IPA malt bill advice

[trapae]

I just brewed an IPA with the following malt bill:

Pale 2 row 82%
Vienna 14%
Crystal 15 4%

OG 1.065
IBU 75

I really like it and it tastes balanced with just enough malt and tad of sweetness to balance the hops.
I want to brew a similar recipe with IBUs of about 65 using Munich instead of Vienna and crystal 40 instead of 15.  I don’t want it any sweeter and have never used munich. 
My question is, any opinions on the percentages, ie should I use less munich (and/or crystal 40) than I did vienna or crystal 15?

Thanks

[skatz (Stevie)]

I wouldn’t use c40. I never go over c20 in an IPA.

[jonhughey_att.net (HoosierBrew)]

I think avoiding sweetness in IPAs is more about :
 
1/ Keeping crystal to 5% or less, than the actual  lovibond rating. I like C20 and/or C40 for most of mine.

2/ Using a BU/GU of 1 or slightly above.

3/ Using gypsum to dry the finish and bring hop bitterness and flavor to the forefront.

4/ Mashing ~ 150F

[three]

I think avoiding sweetness in IPAs is more about :
 
1/ Keeping crystal to 5% or less, than the actual  lovibond rating. I like C20 and/or C40 for most of mine.

2/ Using a BU/GU of 1 or slightly above.

3/ Using gypsum to dry the finish and bring hop bitterness and flavor to the forefront.

4/ Mashing ~ 150F

+1 I totally agree with Jon here.  Grain bill something like 80-85% pale, 10-15% munich, and 5% crystal 20 or 40…

What is your plan for hops?

[goschman (Iliff Ave)]

I have had good success with:
75% Two row
20% Munich
5% crystal 40/60

[hopfenundmalz]

It depends on the IPA. I did a Ballantines IPA clones that had 6 row, corn, and C80. Verdict was delicious.

[bluesman]

@hopfenundmalz

It depends on the IPA. I did a Ballantines IPA clones that had 6 row, corn, and C80. Verdict was delicious.

+1

Depends if you’re going for an English-like malt profile OR East Coast OR West Coastish maltiness. I like a blend of Maris Otter and 2-row with 5% C40 and 2.5% Carapils. I also like to go with C60 if I want a little more color.  Another option is to use a percentage (10-20%) Munich Malt which adds some defined (a little more complexity) maltiness. However, the hop character should be the showcase in this beer style.

[morticaixavier]

I’ve been enjoying my latest, I was short on malt so I bumped the gravity with ~1 kilo of evaporated cane juice (hippie sugar) to 10 gallons. came out nice.

I threw everything I had at it so it was mostly pale malt and munich with a touch of rye and a touch of wheat and then the sugar. I can’t taste the rye or the wheat (big suprise) but the body is crisp without being overly thin, you can drink a few, and the munich maltiness comes through nicely with some perceived sweetness.

[erockrph]

Good advice all around. What I’d add is to keep the Munich to 20% or less. IMO, once you get above 20% Munich, the maltiness starts to compete with, rather than compliment, the hops.

[morticaixavier]

@erockrph

Good advice all around. What I’d add is to keep the Munich to 20% or less. IMO, once you get above 20% Munich, the maltiness starts to compete with, rather than compliment, the hops.

as a confirmed munichaholic I will agree with this. munich is pretty intense. remember it’s an IPA you want the malt there as a canvas not the show.

[jonhughey_att.net (HoosierBrew)]

@morticaixavier

@erockrph

Good advice all around. What I’d add is to keep the Munich to 20% or less. IMO, once you get above 20% Munich, the maltiness starts to compete with, rather than compliment, the hops.

as a confirmed munichaholic I will agree with this. munich is pretty intense. remember it’s an IPA you want the malt there as a canvas not the show.

+1

[goschman (Iliff Ave)]

Yeah it just depends on what you are going for. I prefer a more balanced IPA which is why I usually go with 20% munich. I think the original grain bill looks good but you could easily sub equal amounts of Vienna for Munich and Crystal 15 for something darker or not.

[erockrph]

@goschman

Yeah it just depends on what you are going for. I prefer a more balanced IPA which is why I usually go with 20% munich. I think the original grain bill looks good but you could easily sub equal amounts of Vienna for Munich and Crystal 15 for something darker or not.

Don’t get me wrong, I love me some Munich in an IPA. My last IPA had 20% Munich, 5% Victory and still tasted like a 60+ IBU Mai Tai. But I’ve tried brewing a hoppy Festbier and I definitely feel like I lost some of the hops to the malt.

[goschman (Iliff Ave)]

@erockrph

@goschman

Yeah it just depends on what you are going for. I prefer a more balanced IPA which is why I usually go with 20% munich. I think the original grain bill looks good but you could easily sub equal amounts of Vienna for Munich and Crystal 15 for something darker or not.

Don’t get me wrong, I love me some Munich in an IPA. My last IPA had 20% Munich, 5% Victory and still tasted like a 60+ IBU Mai Tai. But I’ve tried brewing a hoppy Festbier and I definitely feel like I lost some of the hops to the malt.

