Pannotia White IPA 2021

It’s been two years since I last brewed my white IPA (the original hazy IPA!), so now is as good of a time as any to make it again. The recipe I used this year isn’t too far off from my previous one.

Pannotia White IPA 2021

  • 6.75 lb. Viking 2-row Xtra pale malt
  • 2.5 lb. white wheat malt (Briess)
  • 1 lb. white wheat malt (Great Western)
  • 1.5 lb. Viking Pilsner Zero Malt
  • 1 lb. flaked wheat
  • 0.75 lb. flaked oats
  • 0.5 lb. rice hulls
  • 1 oz. Amarillo hop pellets (9.5% alpha), 60 minute boil
  • 0.25 oz. Magnum hop pellets (10.1% alpha), 60 minute boil
  • 2.62 g (1 tsp.) WLN1000 yeast nutrient (White Labs), 5 minute boil
  • 0.35 oz. bitter orange peel, 1 minute boil
  • 0.15 oz. coriander seed, 1 minute boil
  • 1 oz. Amarillo hop pellets (9.5% alpha), 10 minute whirlpool
  • 1 oz. Citra hop pellets (12.8% alpha), 10 minute whirlpool
  • 1 oz. Galaxy hop pellets (13.4% alpha), 10 minute whirlpool
  • 1 pkg. Whiteout Belgian Ale Yeast (Imperial Yeast #B44)
  • 1 oz. Citra hop pellets (12.8% alpha), dry hop in keg
  • 1 oz. Galaxy hop pellets (13.4% alpha), dry hop in keg
  • 1 oz. Mosaic hop pellets (11.2% alpha), dry hop in keg

Target Parameters

  • 1.062 o.g., 1.015 f.g., 6.2% abv, 60 IBU, 4 SRM
  • 60 minute full volume mash at 152°, with mash-out at 168°
  • Claremont tap water, with 8 g gypsum

Procedure

  • I mashed in with 7.5 gallons of water at 159°, to hit a mash temperature of 152°. I added 5.5 mL of 88% lactic acid to adjust the pH.
  • After 60 minutes (with recirculation), I raised the temperature to 168° and held it there for 10 minutes, before removing the grains.
  • In total, I collected 6.3 gallons of runnings with a gravity of 1.051, for 64% mash efficiency.
  • I added the gypsum to the kettle and brought the runnings to a boil, adding hops and finings per the recipe. After a 60 minute boil, I turned off the heat, whirlpooled the final hop addition, and then chilled down to around 75°, before transferring to the fermenter.
  • I chilled the wort the rest of the way down to ~66°, before pitching the yeast.
  • I brewed this beer on 15 May 2021, and fermented at 66°. Starting gravity was 1.058.
  • On 24 May 2021, I raised the fermenter to ambient, around 75°.
  • On 29 May 2021, I kegged the beer. Final gravity was 1.015, which works out to 5.7% abv. I added the hops in a bag, and chilled the beer down to 33°, removing the hops on 1 June 2021.

Tasting

  • Appearance
    • Light gold, with a moderate haze that has dropped fairly clear over the weeks it was on tap. The beer pours with a frothy and persistent white head.
  • Aroma
    • Light citrus hop character, with spicy yeast phenols and light coriander.
  • Flavor
    • The beer has an up-front citrus bitterness with citrus zest and pithy character. There is a light malty/doughy malt character, and a nice spicy yeast character as appropriate for a Belgian wit yeast.
  • Mouthfeel
    • The beer has a medium-light body, moderate carbonation, and a dry finish. It’s pretty good!
  • Would I brew this again?
    • Yep! This is a nice recipe. The beer is best before too much yeast settles out, and I think it would be tasty with a touch more carbonation, but even after a month or two in the keg, it’s still a very drinkable beer.
  • Overall
    • 9/10

Pannotia White IPA Kegged

Pannotia White IPA
After a little more than two weeks in the primary fermenter, tonight I kegged the latest iteration of Pannotia White IPA. I think the bitterness level in this version is just about perfect, and the overall flavor and baseline aroma are also pretty good.

At the time of kegging, I added the dry hops charge in a weighted mesh bag (1 oz. each of Citra, Galaxy, and Mosaic hops pellets), along with 2 oz. of the lemon zest extract that I made earlier.

The final gravity for this beer was 1.012, down from 1.060, equating to 6.3% abv.

Beer Tasting: Pannotia White IPA 1.5

The second iteration of my white IPA recipe is just a touch closer to perfect, with only a few last things to tweak. So close, but not quite there yet.

  • Aroma
    • Strong hops aroma, but not overpowering; citrusy with slight hints of tropical fruit. I don’t get much if any malt coming through in the aroma.
  • Appearance
    • Very clear and straw-colored, with a low but persistent fine white head. This beer has cleared up considerably since the keg was first tapped.
  • Flavor
    • The balance is towards the hoppy side, with citrusy and floral hops at the front of this beer’s flavor. There is a very light malty background. The bitterness is surprisingly low, more in pale ale than IPA territory. What bitterness is there is fairly smooth, with a gentle but noticeable finish. 
  • Mouthfeel
    • This is a light-bodied, moderately dry beer. The moderate carbonation is appropriate for an IPA.
  • Would I brew this beer again?
    • Yes, with some changes. I feel like the aroma is pretty close to what I want, nicely balanced between Citra, Mosaic, and Galaxy, although I’m still lacking the lemon aspect that I remember from the original white IPA I sampled. I think instead of using 3 oz. of Citra in the steeping phase, I might mix it up with a mix of the same Citra, Mosaic, and Galaxy as used to dry-hop, for a slightly more complex flavor. The body is pretty close to perfection, although I feel like I could go to just 2-row and wheat malt for the next batch, rather than a mix of 2-row and pilsner alongside the wheat. I’m also going to up the bitterness a touch; I think the fairly low bitterness was the result of the homegrown whole hops, which can be a little unpredictable. I suspect the alpha acid content was a bit lower on this year’s Cascade crop that I received, so I might swap those out next time for a definitive ~5% alpha hop pellet.
  • Overall: 7.5/10

