Hopslam clone

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Jbbloom1989

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Ok, so I am going to try and to a clone of hopslam. I have been hopping around different styles and just need a beer that is hoppy and amazing, so I am hoping that I can either reproduce this beer or possibly make my own version. My current recipe is this:

16 lb two row
1.5 lb munich
1.5 lb honey
1 lb carmel munich

2 oz centennial 60 min
1 oz cascade 60 min
1 oz cascade 30 min
2 oz amarillo 5 min-flameout
1 oz simcoe 5 min-flameout
3 oz simcoe dry hop

wyeast 1056 american ale

single step infusion at 147 for 90 min

I hope this is enough dry hopping/ bittering. I really have not used these hope very much because I'm pretty new at homebrewing. I have done a lot of research on this style and type of beer, but I am hoping my recipe is spot on. I have no idea of fermentation temp. and I dont know what temp to pitch at either. So here is what id like to ask...

Does my recipe look good?
Is my hopping substantial? (I was to impart more powerful aroma and hop essance rather than unrestricted bitterness)
How much yeast should I pitch as well as should I pitch a starter?
What temp should I pitch at?
What fermentation temp?
How long to ferment/when to transfer to secondary?
Secondary for 2 weeks?
Bottling temp/temp for bottles to stay at?

Well I know I sound somewhat inexperienced, but I am and I really want to learn. For a beer like this being close to 10% abv I dont want to waste the money on all that grain for no reason. I am a poor college student, so I want to make sure I dont waste my money.

Thanks for any input on this beer!!
 
Hopslam is my holy grail of beers to clone. So far have not really tried to copy it yet. I'm close enough that I could probably manage to get some official information if I really bugged them, but who knows.

Based on what I know about the beer, the recipe looks pretty good. At least it's a good starting point. Watch the fermentation temps and be patient.
 
What's your brewhouse efficiency? What's the batch size? Without these, we cant estimate OG, SRM, IBUs, and ABV.
 
Looking at around 65-75% efficiency and around 5 gallons maybe 5.5 if I get a little over zealous.

At 65% brewhouse efficiency and 5.5 gal batch size, we're looking at an OG of 1.084 SG, 78 IBUs, 0.92 IBU/gravity ratio, 11 SRM, and 8.4% ABV using White Labs WLP001 ale yeast with its average attenuation rate.

At 70% brewhouse efficiency and 5.5 gal batch size, we're looking at an OG of 1.091 SG, 73 IBUs, 0.81 IBU/gravity ratio, 11 SRM, and 9.2% ABV using White Labs WLP001 ale yeast with its average attenuation rate.

At 75% brewhouse efficiency and 5.5 gal batch size, we're looking at an OG of 1.097 SG, 69 IBUs, 0.71 IBU/gravity ratio, 11 SRM, and 9.7% ABV using White Labs WLP001 ale yeast with its average attenuation rate.

Reducing the batch size also affects things a lot; for example:

At 70% brewhouse efficiency and 5 gal batch size, we're looking at an OG of 1.100 SG, 74 IBUs, 0.74 IBU/gravity ratio, 12 SRM, and 10.1% ABV using White Labs WLP001 ale yeast with its average attenuation rate.
 
In all reality it will be closer to 65-70 and hopefully I'll hit the mark of 1.086 OG which I have read it what Bell's hit. And the IBU's I'm trying to keep in the high 60's to low 70's. So my only question mark is the SRM which I can only guesstimate.

And I'll make sure to keep the batch size at 5.5 I have a feeling that this will leave me a little more room for error, but I'll have to split the batch between to carboys which is always frustrating haha.
 
In talking with some people at Great Taste of the Modwest about that beer, I dont think Cascade hops are used in that one, a lot of centennial though.
 
K I've assembled a few official notes on this beer from Bell's via email.. the third one is a supposed official response but I cannot verify it...

1. We don’t have any specific recipes scaled to the homebrew size, but I can offer a bit of guidance. The malt bill is relatively straightforward: stick with 2-row base malt and just a bit of caramel malts for color. Add a healthy dollop of honey. Aim for an OG of 21 Plato. You’ll want to set up your mash rests for moderate fermentability: the sugars from the honey will be largely consumed, so you need malt dextrins around to keep the beer from getting too dry.

Hopping is trickier, but I can tell you that we use a blend of modern American high-alpha aroma hops. A generous dry hop addition of Simcoe with a touch of Amarillo provides the signature aromatic punch. Bitterness is less than most people think, in the mid-to-upper 60 IBU range. Hopslam is all about hop flavor, not unrestrained bitterness.

