How to Brew Better IPAs
There are a lot of amazing commercial and home brewed IPAs these days. Unfortunately, there are plenty that miss the mark, by a lot. I see recipes posted on the web and forums that make me shake my head in disbelief. I realized though, there’s a lot that goes into making a good IPA, and it’s not as easy as simply throwing 400lbs of hops at the kettle to paraphrase a commercial brewer. So let’s go over some of the more important steps to brewing a good IPA, and how to fix some of the common mistakes I see.
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IPA Clone Series: Stone Ruination 10th Anniversary IPA
This beer wasn’t originally on the schedule. Double Jack was supposed to be the next beer I brewed, but that changed after a trip to San Diego in mid-June. Stone had just released their 10th Anniversary Ruination, and I tracked down a few bottles while I was in town. This special release of Ruination has exactly twice the hops(5lbs/bbl) and more alcohol(10.8%) than the standard Ruination. After my first sip, I knew I needed to try to clone this beer. It’s definitely one of the best Imperial IPAs I’ve ever had.
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Cold Conditioning
Today’s post is a quick one. I was digging through some old photos, and found a few pictures of a blonde ale I brewed last year.
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It’s not Mr. Beer! This shit’s legit…
I’m proud to call myself a home brewer, but I often get an odd look from people when I tell them so. Their response is usually : “Oh….you home brew beer. Like…… in one of those Mr. Beer things?” My answer is always a balancing act between being too direct, or not direct enough. The direct version being: “No, it’s nothing like Mr. Beer. It’s just like (insert local craft brewery).” But where does the stigma from home brew come from, and how can we avoid it? Let’s talk about methods to legitimize your beer others eyes, and make them excited to try it.
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I’ve got a really big….
…kettle, I just need to decide what to do with it, haha. Seriously though, I just bought a new 15 gallon kettle from Spike Brewing. It’s a very nice kettle for the price, but I need to decide what to use it for. It’s going to become either a new mash tun, or a new electric kettle. As a mash tun, it would replace my beat up 48qt cooler. As a kettle it would replace my beat up 32qt aluminum pot. I do plan on replacing both at some point, but I’m not sure which to do first. For now, enjoy the stainless bling pictures.
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Bertus Pale Ale (aka East Valley Pale Ale)
With my last couple beers being high gravity/high alcohol IPAs, and the next few beers planned are high alcohol IPAs, I need to squeeze in a beer that’s a little more drinkable. It’s been almost a year since I last brewed my Pale Ale, so I figured I would knock out a batch before my Fiance and I run back to California again this weekend. It just so happened that August (Owner of our Crossfit gym) picked up a Kegerator for the gym a few days ago. So I made this a 12 gallon batch, rather than the 6 gallons planned, so that we have beer on tap at the gym in a few weeks.
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IPA Clone Series: Pliny the Younger
**Update** I brewed an updated clone here. It’s dead on. Use that one.
It’s been awhile since my last post, but I’ve got a good one for today. Ahh, Pliny the Younger… This beer is like the mystical unicorn to me. I would still love to try it some day, but I’ve yet to talk myself into making the trek to Santa Rosa in February. So, I decided to brew a clone. The only unfortunate part is, I won’t know how close the clone is, since I’ve never had the real thing. I’ve had the Elder so I do have something to go off of, but we’re still shooting in the dark here. Maybe I’ll build up the guts to send a bottle to Vinnie. Anyway, on to the recipe formulation.
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IPA Clone Series: Four Peaks Hop Knot
For the first brew in my IPA Clone Series, I’m brewing Four Peaks Hop Knot. I love this beer. Not only because it’s local and I love to support Four Peaks, but it really is a flipping fantastic IPA. It also just won Gold at the World Beer Cup for American Strong Pale Ales, so apparently I’m not the only person that loves it! This batch will be going to the East Valley Open Weightlifting Comp at East Valley Crossfit on June 23rd. Despite the tight deadline, everything turned out well.
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eHERMS – Control box is coming together
Well, my control box is well under way. The Boil Kettle PID and SSR and mounted and wired. As are the switches for both PIDs. Working with a 30a 240 circuit is both a blessing and a curse. Having a 4500w element is fantastic, but working with 10ga wire is a pain in the ass.
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Hoppy Summer Wheat
We’re over 105* (middle of May as I’m writing this), so it’s officially Summer in Phoenix. Time to say goodbye to 90* temperatures, I’ll see you again sometime in late October. I’m definitely in mood for something nice and citrusy for the hot weather. I absolutely love Lagunitas – A Little Sumpin’ Sumpin’, but the 7.5% ABV sneaks up on you. So I want to make something along those lines, but with less booze.
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