Pannotia White IPA 1.5

In my quest to achieve a perfect white IPA, I’ve modified my previous recipe just a touch (based on my tasting evaluation). I brewed this up a few weeks ago, but only just now got a chance to post it. Here are the details!

Pannotia White IPA 1.5

  • 4 lbs. 2-row malt
  • 3.5 lbs. Pilsner malt
  • 3 lbs. white wheat malt
  • 1 lb. flaked wheat
  • 0.5 lb. flaked oats
  • 0.5 lb. rice hulls
  • 1 oz. Cascade whole hops (assumed 5.5% alpha, first wort hopping, boil 60 minutes)
  • 1 oz. Cascade whole hops (assumed 5.5% alpha, boil 30 minutes)
  • 3 oz. Citra hops pellets (12% alpha, steep 5 minutes)
  • 1 oz. Citra hops pellets (12% alpha, dry hop in keg)
  • 1 oz. Australian Galaxy hops pellets (13.7% alpha, dry hop in keg)
  • 1 oz. Mosaic hops pellets (12.8% alpha, dry hop in keg)
  • 8.1 g gypsum (added to boil)
  • 1 pkg. Belgian Wit Ale yeast (WLP400), prepared in 1L starter)
Procedure
  • I mashed in the grains with 4.75 gallons of water at 164.5°. The mash stabilized at ~153°, and was down to 152° after 30 minutes. After 65 minutes, I added 0.75 gallons of water at 180°. From this, I vorlaufed and collected the wort (adding the first ounce of Cascade hops at this time). Then, I added 3.75 gallons of water at 185°, and mixed to reach 169°. Then, I vorlaufed and collected the remainder of the wort.
  • All told, I collected 7.5 gallons of wort at a gravity of 1.043. This equates to an efficiency of 71%. I added 1 oz. of gypsum to the wort prior to boiling.
  • After 30 minutes of boiling, I added the second ounce of Cascade hops.
  • For the final minute of the boil, I added the orange peel and coriander seed.
  • At flame-out, I added 3 oz. of Citra hops pellets as well as the final ounce of Cascade hops. These were steeped while I cooled the wort using my wort chiller. Once the wort was cooled to 80°, I transferred it to the fermenter.
  • The starting gravity was 1.053, slightly below my anticipated target (1.059). Next time, I may boil a little longer.
  • I pitched the yeast, and set the fermentation chamber to 70°, and lowered it to 68° after 12 hours. At this point, there was a very vigorous fermentation, which topped out through the airlock. This yeast strain could probably use a blow-off tube next time.
  • The yeast was pitched on October 6, 2015. On October 25, 2015, I kegged the beer and added the dry hops. At this time, I also started carbonating (at room temperature, ~70°)
  • The final gravity was 1.013, which equates to 5.2% abv. The beer has a clean, citrusy taste, and I think should be quite tasty after dry-hopping!

Beer Tasting: Pannotia White IPA

My Pannotia White IPA has been on tap for about two weeks; it seems like a great time to evaluate the beer and reconfigure it for its next iteration (and there will be another iteration!).

  • The Basics
    • Starting gravity = 1.057; final gravity = 1.012; abv = 5.9%; IBU = 50 (estimated)
  • Appearance
    • Hazy, light golden hue; head is tall and persistent, with a creamy appearance and off-white color. The beer has gotten slightly less hazy since the first tastes a week or two ago.
  • Aroma
    • Dominated by citrus, secondarily with some floral and passionfruit aroma; very clean and fresh
  • Flavor
    • Hop-dominated; very citrusy and slightly floral. Any maltiness is subtle at best. There is an extended, smooth, and slightly sweet finish for the hops.
  • Mouthfeel
    • Nicely carbonated; body is perhaps a touch thin
  • Would I brew this again?
    • Absolutely! The white IPA style is a delightful and very drinkable variant change from the overbearing single/double/triple/quadruple American IPAs that are the norm for many microbreweries. My original goal was to recapture my memories of the Italian-made Vergött White IPA. I got partway there–particularly in its appearance and refreshing drinkability–but am lacking the somewhat lemony aroma and flavor that I recall from the original. Some more sleuthing on Italian-language websites revealed indications that they dry-hopped with Galaxy hops (and possibly some Mosaic), that the alcohol clocks in at 5.5% (rather than 5.9%), and that oats are part of the mix too. I would also like a little more body in my beer. So, I think for the next iteration I will use 2-row malt instead of pilsner malt, mash at a slightly higher temperature (perhaps ~152°), add some oats, notch the alcohol down a touch, and dry-hop with Galaxy instead of Citra. I will likely maintain the first wort hopping with American hops (probably Cascade), because the background hopping on this one is about perfect.
  • Overall rating
    • 8/10