Category Archives: IPA

Live Oak Canyon Ale 2024

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As is tradition, I crafted a special batch for the Thanksgiving celebration, a multi-day affair with friends and family. This is a time when I like to roll out a special batch, often a bigger beer that can be savored in smaller (or bigger) pours. Last winter, I experimented with a wood-aged imperial red IPA, and it was so good that I decided to roll it forward into this year’s Thanksgiving beer. It was an extra fun brewing session, in that I hosted my homebrew club to assist with the brew day!

Stylistically, this is an imperial red IPA, or something like it. It’s very much a beer from yesteryear, in the thick of the IBU wars–big, bold, and unapologetically in your face. Versus the 2023 version, the 2024 edition is pretty much the same grist but different hops to reflect what I had on-hand. I used Moutere as my bittering hops, in order to finish out the ounce left in my hop stash; the addition of Centennial and Simcoe at the whirlpool and dry hop stages is different from last year (which used HBC 522 and Talus).

Live Oak Canyon Ale

  • 10.5 lb. 2-row malt (Briess)
  • 13 oz. caramel malt 120L (Briess)
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB, added to mash
  • 1 oz. Moutere hop pellets (19.5% alpha), 60 minute boil
  • 0.25 tsp. BrewTanB, 10 minute boil
  • 0.75 lb. corn sugar, 5 minute boil
  • 1 Whirlfloc tablet, 5 minute boil
  • 2 oz. Centennial hop pellets (8.1% alpha), 15 minute whirlpool
  • 1 pkg. WLP001 (White Labs), California Ale dry yeast
  • 1 medium toast American oak Beer Stix carboy stick, added to primary and carried over to keg
  • 2 oz. Simcoe hop pellets (12.4% alpha), dry hop in keg

Target Parameters

  • 1.092 s.g., 1.015 f.g., 10.4% abv, 113 IBU, 17 SRM
  • Infusion mash, held at 152° for 60 minutes and 168° for 10 minutes, with sparge
  • Claremont tap water, with Campden tablet, adjusted with minerals to achieve 58 ppm Ca, 23 ppm Mg, 54 ppm Na, 155 ppm SO4, 60 ppm Cl, 10 ppm CO3, -47 ppm RA

Procedure

  • Starting with 5.6 gallons of water, I added 4 mL of 88% lactic acid to neutralize the carbonates. Then, I added 2 g epsom salts and 2 g gypsum, to achieve my target water profile.
  • I heated the strike water to 161°, added the grains, and hit a 152° mash temperature. I also added 4 mL of 88% lactic acid, to adjust the pH.
  • After a 60 minute mash and recirculation, I raised the mash temperature to 168° for 10 minutes, before pulling the grains.
  • I had neglected to pull the sparge water from the strike water, so I had to sparge with ~0.5 gallons of water, which topped up my volume a bit beyond that which was intended. This meant a longer boil.
  • In total, I collected 5.35 gallons of runnings with a gravity of 1.055, for 70% mash efficiency.
  • I boiled for 45 minutes before starting the formal timer, which meant a 105 minute boil total.
  • After the initial 45 minutes of boiling, I began adding hops and other finings per the recipe, with corn sugar added at the very end.
  • After the boil, I chilled the beer down to around 78°, before transferring to the fermenter and chilling to 64° in my fermentation chamber and pitching the yeast.
  • I brewed this beer on 12 October 2024; it had a starting gravity of 1.085. Once pitching the yeast, I fermented at 64°.
  • I soaked the oak stick in water overnight, and then put it into the microwave for around 90 seconds to flash steam and sanitize. I spritzed the oak with StarSan, before adding it to the fermenter. The oak was added to the primary fermenter on 15 October 2024.
  • I kegged the beer on 31 October 2024, adding the dry hops in a baggie and also transferring the oak to the keg. I left the beer at ambient for this phase.
  • Final gravity was 1.016, for 9.3% abv.
  • I left the keg at ambient until 6 November 2024, when I removed the dry hops and oak, moved the keg to the conditioning chamber, and let it condition and carbonate at 34°.