You can culture yeast out of one of our bottles if you’re comfortable with that; it’s certainly the preferred option for a solid flavor match. The yeast in the Hopslam bottle is the yeast used for fermentation, but at 10% abv, the yeast that isn’t dead will be severely stressed. I would recommend culturing from a lower gravity beer such as Amber Ale, Best Brown Ale, etc.: the yeast is the same & likely to be in superior condition. Winter White Ale is a completely different strain, so don’t use that. Otherwise, the local homebrew supply shops have found that most people looking to clone one of our recipes lean towards the WLP001 strain from White Labs. From what I’ve seen of it, that seems like a reasonable selection, but anything with a straightforward ester profile & good attenuation will work.

I hope this answers your questions. Good luck with the brewing!

Sincerely,

Gary S. Nicholas

Quality Assurance & Control

Bell's Brewery, Inc.

2. Thank you for taking the time to contact us. I am happy to hear that you enjoy our Hopslam Ale. It possesses the most complicated hopping schedule among our beers by a wide margin, and you are essentially correct: most of the action happens late in the boil & during the dry-hop phase. To answer your specific question, we target about 65 IBUs of bitterness.

Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns.

Sincerely,

Gary S. Nicholas

Quality Assurance & Control

3. Per Bells: We use Hersbrucker, Centennial, Glacier, Vanguard, & Crystal in the kettle, and then dry hop with Simcoe. Hopslam has an unusually high degree of fermentation, so you also encounter a fermentation profile that you wouldn’t find in many of our other beers. Lets figure out a clone recipe for this one now that we have the type of hops. I have no experience with Glacier, Vanguard, or Crystal so I will not be of any assistance. Here is one more hint Our internal taste panels regularly identify a peach aroma that is unique among our brands to Hopslam. That, in concert with the various hops, may be the tropical flavor you asked about.

Hope these help...
 
In all reality it will be closer to 65-70 and hopefully I'll hit the mark of 1.086 OG which I have read it what Bell's hit. And the IBU's I'm trying to keep in the high 60's to low 70's. So my only question mark is the SRM which I can only guesstimate.

And I'll make sure to keep the batch size at 5.5 I have a feeling that this will leave me a little more room for error, but I'll have to split the batch between to carboys which is always frustrating haha.

Plus, all those hops will absorb some wort, so 5.5 is good. I'd even go with 6 gal.
 
Ok so I figured up a new hop schedule base upon the last email sent by bells. That email states the kind of hops added in which I did a bit of reasearch on the different types of hops used and I tries to use them based upon their buttering or aroma profile. Tell me what you think of this one.

Us centennial 2 oz 60 min
Us crystal 1 oz 60 min
Us glacier 1 oz 10 min
Us simcoe 1 oz 10 min
Us crystal 1 oz 5 min
Hersbucker 1 oz 5 min
Us Amarillo 1 oz 5 min
Hersbrucker 1 oz turn off
Us glacier 1 oz turn off
Us Amarillo 1 oz turn off
Us Simcoe 3 oz dry hopped

It's a lot but I have a feeling the strong end of boil hopping is close to what bells does. I know I'm on to something good it all about exicuting now
 
Ok so I figured up a new hop schedule base upon the last email sent by bells. That email states the kind of hops added in which I did a bit of reasearch on the different types of hops used and I tries to use them based upon their buttering or aroma profile. Tell me what you think of this one.

Us centennial 2 oz 60 min
Us crystal 1 oz 60 min
Us glacier 1 oz 10 min
Us simcoe 1 oz 10 min
Us crystal 1 oz 5 min
Hersbucker 1 oz 5 min
Us Amarillo 1 oz 5 min
Hersbrucker 1 oz turn off
Us glacier 1 oz turn off
Us Amarillo 1 oz turn off
Us Simcoe 3 oz dry hopped

It's a lot but I have a feeling the strong end of boil hopping is close to what bells does. I know I'm on to something good it all about exicuting now

At 70% brewhouse efficiency and 5.5 gal batch size, we have: 1.091 OG, ~1.021 FG, 67 IBU, 11 SRM, 9.2% ABV, and 0.74 IBU/OG ratio supposing you hit your targets.

With all those hops, I might go for a 6 gal batch size; in which case:

At 70% brewhouse efficiency and 6 gal batch size, we have: 1.083 OG, ~1.020 FG, 66 IBU, 11 SRM, 8.3% ABV, and 0.79 IBU/OG ratio supposing you hit your targets.
 
