A solid Red IPA?

I'm aiming for a solid Red IPA for the season. After a lot of research on malts and hops, I decided to start with a basic recipe (This is my 2nd batch) I went to my local homebrewers' store and checked out their classic American Amber Ale. I took it, switched it up and triple hopped it.
This is it.

5 lbs Pale Liquid Syrup
1 lb Amber Liquid Syrup
8oz Belgium Biscuit
8oz Carafoam
8oz Caravienne
8oz 6-row Barley
4oz Malted Wheat
3oz Roasted Barley

2oz Chinook (1 @60, 1 @25)
2oz Cascade (1 @15, 1 @5)
2oz Simcoe (Dry hop)
Wyeast Northwest Ale Yeast 1332

Brew day is tomorrow 10/4

I just checked this all on my beersmith2 and am noticing a 4.2%abv and and OG of 1.42. Why is this so low? Should I add a few more pounds of extract and/or grains or leave it be? I want a solid ipa that's at least 5.8% or higher.


Any last minute malts or thoughts?
I had Carafa 1or2 in mind; a couple ounces
Maybe Black Patent, for a bit more depth on the red.

It won't really be an IPA.. Maybe more like an American ESB? The grain bill is a little eclectic. What is the .25 lb of wheat for? If you want more alcohol but don't want to darken it more you could add extra light DME.

bottlebomber said:

It won't really be an IPA.. Maybe more like an American ESB? The grain bill is a little eclectic. What is the .25 lb of wheat for? If you want more alcohol but don't want to darken it more you could add extra light DME.

Click to expand...

This was basically the recipe they had. I didn't realize how light it really was until my beersmith2 input. I wouldn't mind it a bit darker but definitely want a higher abv. Should I add a few pounds of the syrups and or the other malts. Maybe some crystal 20/40 (an idea I originally had)

I was always more partial to DME rather than liquid as it seemed to attenuate better. Also a percentage around 5-10% of plain table sugar is highly appropriate in a IPA. As far as the recipe in general and my opinion on the malt bill, I am a fan of uncluttered malt bills so I would probably go with amber DME, and a combo of C60 and C120 to get the color I wanted. 3 ounces of RB is going to give you a very distinctly roasty flavor that would take this out of IPA territory.

Here, take a look at this. I think it might be the color your looking for, and may be a better starting pint for what you're trying to accomplish.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f64/common-room-esb-83878/