Tasting

  • Appearance
    • This is a deep reddish amber beer, very clear, which pours with a persistent and fine ivory head. It’s very pretty!
  • Aroma
    • The nose has a citrus and fresh pine hop aroma at a moderate level, with vanilla-type woodiness and light caramel behind that. The wood comes through more prominently as the beer warms, along with a light alcohol aroma.
  • Flavor
    • Very bitter, with resin and citrus pith qualities, and a hint of fresh orange zest; there is a modest level of woodiness as the beer warms up. A light and sweet caramel flavor is at the back end.
  • Mouthfeel
    • Medium body, moderate carbonation, dry finish.
  • Would I Brew This Again?
    • This is a good one! I think that last year’s version was maybe a touch better; perhaps Simcoe and Centennial don’t quite hit the mark for what the beer needs. The recipe upon which I based this beer used a mix of Simcoe and Mosaic, so I might try those in a future iteration. Either way, this is a highly drinkable beer for as big as it is, even if in the “sipping beer” category.
  • Overall
    • 9/10

Quick IPA

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Sometimes I just need a quick IPA fix. I’m working through my hop stash, and threw together a recipe to finish off a few 2-oz. packages, targeting varieties that had classic citrus, pine, and resin character. The base recipe is just a typical classic American IPA, with a mix of 2-row, crystal, and biscuit malt. This time around, I aimed for a quick mash (30 minutes) and quick boil (30 minutes), to keep that brew day moving along!

golden slightly hazy beer with tall white head held in tulip-style glass

Quick IPA

  • 12.75 lb. 2-row malt (Briess)
  • 0.5 lb. crystal 40 / caramel 100 (Viking)
  • 0.25 lb. biscuit malt (Dingemans)
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB, in mash
  • 1.25 oz. Topaz hop pellets (18.9% alpha), 30 minute boil
  • 0.5 tsp BrewTanB, 10 minute boil
  • 1 Whirlfloc tablet, 5 minute boil
  • 0.75 oz. Topaz hop pellets (18.9% alpha), 5 minute boil
  • 2 pkg. New England East Coast Ale yeast (Lallemand)
  • 2 oz. Anchovy hop pellets (12.0% alpha), dry hop in keg
  • 2 oz. McKenzie hop pellets (11.7% alpha), dry hop in keg

Target Parameters

  • 1.061 s.g., 1.014 f.g., 6.2% abv, 68 IBU, 7 SRM
  • Full volume infusion mash, held at 152° for 30 minutes and 168° for 10 minutes
  • Claremont tap water adjusted to hit 100 ppm Ca, 19 ppm Mg, 87 ppm Na, 224 ppm sulfate, 110 ppm Cl, 20 ppm CaCO3, RA=-66, alkalinity=16

Procedure

  • I collected 7.25 gallons of tap water and added 6 mL of 88% lactic acid in order to neutralize the carbonates. Then, I added 7 g of gypsum and 2 g of epsom salt to hit my target water parameters.
  • I heated the water to 158° before adding the grains, and held the mash at 152° for 30 minutes, with recirculation.
  • At the end of the mash, I raised the temperature to 168° for 10 minutes before pulling the grains.
  • In total, I collected 6.25 gallons of runnings with a gravity of 1.051, for 63% mash efficiency. I suspect the low efficiency was due to the short mash time.
  • I brought the runnings to a boil, adding hops and finings per the recipe. After a 30 minute boil, I turned off the heat and chilled the wort down to 78°. Then, I transferred the wort to the fermenter and chilled to 66° in the fermentation chamber. This took about 6 hours, after which time I pitched the yeast.
  • I brewed the beer on 5 October 2024; it had a starting gravity of 1.056. I fermented the beer at 66°.
  • On 25 October 2024, I kegged the beer and added the dry hops loose to the keg; I put a hop screen in place on my floating dip tube.

Tasting

  • Appearance
    • Pours with a fluffy off-white head. A gold beer with moderate haze.
  • Aroma
    • I get some vanilla aroma as it warms; fascinating! As it warms caramel comes through more, along with (oddly enough) some berry. Moderately high hop-forward aroma, with pine, resin, and citrus pith qualities.
  • Flavor
    • Very bitter resin and pine hop character. Slight caramel quality at the back end, especially as the beer warms.
  • Mouthfeel
    • Very dry finish with a touch of astringency. Medium body, moderate carbonation.
  • Would I Brew This Again?
    • It’s a decent American IPA, very much in the old school. The berry quality on the aroma is interesting. It scratches my classic IPA itch, but is nothing exceptional. I gave it a 6, but the cool aroma bumps it to 7.
  • Overall
    • 7/10

Summer Session IPA 2024

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I’ve been making a session IPA at least annually for awhile now, because it’s a good way to balance the needs of my palate with the needs of my liver. These recipes usually go with a lighter grain bill that leans on flavorful base malts, alongside a high mash temperature to boost body and reduce attenuation. Kveik strains are part of my usual recipe in these, also, because I am often brewing these last-minute and so want a quick fermenting, temperature tolerant variety of yeast.

