Beersmith 2.0 question

OK; so I've went out and purchased a pliny the elder clone kit from morebeer dott kom. In the sheet of paper that comes with it the claims are to around 198-ish in terms of IBU's.

However when I put the entire recipe through my beersmith program [under the IIPA section] I only get around 184 IBU's. Is there something up with the program or did I get hosed with the hops?


http://morebeer.com/view_product/18436//Vinnies_%22Pliny_the_Elder%22_Double_IPA_-_Extract_Beer_Kit

Update: I guess this new program does not automatically change the 5 gallon to 5 gallon when you choose a different kettle under the options.

It will be interesting to try. Ive had stones ruination ipa and insted of having to wait and rush to buy a $6.00 bottle of pliny, the clone will be just as good.

When I clicked on your link this is what it said "IBU's: 198-202 (this is a theoretical number, you will actually get around 100 IBU?s)".

Honestly I've heard that once you get over 100 it doesn't really matter much. Something about that being the taste threshold for bitterness. Have other people heard this?

There's a couple reasons. One is that AA% varies from one crop to the next, so any estimated IBU for a kit recipe is just that: an estimate. The other reason is that there are a few different formulas for calculating IBU: Rager, Tinseth, and at least one more I can't remember off hand. If you go into tools and change the formula from one to another you will get a slightly (in some cases not so slightly) different answer. But really, anything over 100 IBU is not detectable or accurate, so you're good regardless. FWIW, according to one of the homebrew sheets Vinny has circulated online, Pliny has been chemically tested and found to be somewhere around 90-95 IBU, which is really the only truly accurate way of measuring it.