Yeah I don’t think my IPA balance preference is one that is shared by most people.

[jonhughey_att.net (HoosierBrew)]

Munich is one of the greatest malts on the planet, just needs to be restrained in AIPA IMO. I agree totally with the 20% cutoff. That’s what’s so great about brewing, though - we can all debate an ingredient but still get to make it our own damn way !

[fmader]

I just cleaned out my supply of Munich Saturday. I went 50/50 Munich and Pilsen malt (6.5 lbs of each) with 4 or 5 oz of C 120. But I was going for a big hoppy amber. Kind of a hoppier version of Nugget Nectar. I landed a 55 lb sack of Avangard Munich for $40.

This being said, this isn’t a standard IPA. If I use Munich in an IPA, it’s 10-15% with medium crystal from 3-5%. I just kicked a keg of my all Zythos IPA. I experimented with mainly base malt. 66% two row, 33% Maris otter, and like 3.5 oz of C 120. I loved it. This might be my new go to bill for IPAs. All this balance talk in an IPA doesn’t work for me. I brew mine so that they aren’t balanced. I feel that a good AIPA should be more than skewed to the hops. I try to fit in a pound of hops in my IPAs. I seek much more of a balance in an APA.

[trapae]

Here is the full recipe.  In the original, there was a columbus FWH addition and a Simcoe flameout addition that I omitted in this one, and the chinook is new (cause my wife wanted a little pine).  Also, my FG was 1.010 instead of 1.014, so ABV was like 7.2%.

Batch Size: 5.50 gal Style: American IPA
Color: 7.1 SRM
Bitterness: 66.2 IBUs Boil Time: 60 min
Est OG: 1.064 (15.5° P)
Est FG: 1.014 SG (3.6°)
ABV: 6.5%

1 tbs         Gypsum (Calcium Sulfate) (Mash 60 min)
12 lbs 8.0 oz Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM)
1 lbs 4.0 oz Munich Malt - 10L (10.0 SRM)
8.0 oz         Caramel/Crystal Malt - 40L (40.0 SRM)
0.45 oz         Magnum [14.0%] - Boil 60 min
0.5 oz         Centennial [10.0%] - Boil 15 min
0.35 oz         Columbus (Tomahawk) [14.0%] - Boil 15 min
0.35 oz         Chinook [13.0%] - Boil 15 min
1.00                 Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 15 min)
0.5 oz         Centennial [10.0%] - Boil 10 min
0.5 oz         Columbus (Tomahawk) [14.0%] - Boil 10 min
0.5 oz         Centennial [10.0%] - Boil 5 min
0.5 oz         Columbus (Tomahawk) [14.0%] - Boil 5 min
0.5 oz         Columbus (Tomahawk) [14.0%] - Boil 0 min
0.5 oz         Centennial [10.0%] - Boil 0 min
0.5 oz         Chinook [13.0%] - Boil 0 min
2 pkgs         American Ale (Wyeast Labs #1056)
1.0 oz         Columbus (Tomahawk) [14.0%] - Dry Hop 4 days
1.5 oz         Centennial [10.0%] - Dry Hop 4 days
0.5 oz         Chinook [13.0%] - Dry Hop 4 days

[fmader]

I like the malt bill. That’ll be good. The hop bill is very solid too. I think you’ll like this beer. I like more 60 minute hops but that’s personal preference. One thing that my brewers OCD would force me to do is swap out the magnum with Columbus and/or Chinook to keep it in the spirits of the C hops. 

[69franx]

@fmader

I like the malt bill. That’ll be good. The hop bill is very solid too. I think you’ll like this beer. I like more 60 minute hops but that’s personal preference. One thing that my brewers OCD would force me to do is swap out the magnum with Columbus and/or Chinook to keep it in the spirits of the C hops. 

Newbie question here, where (if) do you use Magnum? Thought it was a good bittering hop for an IPA, but seeing a lot of posts on “not in an IPA” I am sitting on some and would like to use it, but not sure where now. Picked it up thinking it would be good (heard/read somewhere) as a 60 minute addition, but maybe it fits another style better?

[morticaixavier]

@69franx

@fmader

I like the malt bill. That’ll be good. The hop bill is very solid too. I think you’ll like this beer. I like more 60 minute hops but that’s personal preference. One thing that my brewers OCD would force me to do is swap out the magnum with Columbus and/or Chinook to keep it in the spirits of the C hops. 

Newbie question here, where (if) do you use Magnum? Thought it was a good bittering hop for an IPA, but seeing a lot of posts on “not in an IPA” I am sitting on some and would like to use it, but not sure where now. Picked it up thinking it would be good (heard/read somewhere) as a 60 minute addition, but maybe it fits another style better?

I just tapped an english style barley wine that I used Magnum for bittering. it’s pretty tasty. just a strong, solid bitterness to balance the sweetness without anything else getting in the way.