Pliny the Elder extract recipe critique?

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IHateMayonnaise

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Hiya,

Looking to brew an extract imperial IPA, and after some looking around it looks like Pliny the Elder is an excellent choice. I myself have never had this beer, but I know it's loaded with hops, and I love hops!!

5.5 Gal batch, 90 minute boil

Steeping grains:
84% 2-row
6.6% cara-pils
2% C40
7.4% dextrose

Extracts/Sugar:
6lbs Gold Liquid Malt
3lbs Gold Dry Malt
1lb Clear Candi Sugar

Hops:
1.50 oz. Chinook Whole 90 min
2.75 oz. Warrior Pellet 90 min
0.50 oz. Chinook Whole 90 min
1.00 oz. Simcoe Whole 45 min
1.00 oz. Columbus Whole 30 min
2.25 oz. Centennial Whole 0 min
1.00 oz. Simcoe Whole 0 min

Dry hops:
Done in three stages, each separated by a week or so:
1.25 oz. Columbus
1.25 oz. Centennial
1.25 oz. Simcoe

Steps:
1) Make yeast starter ~24 hours before brew
2) Bring ~4 gallons of filtered water to 155 degrees
3) Drop in grains, steep between 150-158 for 45 mins
4) Bring to boil, start timer and add hops accordingly
5) 15 mins before end of boil add 1lb of Clear Candi sugar
6) Cool, add yeast
7) ~3 weeks in primary, or until FG is sufficiently low
8) ~3 weeks in secondary, each addition separated by a week
9) Add 5 oz. priming sugar, bottle
10) Wait (impatiently)

Comments/questions:

Most of this was taken from Dude's original post and the rest I found from scrounging around the forum. My main purpose in posting this thread is to see if I put this all together well (I'm still a newbie) and to see if anyone had any suggestions. Also:What amounts should I use for the grains? Any other comments?

I'll get the extracts and grains from my local HB store, the hops I will buy online.

Thanks!

IHateMayonnaise
 
The problem you will run into with doing this beer as a extract is that I don't think you will be able to hit the low FG that pliny hits. That is one advantage of all grain, this beer is mashed at 149 to almost maximize fermentable sugars created so that is can go from 1.072 to 1.010.

You can still create a great beer doing your recipe but I am not sure if it can be compared to pliny :(


If you take Dudes recipe and replace the 2-row with the comparible extract and then steep the rest, that will be your best shot.

Can you do a full boil? If so that will save you a lot in the hops department since usage is more utilized with a full boil.
 
The problem you will run into with doing this beer as a extract is that I don't think you will be able to hit the low FG that pliny hits. That is one advantage of all grain, this beer is mashed at 149 to almost maximize fermentable sugars created so that is can go from 1.072 to 1.010.

You can still create a great beer doing your recipe but I am not sure if it can be compared to pliny :(


If you take Dudes recipe and replace the 2-row with the comparible extract and then steep the rest, that will be your best shot.

Can you do a full boil? If so that will save you a lot in the hops department since usage is more utilized with a full boil.

I realize the extract way has drawbacks, and I'm sure it won't be as good as it would be had I done it all grain (one day..), but I figure I'll give it a try anyway. I doubt I'll be able to get down to 1.010, that's why I expect 3 weeks in the primary. Do you think doing it for longer would help any? Even if I added more yeast?
 
More yeast/time isn't going to help if all the fermentable sugar has been used. If you really want to dry it out, replace some of the extract with more plain sugar.
 
More yeast/time isn't going to help if all the fermentable sugar has been used. If you really want to dry it out, replace some of the extract with more plain sugar.

Should I reduce the liquid or the dry? How much should I jack up the clear candi sugar?

Edit: My goal is to make a good IIPA, and this one looked good at first glance. Perhaps I should choose something else since I'm going extract? Would Saq's Hopinator be a good choice since I want to make a REALLY hopper beer? Link: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f69/hopinator-114292/
 
I would just stick with the original plan and see how it turns out. You are trying to get a hoppy beer, which I'm sure you will get. If the final product isn't exactly what you wanted, brew something else. Since you have never had the actual beer, you can't go wrong making it with your method. Try the beer once the clone is ready to drink and compare.
 
I would just stick with the original plan and see how it turns out. You are trying to get a hoppy beer, which I'm sure you will get. If the final product isn't exactly what you wanted, brew something else. Since you have never had the actual beer, you can't go wrong making it with your method. Try the beer once the clone is ready to drink and compare.

Okay thank you for the advice! But any changes I should make to my recipe (especially the amounts of the grains)?
 
Lose the carapils from the steeping(really partial mash). There will be plenty of unfermentables from the extract for body.
 
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