guess I could do a full pound of 60L or 40L. Color isn’t really all that important to me, I am just trying to get the consistency so I can try out hops and get a good ideas of the flavorings. I am on batch #50 lifetime so I have a general idea of what I’m after I think.

#7

Just my opinion, but I find single hop beers often to be kinda bland and lifeless. YMMV.

#8

Your hop schedule looks the same as the NB Chinook Kit. I brewed that one time and was disappointed.

#9

thanks for the replies. Do you gents have other suggestions on how to taste test hops? This was all I could come up with so I could figure out what my tastes are and what hops work with each other.

To Denny’s point I am sure I could throw in Warrior hops or another C hop, but then how do I know 1. if they blend together and 2. which hop takes the dominant flavor profile?

#10

I think your plan to use a single hop makes sense given your goals. Once you’ve tried a few different kinds you might come to find a couple of varieties you really like and then maybe you try blending those if you want.

#11

If you like Arrogant Bastard, you’ll like this recipe. I would use WLP007 (or US-05) to make sure it dries out enough.

#12

I agree that doing a single hop beer is a good way to get a handle on the hops. Bit IMO it may not be the best way to make a great beer. Again, YMMV.

#13

Chinook city! I would bitter with Chinook and flavor/ aroma hop with a Cascade, Centennial, Ahtanum, Amarillo, Simcoe or other. Or Bitter with Perle, Magnum or other clean bittering hop and use the Chinooks for flavor/ aroma additions.

Just IMHO I think Chinook is wayyy too aggressive as an aroma hop I tend to always have gotten a “soapy” taste when I used them at high rates or at the end of the boil. But some swear by it. Depends or your exacting tastes my good fellow.

BTW I think arrogant bastard is just that LOL, again as mentioned though I dont enjoy Chinooks aroma properties where some love em. It is good you mention it though Shade as it is probably one of the best ways to acclimate to unknown hops by way of commercial brew as palette training without brewing up 100 SMASH brews. I have done tons of SMASH brews and would tend to agree that I do like to use at least two hops in combo as many disappointed unless paired. The only ones I continue to brew on a regular is a homage to two hearted, one using all Ahtanum*, and one I found using Zythos, but now Zythos is a blend of hops as everyone knows I’m sure.

  • Please don’t go and wipe out the whole worlds supply of Ahtanum now. It is not, I repeat not the new citra, really go buy more Cascade leave some hops for others! LOL

The recent brews I remember being good hop examples are the Sam Adams sampler 12 pack of single hopped beers. This is where I found out I enjoy Ahtanum as I had never used them before.
Also Mikkeller brewery has many weird single hopped beers.

#14

I agree with others who have suggested mixing up the hops, and that much chinook seems like a ltot to me. This is my “house IPA” - it does give kind of a light orange color as opposed to “golden.”

11 lbs 2 row
1 lb caramel or crystal 60
.5 lb wheat
.5 lb flaked oats
.15lb carared

1 oz. Centennial FWH (90 minutes from start of wort collection to flame out)
.75 oz. Centennial 60
1 oz. Cascade 30
1oz. Cascade flame out
1 oz. Citra flame out
2 oz. Citra dry hop

1056 ale yeast

Based off of Dead Ringer - but, mixed the hops up and liked it better this way. Also, like a beer with more mouthfeel, so put in the wheat and oats.

#15

so what I may do is make this all Chinook and then brew it again but then use another hop with it and taste test side by side. I just feel like I don’t know the hops as well as I should. I need some way to teach myself the flavoring profiles of each so I can make better beer. People normally like my beer a lot but I feel sometimes my recipes are just not the right combination. Grains I think I am set on, know the various grains and what they do. Yeast is another story. Brew the same beer and use 3 different yeasts and get 3 different beers. That’s why I love this hobby though. I have one recipe that I would consider a favorite and could drink any given day. I want 3-4 of those.

#16

Or - if you have the means to do it - brew it first all chinook (or however you want to start with). Then, brew a second batch at the same time, or within a week with the same boil additions, but divide it into two fermenters and dry hop it with two different varieties - that will give you 3 versions of the same basic beer to test side-by-side and might give you a great starting point for figuring out what you like the most. Could even divide both batches in half and that would give you 4 versions of the same basic be

#17

Niiiice!!!

#18

Agree that the 120 is overkill, go with 40.

You’re fine for a house IPA with the 2row that you had initially but I’m a big fan of getting a bit more booze in my IPAs.

8oz of carapils is too much IMHO. I used to do a full pound, rolled it back to a half and have actually found that the sweet spot is more like 4 oz. Still laces like a champ and has plenty of head retention. Go ahead and use 8oz if you want the head to be able to support a quarter though. Hah.

Add moar hops. If you like single hop, by all means do it that way but add more… 2oz does not an IPA make. Try 1.5 oz at 60 and 1 oz at 10, 5, and KO then two more in secondary.

#19

The Carapils is tricky and depends on your own preference.
I never use much cara type malt in any recipe, but in a IPA of 50-100 IBU I always use .5-1.5# to achieve balance in the mouth feel as you gain body with Carapils due to the unfermentables not just head retention or other which you do need to use it for as mentioned. Or I mash above 155f to leave a natural high SG to achieve balance.

In a low IBU beer it will tend to lend a sweeter/ heavy mouth feel which may/may not be appropriate depending on the exact beer. But in most recipes it is not needed, but here I think .5# may be a good medium and adjusting up/down later is always a possibility.

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