I'm working my way through the thread, so I apologize if this has been asked before.
Hmm, this is a long rambling post. TL;DR: anyone try increasing the amount of bittering hop in the boil?
Context: As a transplant from the east coast to the west, DFH60 used to be my go-to six pack. I've recently transitioned from extract to all-grain brewing, this was my first real attempt (seems easier to mash a lot of 2-row than fiddle around with oatmeal stouts, which was my other idea). Anyway.
I love the recipe quite a bit. I've made it twice now, although neither time did I use the marris otter called for. The first time I had a pound of belgian aromatic laying around, and the second time I bought a pound of british 30-37 crystal malt instead. Mostly a matter of what I could easily pick up at the time. I'm having a bit of efficiency problems (right now at about 60%), but I attribute that to my newness to the process. It'll pick up as I figure out stuff like how to properly crush my grains and get a better handle on san francisco's ridiculous water (there's almost nothing in it at all; the magnesium and calcium levels are both single digits PPM).
One thing I've noticed, though, is that the bittering schedule on this brew is really quite restrained. There's only about 24 AAUs in the bittering at all, and since most of them are added for less than 30 minutes, I expect utilization to be pretty low. I guess this is the point of the continuous hopping technique- balance bittering with flavor a lot more (although I also believe that the contribution of continuous hopping is kind of washed out by the ounce and a half of dryhop, I'm one for tradition here).
After quaffing the first batch of this beer (and it was a Highly Quaffable Brew, kudos Yooper), I think I agree with my preliminary assessment- it's not bitter enough. The dry hops add a ton of delicious flavor (very DFH, although I've not tasted them side-by-side now that I live in CA), but it's more floral, fruity and herbal than bitter. I know that traditionally an IPA is not supposed to be all that bitter really (it's what, 20-40 IBUs?) and it should derive most of its flavor from dry hops and maybe oak, but I am still thinking I might want to change the profile a bit.
Has anybody tried this? Given how deservedly well-received the recipe is, I imagine lots of people have played with it. My plan would likely be something like: start with 0.25 oz of the warrior and 0.5 oz of the amarillo (since I have to buy by the ounce anyway, this would go to waste) in the pot for the full 60 minute boil, and do the continuous hopping schedule with everything else. This should add another 10ish fully-utilized AAUs to the recipe.