American IPA ingredients

Beer Recipes
1

I don’t brew IPA’s in general and American IPA’s specifically. With that being said, I need some suggestions/opinions for grain, hops and yeast for an American IPA. My thoughts are 2row brewers but I have no clue as to which to use. Hops? I’m stumped. I tend to brew using 1 maybe 2 hops, usually noble, in any given recipe so I don’t have the experience in blending new world hops for this style. Pretty much the same for yeast but would think I would use a high attenuating fruit forward  one, but again, I don’t have the experience in using those varieties.

Any ideas are greatly appreciated!!

2

This style screams hops. Clean yeast without esters is more appropriate.  For West Coast IPA use PNW hops, like Centennial, Cascade (mosaic is my current favorite, but I also love Amarillo) and all those other citrusy varieties.  Rahr Pale malt works great, but I usually add some crystal (10%) for color and some Munich because I like the flavor.

3

Do you use hop combinations or do you tend to use a single variety for multiple additions throughout the recipe? I’ve never used Rahr and will read up on that one.
Thanks for your response!!

4

I make a TON of PNW style IPA.  I prefer hop combos over single hops.  Gives the beer more depth.  For yeast, I almost always use WY1450.

5

I have been wanting to use 1450 and maybe that will be the one for this upcoming recipe. Also  need to find some hops combo’s that pare well together. Last thing I want to do is try and create a combination that sucks together. Of course, that’s part of the fun of creating recipes.

6

I have been reading on using sugar in an American IPA. I’m not really sure which to use, specifically corn sugar or white table sugar which I believe is cane.
Thoughts and suggestions appreciated!!

7

Table sugar is fine.  I use sugar in double or triple IPA,  but not a standard one.

8

Good to know! Actually putting together a double.
I am just now putting together the fermentables and am using Pale, maybe some Munich and certainly table sugar. I was thinking 5% sugar is plenty.

Thoughts

9

Sounds good to me!

10

So now I’m working on the water profile for this beer as follows:
  Base water= RO
  Ca 85
  Mg 10
  Na 49
  SO4 223
  CL2 77
  HCO3 2.4
  ALK 1.9
Sulfate/Chloride ratio 2.9
Sulfate/Chloride balance= bitter

Denny and/or Martin, will  these salt additions work.

I basically started with Los Angeles, Ca East water profile and then played around with the salts.

Thanks!

11

Looks OK to me

12

I don’t know what I don’t know so… If I may ask maybe one final question.

In my recipe I am using 42# of grain and 39.29oz of hops.

I’ve never seen an input ratio for hops to grain, oz’s to pounds. Is there such a thing? If so, am I out of wack with my hop additions?

Bittering hops 1.13oz Mosaic 12.25% AA @60mins
                    1.81oz Centennial 10%AA @20
                    1.81oz Citra 12%AA @20
                    1.81oz Mosaic 12.25%AA @20

.91oz ea. of same combo @10 mins

2oz ea of same combo @ 194*

4oz ea of same combo dry hop 3 days
                    4oz ea of same combo dry hop 4 days

I hope that was easy to understand!!

Thanks again!!

13

For 5 gallons of ipa which is usually near 12# grain I’m usually between 9 and 13 oz of total hops.

14

Ever use other sugar like turbinado? Or honey?

15

As for me, never in a IPA. I don’t brew them often but I do use honey in a Honey Lavender Saison I developed a few years ago. Orange Blossom and it carry’s through with the lavender.

16

Thanks! I’m not too far off from yours.

17

Nope, there’s not a thing like that because there’s too much “it depends” involved

18

Really?  For me it’s more like 14 lb. of grain and maybe half that much hops.

19

There are too many variables to have a grist to hops weight ratio.
When the hops are added matters.
What type of hops matters (ie flavor)
How much AA they have matters (potential bitterness)

The closest thing to that would be a BU:GU ratio as coined by Ray Daniels (as far as I know, he coined it.  I may be wrong).
Even that only concentrates on the IBUs, not the flavor profile of the beer, so it has use as a sanity check but that’s about it.

HTH-

20

Yeah only shooting for 1.063 or so. I have brought my hops down to about 9 oz total.