The 2024 iteration of my session IPA is in the same mold as previous years–I used a 2-row base malt, but beefed things up with a generous helping of Vienna and some Crystal 40. The hops aren’t too dramatic, but are old favorites for this style of beer.

Summer Session IPA 2024

  • 8 lb. 2-row malt (Briess)
  • 1.25 lb. Vienna malt (Weyermann)
  • 0.5 lb. Crystal 40 malt (Great Western)
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB, in mash
  • 2 oz. Citra hop pellets (12.8% alpha), 15 minute boil
  • 1 tsp. BrewTanB, 10 minute boil
  • 1 Whirlfloc tablet, 5 minute boil
  • 1 pkg. Lutra kveik (Omega #OYL-071, dry)
  • 2 oz. Ella hop pellets (17.6% alpha), dry hop in keg
  • 2 oz. Galaxy hop pellets (15.3% alpha), dry hop in keg

Target Parameters

  • 1.044 s.g., 1.011 f.g., 4.4% abv, 48 IBU, 6 SRM
  • Full volume infusion mash to hit target of 156°, 60 minutes, no sparge
  • Claremont tap water, neutralized with lactic acid to reduce carbonates, target parameter of 60 ppm CA, 22 ppm Mg, 136 ppm Na, 175 ppm SO4, 150 ppm Cl, 10 ppm HCO3, RA=-48 ppm

Procedure

  • Prior to the mash, I added 6.5 mL of 88% lactic acid to the 7.25 gallons of tap water (along with a Campden tablet), to drop out the carbonates. Then, I heated the water to 161°, before adding the grains and 1 mL of 88% lactic acid to adjust the mash pH. I held the mash at 156° for 60 minutes, with recirculation, before raising to 168° for 10 minutes.
  • After the mash was done, I pulled the grains and brought the runnings to a boil. In total, I collected 6.5 gallons of runnings with a gravity of 1.039, for 70% mash efficiency.
  • Once the runnings were at a boil, I added hops and finings per the recipe. Following the 60 minute boil, I turned off the heat and chilled to 78° before transferring to the fermenter and pitching the yeast.
  • Starting gravity was 1.045. I brewed this beer on 28 April 2024 and fermented it at ambient.
  • I kegged the beer on 20 May 2024, adding the dry hops in a baggie at this time. FInal gravity was 1.012, for 4.3% abv.

Tasting

  • Appearance
    • Clear, light gold beer, pouring with a persistent white head. Very pretty!
  • Aroma
    • Mandarin orange aroma, with a hint of tropical fruit. Hop aroma moderately high. The malt is in the background, and I don’t get much for yeast.
  • Flavor
    • Hop-forward, with a strong bitterness against a fairly light malt backbone. Very quaffable! Hop flavor has elements of orange and citrus pith. There might be a little peach, but that is more by suggestion (due to the characters of the variety) than something that is easily perceived.
  • Mouthfeel
    • Medium-light body, moderate level of carbonation, crisp and dry finish.
  • Would I brew this again?
    • This is a delightful session IPA, which has matured nicely. It doesn’t taste watery at all, and the hop elements are just what I would want in a modern West Coast IPA, I am quite happy with this one! I might go for a little more hop complexity – but it’s an easy fix with different varieties of hops.
  • Overall
    • 9/10

Denny Kongish West Coast IPA

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Last fall, I managed to snag a can of the Denny Kong West Coast IPA, which was brewed by North Park Beer Co. for the 2023 Homebrew Con in San Diego. It was an incredibly delicious beer, and because the recipe is readily available, I thought it would be worth a try!

The malts parallel the original reasonably well, but I made some adjustments for my hop stash and also made an adjustment to the yeast. It should be in the general ballpark, but as Denny Conn would say, my version is an homage and not a clone. The main innovations I applied here were the long mash rest and the massive dose of hops.

Denny Kongish West Coast IPA

  • 12 lb. pilsner malt (Rahr)
  • 1.25 lb. Vienna malt (Weyermann)
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB, added to mash
  • 4 oz. dextrose, added to boil
  • 1.3 oz. Magnum hop pellets (12.6% alpha), 60 minute boil
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB, 10 minute boil
  • 1 Whirlfloc tablet, 5 minute boil
  • 2.8 oz. Cascade hop pellets (7.5% alpha), 30 minute whirlpool
  • 1 pkg. California ale dry yeast (WLP001, White Labs)
  • 2 oz. Eclipse hop pellets (17.6% alpha), dry hop in primary fermenter for 3 days
  • 2 oz. Idaho #7 hop pellets (14.0% alpha), dry hop in primary fermenter for 3 days
  • 2 oz. LUPOMAX Azacca hop pellets (16.0% alpha), dry hop in primary fermenter for 3 days
  • 2 oz. LUPOMAX Citra hop pellets (18.5% alpha), dry hop in primary fermenter for 3 days
  • 2 tbs. (30 mL) Biofine Clear, added to keg
  • 2 oz. Nelson Sauvin hop pellets (12.9% alpha), dry hop in keg