That FG looks a little high - I've heard from a former brewer that the FG is about 3 degrees plato (around 1.012). I would probably up the honey a little bit (at least to 2# total).
 
That FG looks a little high - I've heard from a former brewer that the FG is about 3 degrees plato (around 1.012). I would probably up the honey a little bit (at least to 2# total).

That FG is based on the average attenuation of the yeast I selected (White Labs WLP001). It's just a starting place. Mashing low (maybe 149F) and longer (maybe 75 to 90 min) would probably increase attenuation and thus result in a lower FG.
 
I plan on mashing for 90 min. I want a good extraction soni figured low and slow would make for a good overall mash. As far as the honey goes I wanted to add just enough because I know that honey and dry out the mouth feel and from what I remember about this beer it wasn't too dry. I'm also a little worried about the srm. I never really pinned down that number, so if anyone has a spec in that that would be great. I was also looking at using Wyeast 1056, so i don't know if that is a similar strain buut I do know I'll have to do a double addition due tongue high abv. I've never done a starter but I know that would prob be good. And I do know good yeast functionality will help perpetuate a lower FG.
 
Careful mashing low, Hopslam has some body and mouthfeel, The email from Bells' referenced earlier will tell you to mash and allow some body, I mashed at 154 and was really pleased with the results .... It'll also tell you that its 2 row and some crystals ..

As for your hop schedule ... Well here was my recipe and think it is super close ...

BeerSmith Recipe Printout - http://www.beersmith.com
Recipe: Hopslam?
Brewer: Jonathan
Asst Brewer:
Style: Imperial IPA
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (35.0)

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Batch Size: 6.50 gal
Boil Size: 8.71 gal
OG: 1.087 SG
Estimated Color: 7.2 SRM
Estimated IBU: 66.5 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 76.00 %
Boil Time: 90 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amount Item Type % or IBU
16 lbs Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 81.67 %
8.0 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt - 20L (20.0 SRM) Grain 2.55 %
8.0 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt - 40L (40.0 SRM) Grain 2.55 % -
1.50 oz Centennial [6.00 %] (60 min) (First Wort Hops) 32.8 IBU
1.00 oz Vanguard [4.40 %] (20 min) Hops 4.9 IBU
2.00 oz Glacier [6.50 %] (20 min) Hops 14.5 IBU
3.00 oz Amarillo Gold [8.60 %] (5 min) Hops 14.3 IBU
1.00 oz Amarillo Gold [8.60 %] (0 min) Hops
4.00 oz Simcoe [17.70 %] (Dry Hop 7 days) Hops
1.00 tsp Gypsum (Calcium Sulfate) (Boil 60.0 min) Misc
2 lbs 9.4 oz Honey (1.0 SRM) Sugar 13.22 % Added at Flameout
1 Pkgs Rogue Pacman Yeast (Wyeast #1764-PC) A step up from a 1 L starter to a 2L Started


I would change the 1 oz of amarillo at flameout to a dryhop and lose an ounce of the simcoe ....
 
I plan on mashing for 90 min. I want a good extraction soni figured low and slow would make for a good overall mash. As far as the honey goes I wanted to add just enough because I know that honey and dry out the mouth feel and from what I remember about this beer it wasn't too dry. I'm also a little worried about the srm. I never really pinned down that number, so if anyone has a spec in that that would be great. I was also looking at using Wyeast 1056, so i don't know if that is a similar strain buut I do know I'll have to do a double addition due tongue high abv. I've never done a starter but I know that would prob be good. And I do know good yeast functionality will help perpetuate a lower FG.

A starter is a must for this beer. You could probably start with a vial of White Labs yeast and a 3000mL starter.
 
Careful mashing low, Hopslam has some body and mouthfeel, The email from Bells' referenced earlier will tell you to mash and allow some body, I mashed at 154 and was really pleased with the results .... It'll also tell you that its 2 row and some crystals ..

As for your hop schedule ... Well here was my recipe and think it is super close ...

