IIPA - Constructive criticism please

[Kyle]

I want to create a glorious IIPA from malted Pilsner, Vienna, Wheat, and Crystal 60. Hop-wise I'm going All Simcoe, except for the dry hop, which I'm open to suggestion. Planning on brewing on the weekend.

12.5 lbs. Bohemian Pilsner Malt
2 lbs. Vienna Malt
1 lbs. White Wheat Malt
.75 lbs. Crystal Malt 60°L
1 oz. Simcoe (Whole, 12.7 %AA) boiled 60 min.
1.5 oz. Simcoe (Whole, 12.7 %AA) boiled 15 min.
1 oz. Simcoe (Whole, 12.7 %AA) boiled 1 min.
Yeast : 2 packs of Fermentis US-05

Mash at 155F (4 gal water) for 60 min
Sparge at 170F for 30 min (3.75 gal water)

2 hour boil to get 7 gal US down to 5
Dry hop: 2 oz Cascade at end of fermentation, for 2 weeks.
Ferment at 16C ambient temp.

***********predicted****style guidlines***
Original Gravity**1.085*****1.075 - 1.090
Terminal Gravity*1.016*****1.012 - 1.020
Color**********12.73°****8.00 - 15.00° SRM
Bitterness******73.9 IBU**60.00 - 100.00 IBU
Abv%*********9.2%*****7.50 - 10.00%
***********************************
assumes efficiency of 75%

Any suggestions?

[Shawn]

SO many different recipes for DIPAs out there, so obviously there's lots of interpretations, but I think it looks tasty. If I had anything to suggest, maybe...

- Since you have a good amount of Crystal and Vienna in there, I'd suggest mashing lower (maybe 149-150 F), so that it doesn't come out TOO sweet; otherwise, it may lack the characteristic dryness of the style.

- Maybe another flavor addition of Simcoe in there, say at 5 or 10 minutes? The IBUs are right in range, but a bit more flavor couldn't hurt.

Interesting to use all Simcoe; definitely a good way to get a feel for the hop in terms of flavor and bitterness. I'll be curious to hear how it turns out.

[Kyle]

Thanks for the suggestions Shawn, I should mention my favourite commercial IIPAs are:

http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/3818/28577
(very sweet)

http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/392/30288
(very Simcoe-y)

[Shawn]

I've only had the first one, but remember really liking it.

And that's definitely true, not all great IPAs are sweet. Lagunitas have a lot of hoppy APAs and IPAs, and they mash a lot of their beers anywhere from 157 to 160 F. I also brewed a Stone Levitation clone from the CYBI show, which is a really hoppy Amber, and it had something like 1 lb Crystal 80 and 1/2 lb Crystal 120, mashed at 154... delicious.

So, basically... I'm sure your recipe will be quite tasty, especially since it's tailored to your tastes.

[Dave Savoie]

Some cascade and amarilo wold be very tasty with the pine from simcoe

[Kyle]

I've gone on IPA "research" adventures in the US and tasted the IIPAs and IPAs from 40+ craft breweries. So, its quite nice to know what I like, and also to be able to make it at home. For a standard IPA, like the one I've got on tap now, dry and crisp with floral-citrus hops is my preference. But for an IIPA, the interplay of residual sweetness and citrus-pine hops is great for my tastebuds.

Yeah, maybe I'll throw in a little Cascade at 10 minutes, and a bit more simcoe too.

[Kyle]

Well, this is what I ended up brewing yesterday:

Mash the following at 155F for 60 min, then Sparge at 170F for 30min:
12# Bohemian Pils Malt
2# Vienna
1# Wheat Malt
12oz Crystal 60
Mash volume = 4g. Sparge volume = 4g

Boil = 2h30min
Brewing Caramel* @ 90min
1.25oz leaf Simcoe (12.7% a/a) @ 65min
1oz Simcoe @ 15min
0.5oz Simcoe @10min
0.5oz pellet Cascade (4.6% a/a) @ 10min
1oz Simcoe @ 2min

Brewed yesterday, O.G. = 1.083
Will dry-hop with 1oz pellet Columbus and 0.25oz leaf Simcoe, for 2 weeks, following fermentation
2 packs US-05 yeast
____________________________________________________

*To make brewing caramel:

Measure 2 cups water, 12oz table sugar, and 1kg Light DME

******edit, had originally said 1# LDME, in error***************
In saucepan, bring water to boil, turn off heat. Stir in table sugar and DME until saturation point is reached. Then turn burner to medium-low, stir constantly, and add rest of sugar/DME. While continually stirring, bring to boil and leave there for 15 minutes. Make sure you are scraping the bottom of the pan, in every area or it will burn. Add to boil pot while hot, or it will solidify. The caramelized sugar should be a deep ruby red colour.

[Gil Breau]

Not sure if it'd make a diff or not in flavor, but I keep cane sugar in the house for baking dessert sauces. I find table sugar tends to be very limited in it's flavor pallet in comparison.

[Kyle]

huh, I thought cane sugar = table sugar?

My "table sugar" is cane sugar..

[Gil Breau]

It is, but table sugar is refined.

They basically bleach the crap out of it along with some other mechanical process that take away "impurities" such as the molasses and make more or less pure sucrose. Given the flavors usually held in molasses, pure cane has a completely different flavor.

Cane sugar is usually the raw version of the same thing. Maybe its called raw more often than not, I can't recall. But it tends to have a much different flavor profile to it, and usually in a good manner when trying to make sweets.

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/raw-suga ... sugar.html

[Gil Breau]

Either way, I've never seen anything on brewing caramel before:D. Seems like a tasty additive.

[Kyle]

I dry-hopped this today with 1oz Colombus (earthy notes) and 1oz Challenger (spicy notes). In about a week, I'll add Cascade, and then leave a week, keg.

[Richard]

I think by cane sugar he means demerara or "brown" sugar. Essentially half way between molasses and pure sucrose (table sugar).

[Gil Breau]

Brown sugar is different. I'm pretty sure you mean not the common brown given the quotations, but I don't want people confused.

I meant "raw" sugar. Usually you can find it in the health food section of the grocery store. Theres a variety nowadays, much like chocolate and coffee, that depends on the region as the various molasses flavors it produces.

Technically theres no difference in the sugar compound itself, sucrose is sucrose. It's just the accompanying flavors.

[Shawn]

Whenever I hear "cane sugar", I assume table sugar... a lot of recipes intend for that, I think.