Target Parameters

  • 1.063 s.g., 1.010 f.g., 6.9% abv, 65 IBU, 5 SRM
  • Full volume infusion mash, held at 149° for 120 minutes and 168° for 10 minutes
  • Neutralized Claremont tap water with Campden tablet, and mineral salts added to boil to achieve 55 ppm Ca, 12 ppm Mg, 54 ppm Na, 106 ppm SO4, 60 ppm Cl, 10 ppm CaCO3, RA=-38, alkalinity=8 ppm

Procedure

  • Starting with 7.9 gallons of tap water, I added 5.6 mL of 88% lactic acid as well as a Campden tablet, followed by 3 g of CaCl.
  • I heated the water to 155° and added the grains, along with 2.9 mL of 88% lactic acid for pH adjustment.
  • I held the mash at 149° for 120 minutes, with recirculation, and then raised the mash to 168° for 10 minutes, before pulling the grains.
  • In total, I collected 6.9 gallons of runnings with a gravity of 1.046, for 65% mash efficiency.
  • I brought the runnings to a boil, for a 90 minute total boil. After 30 minutes, I added the first round of hops, and then proceeded following the recipe.
  • After the 90 minute boil, I chilled to 170° before adding the whirlpool hops and letting them sit for 30 minutes.
  • Next, I chilled to 70°, transferred to the fermenter, and chilled down to 63° before pitching the yeast.
  • I brewed the beer on 2 March 2024, and it had a starting gravity of 1.062–nearly exactly on target!
  • I added the dry hops on 10 March 2024, in a boiled (sterilized) hop bag. It was a bit tight for the volume of hops, so I was a bit concerned about how much hop contact I would get.
  • I kegged the beer on 26 March 2024, into a CO2 purged keg. Final gravity was 1.007–that’s quite low, and results in a 7.4% abv! The 120 minute, 149° mash really did the trick for drying things out. Hop flavor and aroma were a bit lower than expected, probably because of the thick concentration of hops in the bag.
  • Once the beer was down to around 34°, I quickly added the Biofine Clear, and then re-cycled the CO2.
  • I put the beer on tap on March 30.
  • Because hop aroma was underwhelming, I added 2 oz. of Nelson Sauvin hops to the keg (in a baggie) on 12 April 2024.

Tasting

  • Appearance
    • Light gold color, slight haze. Pours w/ a thick and persistent off-white head that leaves beautiful lacing on the glass.
  • Aroma
    • Light citrus aroma, a hint of white wine (presumably from Nelson Sauvin hops).
  • Flavor
    • High level of citrus-pith bitterness. Clean, light malty character behind that.
  • Mouthfeel
    • Moderate carbonation, medium-light body, dry finish.
  • Would I Brew This Again?
    • Yes, but with different hop handling. I am underwhelmed by the hop aroma and flavor, especially relative to the commercial version I tried. It was dumb of me to use such a tightly packed hop bag! The hops just didn’t shine like they should. I would definitely try a variation in the future, though. I love the dryness on this, but it might be too much for some. The low temperature, extended mash really did the trick! The BioFine also worked its magic, resulting in a fairly clear beer. Other than aroma, though this is a nice American IPA!
  • Overall
    • 7/10

Note: I tasted this again on 25 April 2024, after nearly two weeks with the extra hops. It definitely helped the beer! Although the appearance is now a bit hazier, the aroma has a fantastic tropical fruit profile (kiwi, guava, a bit of sweet white wine, and more). The flavor is perhaps a bit harsher now (I suspect due to the hops in the keg), but it also has a more prominent tropical aspect overall. Not a bad end result!

Olde Tyme IPA

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The beloved India Pale Ale has diversified markedly since its 19th century roots in England, exploding onto the scene in the United States during the “Craft Beer Revolution.” Even during my own lifetime, I’ve seen incredible change, from the old school American IPAs, to the rise of West Coast IPAs, Hazy IPAs, white IPAs, session IPAs, and everything else in between. For better or worse, the market trends have definitely tilted fruity and hazy, and it’s often difficult to find anything that approximates the brews of the 1990s and early 2000’s. I have a certain sentimentality for them and like to brew one every once in awhile.