BeerSmith Recipe Printout - http://www.beersmith.com
Recipe: Hopslam?
Brewer: Jonathan
Asst Brewer:
Style: Imperial IPA
TYPE: All Grain
Taste: (35.0)

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Batch Size: 6.50 gal
Boil Size: 8.71 gal
OG: 1.087 SG
Estimated Color: 7.2 SRM
Estimated IBU: 66.5 IBU
Brewhouse Efficiency: 76.00 %
Boil Time: 90 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amount Item Type % or IBU
16 lbs Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 81.67 %
8.0 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt - 20L (20.0 SRM) Grain 2.55 %
8.0 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt - 40L (40.0 SRM) Grain 2.55 % -
1.50 oz Centennial [6.00 %] (60 min) (First Wort Hops) 32.8 IBU
1.00 oz Vanguard [4.40 %] (20 min) Hops 4.9 IBU
2.00 oz Glacier [6.50 %] (20 min) Hops 14.5 IBU
3.00 oz Amarillo Gold [8.60 %] (5 min) Hops 14.3 IBU
1.00 oz Amarillo Gold [8.60 %] (0 min) Hops
4.00 oz Simcoe [17.70 %] (Dry Hop 7 days) Hops
1.00 tsp Gypsum (Calcium Sulfate) (Boil 60.0 min) Misc
2 lbs 9.4 oz Honey (1.0 SRM) Sugar 13.22 % Added at Flameout
1 Pkgs Rogue Pacman Yeast (Wyeast #1764-PC) A step up from a 1 L starter to a 2L Started


I would change the 1 oz of amarillo at flameout to a dryhop and lose an ounce of the simcoe ....



I would love to make this but it is pretty pricey with that many hops. What price were you able to make it at?
 
Sleepyemt, what was your mash schedule? Single
Infusion? Your hop schedule looks pretty similar to mine, the only thing I am really gonna do differently is using hersbucker hops. In their email they said they uses that particular type, and I think I will add some Amarillo to my dry hop as well.

I will also be uping this batch to 6 gallons.

And I think I'm going to mimic you sleepyemt with your two types if crystal. I think overall your srm seems closer to what I remember hopslam being.
 
It was a single infusion mash, I wouldn't go lower than 152. I didn't have the chance to pick up hersbucker before my brew day so I adjusted w/o it. I'll do this one again and probably FWH with the herbucker and just Keep the Centennial as the bittering. There is a long thread discussion on this recipe somewhere back in here. Be careful not to muddy up your hop additions. As far as upping the volume to a six gallon batch, remember you'll lose a bit to the hops soaking up the wort. I kept the honey to around 10%, I think it was perfect. I would definitly do a starter and think about pitching again when bottling, I had a difficult time with it carbing .... I'd love to hear how it comes out, I'm gonna be doing another batch soon, maybe a swap? :mug:

Crlova2,
Check out Farmhousebrewingsupply.com for your hops, makes this recipe a little better on the budget ... Steeler77 takes care of his customers.
 
I would defiantly be down for a swap, and you were right about the honey. Adjusted my recipe to a lower crystal and no Munich. Upped the honey and seems like everything is exactly where I want it. So I'll be brewing it this Saturday. I have a LHBS, and they have everything I need, good hop pellet yeast selection. Homebrewing.co
In ozark MO. I'll get pics and keep you guys updated. I'm really excited for this one.

And what do you mean repitch when I bottle?
 
I would defiantly be down for a swap, and you were right about the honey. Adjusted my recipe to a lower crystal and no Munich. Upped the honey and seems like everything is exactly where I want it. So I'll be brewing it this Saturday. I have a LHBS, and they have everything I need, good hop pellet yeast selection. Homebrewing.co
In ozark MO. I'll get pics and keep you guys updated. I'm really excited for this one.

And what do you mean repitch when I bottle?

He means add more yeast at bottling time (to the bottling bucket). Personally, I think if you make an adequate starter to begin with, you shouldn't need any more yeast at bottling time; there will be plenty.
 
He means add more yeast at bottling time (to the bottling bucket). Personally, I think if you make an adequate starter to begin with, you shouldn't need any more yeast at bottling time; there will be plenty.

Wel,l Your Mileage may vary .... I pitched from step up from a 1L to 2L, with that much hops it has an effect on the yeast cells, I'm just trying to share my experience ....
 
OK everyone, Brewday is is less than 12 hours, and I need some advice! I am planning a 6 gallon batch, so I plan to use a 5.25 gallon mash at 164 F for strike water. That way I hit around 152 for my long term mash temp. I also plan to have a pot of water on heat near by to add to the mash tun if I see any drop in temp. After that I will sparge with 6.25 gallons at 170-180. Does all this sound right? I just want to make sure I'm on the right track.

Also to my dismay, my LHBS was out of Simcoe!!!! FAIL! They sold the last 2 pack 20 min before I came in, crap. So I am using Cascade. I know this will not be a true hopslam clone and I know the taste will be very different, but you know what it will still be fun and I will still love this beer. : ) Simcoe was the heart of this recipe but now it is my recipe and my beer so I hope it all still turns out well.

But, if you have any words from the wise please pass them on about the mash, strike, and sparge water volumes and temps.
 
