A year of research had me build a beautiful IPA. Here goes. Wish me luck. I hit all my numbers on the dot. This is day 1 & 2 of ferment. I’ll keep those interested updated. I’d like to reveal more details but I dont want to in case competition is lurking. I’ll just say its going to be a great 21A American IPA.
Looks like a winner to me…maybe a best of show…for sure…
Thanks man. I think she’s going to clear up well. I’ll make another batch and send ya a bottle, sound good?
Sounds good…I’ll trade you an ESB, a Pilsner, and a Saison (all kegged and clear) for 3 BOS’s…
Awesome. We will be in touch sir.
Most of us have a bit of a setback going over to AG after brewing extract. Sounds like you didn’t. Great job & Good Luck!
Thank you much. It was a wayyyyy smoother transition than expected. But like I said a year of planning. A year of YouTube videos, books and magazines. Thanks for the support so far. I’m going to post daily updates until that medal is around my neck!
You should get your next couple batches done while you are waiting for this one to mature.
Agreed. I have a 1.5 year old daughter that makes it tough. I had to plan my last Sunday brew day months in advance with my wife lol!
Good luck, but don’t worry about the medals - sometimes it hits the right chord with the judges and sometimes you just have to rely upon the compliments from friends and family. But who knows… With a year of prep it may all come your way. Be meticulous with fermentation temperature control and cleanliness at bottling and enter it fresh! As a judge, I know that bottling and post bottling handling and conditions affect competition brews way more than the entrants expect. Keep up the brewing!
Thanks. I’m personally not that concerned about a medal, however I think it’d be some validation but this baby is holding steady at 68°F and doing quite well. I think I’m just excited about how far I’ve come as a brewer and I’ve been applying to every brewery within 40 miles. I love this hobby and if it were a job I’d be happy until I died. I dont want to be stuck in some dead end 9-5, I’d rather be brewing!
Here’s day three for those interested.
Now if you don’t win a medal we are all going to shame you… jfwu good luck man.
Lol. Thanks for the support. An update. As of Sunday FG had dropped to 1.030 from a start of 1.062 using 1056. On its way to 1.008.
When you bottle for the competition, save one or two and keep cold. When you get your score sheets, set down with a glass of one of those and read the sheets. See if you pick up what the judges are smelling and tasting. Read the suggestions for improvements.
This has opened my eyes several times, and helped the process. Sometimes I just don’t get what they are getting, and have done all of their suggestions as part of my procedure.
Will absolutely do.
+1. Focus on the descriptors they provide as well. It will help you become a better beer taster in the long run.
Yes, read what the judges write, but also take it with a grain of salt when you can’t get at what they are saying. Especially with IPA, personal preference can go a long way. I once judged the second round of IPA in a large competition. One of the beers I tasted was really great. It was, by far, the best of the bunch to me. I gave it a 44, I think. Most other judges gave it a low-30’s score. One gave it a 28. It turned out none of the older judges thought it tasted/smelled like hops because it had an obvious “new school” (mosaic) hop smell. They actually misidentified the beer as being faulty because they didn’t understand that hops (not yeast mismanagement or a fruit addition) provided those aromas. One even said something like, “I just don’t get any citrus in this, so it’s not a well-made AIPA.” After we submitted our final scores for the round (this beer placed 4th of 6, I think), the steward (who was silently agreeing with me) told me whose beer I had been drinking. It was a well-known award-winning homebrewer who had won several major awards for IPA in the past and took at least one 1st place in this same competition. It was called “Mosaic IPA” which is how I knew the specific hop.
We brewers like to think that the competition is about technical proficiency, and this may be the case with many styles (helles comes to mind), but the broad styles like IPA, American Amber Ale, and Porter will often come down to the personal preference of the judges rather than just technical merit.
I like the Rhinegeist Glass.
I promise it gets better than the glass lol.