I’ve been tasked by the family to start brewing Hazies every so often. They are definitely a fam-favorite beer style, and I do enjoy them myself from time to time (even if I have a hard time telling one from another ). Still, a nice summer beer.
I get the feeling process is crucial to this style so I’ll do my best to keep things buttoned up, though I’m not what anyone would call a LODO brewer. Will that fact make all this a lost cause? Maybe.
But…
My goal is to create a beer that at the very least meets these criteria:
Needs to be hazy (hopefully with a nice shine in the glass)
Needs juicy, hoppy goodness.
Needs a soft mouthfeel.
Recipe-wise, I’d like to keep it relatively simple for my first pass:
2.5 gallons
75% Pils
15% Pale Spelt Malt
10% Flaked Oats (for a bit of obligatory Hazy righteousness)
All pellets (T-90 or Cryo depending on availability)
1oz each - Citra, Simcoe and Mosaic at Whirlpool
1.5 - 2 oz each - Citra, Simcoe and Mosiac at Dry-Hop
2nd Dry Hop?
Keg Hop?
1318 or Verdant
5.5% ABV (trying to keep it somewhat session-able)
? IBU’s
Water with ≈100ppm CL and 75ppm SO4
I think I should be in the ballpark with the above, and hopefully this simplicity will also give me a good jumping off point for adjusting future batches.
My biggest question is regarding the timing of the Dry Hop(s). I’ve read that it’s necessary to dry hop at peak fermentation to promote biotransformation. And I’ve also read that dry-hopping this early is a waste - or at the very least will require a SECOND Dry-hop - because most of the aroma will be lost. My WCIPA’s and Cold IPA’s always get dry-hopped only once, 2-3 days before packaging, and this seems to work very well.
I make a lot of hazies during the warmer weather months and I do a DDH; one at high krausen and then a late 3 day before bottling addition. I read an article by Scott Janish some time ago who stated bio transformation is a thing. He’s a lot smarter than me on this issue so I went with it. Whether it changes the flavor or aroma of the hops I’m adding, I’m not sure. But the early addition does allow for any O2 I might have let into my fermentor to be removed. For the late addition, I don’t really think about O2 at that point. My hazies turn out good according to my very biased, free beer drinking friends.
I don’t doubt for a second that biotransformation is a thing. But I very much question whether or not I would ever notice the impact of bio-t in my brew house, with my equipment, with my brewing skills, with my palate…
Seems to me there are far too many variables: yeast choice, hops choices, amount of dry hops, timing of dry hops, etc. The practicality of bio-t is very, um, hazy to me. I also question whether or not I would WANT bio-t if it were to occur in my beer. Maybe I don’t quite understand what actually happens, but when I use Citra, I want Citra…not some altered version of it.
Anyway, I’m considering one dry-hop and splitting the difference as to the timing of the addition. Not during peak fermentation and not once it’s clearly over, rather I’ll dry-hop just as fermentation is winding down but not quite finished.
Won’t be brewing this beer for a few months so I have plenty of time to change my mind.
A 200-100 ppm chloride:sulfate is more typical for mouthfeel. I have had good luck using BYO Treehouse Julius recipe as a jumping off point. Tree House Brewing Company: Julius clone - Brew Your Own
I also like using cryo in these.
Thanks for that link. Lots to unpack there. (For the record, I’ve had Julius a few times and it’s pretty damn good!)
Why the sugar? To drive attenuation? Because that final gravity number seems outside 1318’s range.
Why the HopShot? And how do they figure on 75 IBU’s? Could be a trick on the palate, but I don’t remember Julius being that biter, nor any Hazy for that matter.
Getting to 200:100 Cl:SO4 may be difficult unless I simply don’t look at my Ca number. 150:75 might be more realistic for my house well water.
Dry hopping “as the krausen begins to fall” jives with my thinking and very much comforts me. I will certainly try and get Cryo, if available.
I have used hopshot for this. That and the cryo reduce the amount of material and therefore potential vegetal/grassy flavors. I would say that due to all the other factors like minerals, hop flavor and grain bill, yeast, etc. the percieved IBUs are much, much less than predicted IBUs.
Maybe to get the minerals right in this beer you dilute your well water with some distilled?
Great read from The Electric Brewery, thanks for that.
My process will be absolutely nothing like the one described there, but that will certainly not hold me back.
Another recipe, however, that includes some kettle bitterness. This surprises me as I always assumed a Hazy would just rely on whatever IBU’s were carried in from the hop-stand/whirlpool addition.
Hmm. I might have to consider a dusting of kettle IBU’s.
Yes, a dilution with some distilled is a great idea. Knowing my lazy self, however, I can pretty much guarantee I will not make the extra effort. I’ll do the best I can to get the minerals where they need to be. What is the limit on Ca anyway?
My OP noted that I hope to get Cryo. But I buy my hops from Yakima Valley so I’ll likely use Lupo pellets, which I am assuming are very similar to, though not exactly the same as, Yakima Chief’s Cryo.
Just be prepared for a ton of volume loss from your fermentor from all the hops. You’re most likely to end up with less than 2 gallons of finished beer. I do 2 1/2 g batches , but always scale up my NEIPAs to 3 g or more. My Dry hops are now at 33F for 2 days. Gives you all the good aroma without drawing out the bad things to put it simply.
). Still, a nice summer beer.
I also question whether or not I would WANT bio-t if it were to occur in my beer. Maybe I don’t quite understand what actually happens, but when I use Citra, I want Citra…not some altered version of it.
I will certainly try and get Cryo, if available.