Red IPA recipe help

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Darth_Malt

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I'm looking to make an IPA with a very deep red (like a Sith lightsaber red, yea I know, nerdy) color to it. I want it to be very bitter and hoppy, but have a nice body and subtle sweetness to add some balance to what may end up being one of my go to recipes.

Fermentables:

11.0 Lbs 2-Row Malt
1.0 Lbs Crystal 40L
1.0 Lbs Crystal 80L
0.5 Lbs Black Barley (added late in the Mash to get color without altering the flavor too much)

Hops: (Pellets)

1.0 oz Nugget 40 Min
0.5 oz Nugget 30 Min
0.5 oz Williamette 30 Min
0.5 oz Crystal 15 Min
0.5 oz Williamette 15 Min
2.0 oz Crystal Dry Hop

So that's the base recipe. As a fun extra twist to play off the red color, I'm also going to try using this for my first attempt at a Chili Beer. Since I'm not looking to make a 5 Gallon batch of Chili beer my first time around, I'm going to drop a pepper in a few bottles and see how that goes.

I'm looking for any advice you may have on the grain bill, as well as Yeast strains and fermentation advice. I'm still new to home brewing and would appreciate any and all help I can get on this recipe. Thanks in advance
 
Brewed this recipe as a partial mash, drinking my first one right now so I thought I would post an update. I switched the 2-row for 8.25lbs Light LME and followed the rest of the recipe as posted. Used California Ale Yeast, primary for about 2 weeks, secondary for a week, primed w/ 4 oz corn sugar and bottled. Ended up with an OG of 1.062, FG of 1.02 so 5.5% ABV.

I know now that 2 lbs of Crystal malt is going to make for a very sweet 5 gallon batch of beer. The hops are almost nonexistent. The crystal malt overpowered any bittering, there's a slight spicy flavor behind the sweetness. The aroma is there, but not very prominent.

All in all, it's a drinkable beer. Not what I was aiming for, but still my own home brewed creation. Time to tweak the recipe, and try it again with my new AG setup.
 
An IPA!

- Cut the Crystal to 0.5 lbs.

- Drop the black.

- Lots of hops 15 minutes and in. 3 ozs or more, and something with some flavor.

If you want some red color, maybe some hibiscus flowers, (maybe 4 ozs)
 
Cut out the black barley and look into adding a very small amount of pale chocolate. Maybe 2-3oz. You will get color and very little roast with a nice and unique toasty flavor. I'd also add a small amount of a higher love crystal malt depending on your preference. C120 (burnt caramel) or special B (dark fruit/subtle roast) and maybe cut back on some of the lower love crystal.
 
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