Pale Ale Recipe

I am posting this recipe here because it doesn’t have the hop flavor that I am looking for. It’s just seems to lack the hop punch I am looking for. Any ideas as to how to improve this recipe.

9# 2 row
12 oz. carapils
8 oz. torrified wheat
8 oz crystal 30
mashed at 152 for 60 minutes

1 oz cascade fwh
.5 oz cascade 15 min
.5 oz amarillo 15 min
.25 cascade 10 min
.25 amarillo 10 min
.5 oz cascade 0 min
.5 oz amarillo 0 min
fermented at 68 with WLP001

dry hopped for 7 days with
.5 oz cascade
.5 oz amarillo

Should I have added some hops in the 30 minute range? Added a high alpha acid hop in the fwh? any ideas would be helpful.

Your hop profile is all flavor and aroma centered.  It might be lacking some firmer bitterness, maybe that’s what you mean by “hop punch”.  I suggest using .5 oz of hops at 60 or 45 minutes.

For a start I would cut the crystal malts back. 12% is just too much for any pale ale IMHO. I’d also second the suggestion to try a larger bittering addition. What’s your water like?

Also try bumping up your dry hops from .5oz to a 1oz ounce each of Cascade/Amarillo for a total of 2oz.  Like others stated above, try something like Mangum at 60 mins as your bittering addition.

Move your cascade addition from FWH to 60min or substitute a higher alpha hop for the same IBUs as a 60min addition (as Denny says, I like the “slap”), flip-flop your 15 and 10 min additions (and maybe move the 15min to 20min?), and double the 0 minute additions as well as your dry hop additions.  A 1/2 oz of cascade or some other “C” hop at 30min wouldn’t hurt, maybe CTZ?

Also, what is the approximate sulfate level of your water? 150-200ppm of SO4 may be a good starting point.

I agree with the crystal malt percentage, no more than 10%.

Whew. I was worried I was the only one who would be bothered by the asymmetry. ::slight_smile:

Thanks for the replies everyone. I checked my recipe the last time I made it and I had added columbus at 60 minutes. I’ll try magnum next time i brew this. Would fwh or 60 minute be better for more bittering?

My water is just Denver water and it’s what I use in all my beers.

Thanks again for the ideas for the next batch. I’ll try this again in a month or two but with some of the ideas thrown around in here.

IMO, FWH is a smoother bitter. I love me some Magnum. Warrior is starting to creep up on the list as well. A clean bittering addition is the goal here to let the malt and late additions shine through. Good on ya for the big late additions too!