Recipe Type: All Grain
Yeast: Safale-04 Wlurry
Batch Size (Gallons): 5.50
Original Gravity: 1.075
Final Gravity: 1.018
IBU: 1.061
Boiling Time (Minutes): 75
Color: 12.8
Primary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp): 14 Days at 68
Additional Fermentation: Kegged at 78 for 10 days
Secondary Fermentation (# of Days & Temp): Dry Hopped 7 Days at 68
Tasting Notes: See notes below:

I wanted to come up with a nice malty, hop-flavorful IPA that pushed the upper limits of a Category-14 (American IPA) beer. The outside range for the OG is 1.075 and the IBU’s at 60. Normally for me, a 60-IBU beer would be a bit too bitter. I knew I’d have to get to one more upper limit with this beer, and that was to attenuate to the high side of about 1.018 finished gravity. With a higher finishing gravity, the malt character would hold its own against the higher IBU’s. This was going to need a high mash (159) and a short rest (45 minutes) to give me the higher FG.

I’m a fan of the slightly sweeter grains, so a fair amount of specialty grains were in order. With 12% Munich, 7% Honey malt (which I love) and 7% of some crystal (60 & 80), I thought I’d have enough residuals to really give some nice body and a malty sweetness. I decided to use a smaller amount of higher Alpha hops for bittering, in this case some Nugget. Then some Amarillo at around 45 minutes and then really lay it on the last 30 minutes with an additional 2.5 ounces of American hops.

I brewed this beer on August 18th. It sat in the primary for two weeks and then was dry hopped for an additional 7 days. It was racked to a secondary with gelatin and rested another 10 days. From there it was racked to a keg and stored at room temp another 10 days…chilled and carb’d. I tasted after just one week on the gas and it was very drinkable. About 2 weeks later I included a bottle in each of my packages to Chriso and GreenwoodRover as part of the 10der & mild swap. I thought the beer was phenomenal, but lest there’s any doubt, here’s what they had to say:


I also had a fellow St Louis Brews member over at the house last week to pick up some grains and after sampling from left to right on my 5-tapper downstairs, he landed on this beer as his favorite. A veteran BJCP judge, he gave it a definite two-thumbs-up and suggested it be entered into some upcoming contests.

So anyway, enough talk. Here it tis.

Outer Limits IPA


OuterLimits_Chart.jpg

OuterLimits_Hops.jpg

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OuterLimits_Rings.jpg



Batch Size: 5.50 gal
Boil Size: 8.13 gal
Estimated OG: 1.075 SG
Estimated Color: 12.8 SRM
Estimated IBU: 61.1 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 75.0 %
Boil Time: 75 Minutes

Ingredients:
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11.00 lb Pale Malt, Maris Otter (3.0 SRM)
1.75 lb Munich Malt (9.0 SRM)
1.00 lb Honey Malt (25.0 SRM)
0.50 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 60L (60.0 SRM)
0.50 lb Caramel/Crystal Malt - 80L (80.0 SRM)

0.75 oz Nugget [13.00%] (60 min) (First Wort Hop)
0.50 oz Amarillo Gold [8.90%] (45 min)
0.50 oz Centennial [10.00%] (30 min)
0.50 oz Amarillo Gold [8.90%] (15 min)
0.50 oz Cascade [7.80%] (10 min)
0.50 oz Cascade [6.10%] (5 min)
0.50 oz Centennial [10.00%] (0 min)

.50 oz Amarillo Gold [8.90%] (Dry Hop 7 days)
.50 oz Centennial [10.00%] (Dry Hop 7 days)
.50 oz Glacier [5.60%] (Dry Hop 7 days)


Hit the mash temp at 159 exactly. Held for 45 minutes and the sparged.

Pitched a slurry of safale-04 from a prior batch at 68 degrees.