I don't think I'd worry too much about the simcoe substitution, most of it is in the dry hop so you have plenty of time to get some? Dry hopping makes a HUGE impact. I don't know that I could tell one of several 10min additions were substituted with cascade in comparison with several ounces of DH.

I'm used to no-sparge so I won't comment on your water volumes, I just plug things into beersmith and massage the numbers if I need to make it fit in a smaller mash tun or boil pot. This is a fair amount of grain, and there are a lot of hops so a 6 gallon batch is a good idea like you are planning.
 
I am now finished with the brew. So here is the stats...

**also mashing- mashed in with 168 F water, added grain and it dropped to 152. Stayed between 152 and 151 the entire mash. Then Mashed out with 178 F water ~1.5 gallons. (I know, not enough water. Ill know better for next time. I almost had 7 gallons at mash out so I was a little hesitant.)

Pre-Boil Gravity: 1.062 (just realized that this needed correction. Temp was pretty warm when this was taken, so I dont think this is viable data.)
Original Gravity: 1.091

The bad thing is that I lost alot more wort than I thought in my boil. I started the boil with over 6.5 gallons. Only a 60 min boil lead to over a gallon of loss. So, I ended up having to add a bit of cold sanitized water to make up for the loss. So I ended up loading around 5.5 gallons into the carboy. So not too bad. The Keggle worked great. Would have had a huge boil over if not for the extra room in the pot. The only problem I had is that since there was such a huge addition of hops I got some of the trub into the fermentor which I am crossing my fingers does not effect the fermentation. I pitched at around 75 degrees because after an hour of wort chilling That was about as low as I could get it. So after pitching, I am seeing a nice krausen after only 9 hours. So it should be a wicked fermentation.

Any opinions on how long to leave it in the primary? I want to make sure I dont lose too much of the hope aroma I worked so hard to get.
Im also wondering how long to dry hop... any suggestions?
 
You'll want to make sure your fermentation is finished before racking to secondary, and possibly leave it for an extra day or two after just to make sure.

Are you dry hopping with simcoe? I'd say 5-7 days, porbably the same for cascade, but I've heard that one leaves a grassy taste if left for too long ....

I look forward to hearing more ...
 
I am now finished with the brew. So here is the stats...

Pre-Boil Gravity: 1.062 (just realized that this needed correction. Temp was pretty warm when this was taken, so I dont think this is viable data.)
Original Gravity: 1.091

The bad thing is that I lost alot more wort than I thought in my boil. I started the boil with over 6.5 gallons. Only a 60 min boil lead to over a gallon of loss. So, I ended up having to add a bit of cold sanitized water to make up for the loss. So I ended up loading around 5.5 gallons into the carboy. So not too bad. The Keggle worked great. Would have had a huge boil over if not for the extra room in the pot. The only problem I had is that since there was such a huge addition of hops I got some of the trub into the fermentor which I am crossing my fingers does not effect the fermentation. I pitched at around 75 degrees because after an hour of wort chilling That was about as low as I could get it. So after pitching, I am seeing a nice krausen after only 9 hours. So it should be a wicked fermentation.

Any opinions on how long to leave it in the primary? I want to make sure I dont lose too much of the hope aroma I worked so hard to get.
Im also wondering how long to dry hop... any suggestions?

Your hydrometer is the only indication of complete fermentation. Once you get the same reading 3 days in a row (probably after about 7-14 days), you can think about dry hopping (another 7 days) if you want to. It will most likely be a very good beer!
 
I HIGHLY recommend culturing yeast from a bottle of Bell's beer (Amber, Oberon, or Best Brown). They have a proprietary strain that is ridiculous in terms of it's attenuation. I did a Hopslam clone a while back, and Bell's yeast took it from 1.100 to 1.016 effortlessly, mashed at 154F.
 
Im gonna end up doing 6-7 days hitting right in the middle of everyones suggestions. And I think I'm gonna carb it at 2.4 to allow for any loss of carbonation to be counted for, that way I end up with plenty of carbonation till the last bottle.

After pulling it into the secondary, I believe it is the finest beer I have ever made. I am more excited that I can describe.

If anyone has a way to post pictures tell me, I dont have the money to subscribe, but I would love for everyone to see these pictures.
 
Oh and Hopvine, I think I need to learn more about doing that. I tried once and i didnt get anything. If you have any threads or articles that might explain it better to me, I will def. do this next time I brew it. And I will be brewing it again!
 
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Ok so a little out of order, but you guys can deal. Here is a quick run through of the last 2-3 weeks. Ill post some of the secondary asap.
 
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