The IPAs of 25 years ago (in my memory, and in recipes) tended to have more going on with the malt, tended to be a bit darker in color, and focused on the pine/citrus/resin hops that dominated at the time. I did some looking through old Zymurgy issues, and found a recipe commemorating the 25th anniversary of the Maltose Falcons (now 50 years old!). This recipe from 2000 (available here) was later published in the September/October 2006 Zymurgy issue, titled Odyssey Ale. It is definitely a time capsule of its era!

To the original recipes, I modified the hop varieties slightly. I made some modifications for hops on-hand; so, I used Magnum instead of Perle, and Strisselspalt instead of Crystal. Both are varieties available in the late 1990s. The original recipe doesn’t have a dry hop charge, and I felt that was important to keep the beer interesting. So, I added 1.5 oz. of Strisselspalt and 1.5 oz. of Chinook into the dry hop. My only other major modification was to use Munich I instead of “Dark Munich” (Munich II), because that’s what I had on-hand.

Olde Tyme IPA

  • 12.5 lb. 2-row brewers malt (Briess)
  • 1 lb. crystal 40 malt (Great Western)
  • 1 lb. Munich I malt (Weyermann)
  • 0.5 lb. Carafoam (Weyermann)
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB (mash)
  • 0.5 oz. Chinook hop pellets (12.3% alpha), 60 minute boil
  • 0.5 oz. Magnum hop pellets (10.1% alpha), 60 minute boil
  • 0.5 oz. Centennial hop pellets (8.1% alpha), 15 minute boil
  • 0.5 oz. Strisslespalt hop pellets (1.8% alpha), 15 minute boil
  • 0.5 tsp. BrewTanB, 10 minute boil
  • 1 Whirlfloc tablet, 5 minute boil
  • 1 oz. Cascade hop pellets (7.5% alpha), 10 minute whirlpool
  • 0.5 oz. Centennial hop pellets (8.1% alpha), 10 minute whirlpool
  • 2 pkg. American West Coast Ale dry yeast BRY-97 (Danstar)
  • 1.5 oz. Chinook hop pellets (12.3% alpha), dry hop in keg
  • 1.5 oz. Strisslespalt hop pellets (1.8% alpha), dry hop in keg

Target Parameters

  • 1.068 s.g., 1.017 f.g., 6.7% abv, 50 IBU, 9 SRM
  • Full volume infusion mash, held at 155° for 60 minutes and 168° for 10 minutes
  • Neutralized Claremont tap water with Campden tablet, and mineral salts added to boil to achieve 103 ppm CA, 19 ppm Mg, 54 ppm Na, 248 ppm SO4, 60 ppm Cl, 10 ppm CaCO3, RA=-77, alkalinity=8 ppm.

Procedure

  • I collected 7.75 gallons of tap water and added a Campden tablet along with 5.5 mL of 88% lactic acid, for the initial water adjustments. I heated this to 163°, and then added the grains, to hit a mash temperature of 155°. At the time of mash-in, I added 2.5 mL of 88% lactic acid, to adjust the pH.
  • I held the mash temperature at 155° for 60 minutes, with recirculation. Then, I raised the mash to 168° for 10 minutes, before pulling the grains.
  • In total, I collected 7 gallons of runnings with a gravity of 1.057, for 72% mash efficiency.
  • As I brought the runnings to a boil, I added 9 g gypsum and 2 g epsom salt, to hit the water profile target.
  • Once the kettle was boiling, I added hops and finings per the recipe, boiling for 60 minutes.
  • After 60 minutes, I turned off the heat and chilled slightly before adding the whirlpool hops. I whirlpooled for 10 minutes, before chilling to 66° and transferring to the fermenter.
  • Starting gravity was 1.066. I brewed the beer on January 1, 2024.
  • I pitched the yeast, and set the fermentation chamber to 66°.
  • I kegged the beer on 7 February 2024, adding dry hops to the keg. Final gravity was 1.013, which equates to 7.1% abv.

Tasting

  • Appearance
    • Burnished orange-gold, clear with only a very slight haze, moderately persistent white head.
  • Aroma
    • Orange/citrus aroma, slight malty note, and no yeast character
  • Flavor
    • Nice malt backbone, with a light caramel quality. Moderately high bitterness, with a piney resin aspect that lingers on the tongue.
  • Mouthfeel
    • Medium body. Moderate carbonation. Slightly dry finish.
  • Would I Brew This Again?
    • This beer tastes like 2001…which is nice sometimes, but not what I always want on tap. Overall, this is a very good beer, which fits exactly what I wanted in the recipe. So, I would say it is a “10/10” for hitting my goals of an IPA from 25 years ago, but 7/10 for everyday drinking.
  • Overall
    • 10/10