Will my Pliny the Elder clone be better after aging or no?

Last Saturday I brewed a Pliny the Elder Clone 164 IBU's @ 7%. I am not a big hop (too much hops give me nasty headaches)head but brewed this for my brother who loves em. It's bubbling away as I write this. My question is will it be truer to style to rack and dry hop as soon as fermentation is complete or should I do the 3-4 weeks conditioning time and then dry hop. Do you find your big IPA's taste better young or after some aging? Thanks in advance.

I like IPA's fresh, but they taste fine after some age also. The hops mellow a bit with age though. I dry hop as soon as primary is complete. You're essentially conditioning it while it's being dry hopped.

I don't like IIPAs aged. Personally I'd dry-hop as soon as fermentation is pretty much done then cold-crash and carb. Stale IIPA tastes like Dorito dust and raw onion!

This is what the text around the outside of the Pliny The Elder label says:

Respect your elder. Keep Cold. Drink Fresh. Pliny the Elder is a historical figure, don’t make the beer inside this bottle one! Not a barley wine, do not age! Age your cheese, not your Pliny! Respect hops, consume fresh. If you must, sit on eggs, not on Pliny! Do not save for a rainy day! Pliny is for savoring, not for saving! Consume Pliny fresh or not at all! Does not improve with age! Hoppy beers are not meant to be aged! Keep away from heat!

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Does that answer your question?

jaobrien6 said:

This is what the text around the outside of the Pliny The Elder label says:



Does that answer your question?

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I was just popping in to quote that.
There's a recent episode of The Brewing Network that has Vinnie, the guy who brews Pliny, on the show, and they're talking about drinking a 4-day-old Pliny.

I made a pretty highly hopped beer last spring. The first couple of months it was awesome, but after about 5 months it tasted like lawn clippings.

Drink that beer fresh!

B

dwarven_stout said:

I was just popping in to quote that.
There's a recent episode of The Brewing Network that has Vinnie, the guy who brews Pliny, on the show, and they're talking about drinking a 4-day-old Pliny.

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4 days from bottling or brewing? That would be basically when they start dry hopping it.

Drink it FRESH!
However, I do believe your IBU's are too high and your abv a little low for a Pliny. Pliny runs @ 92 IBU and the abv is 8%.

warriorpoet said:

Drink it FRESH!
However, I do believe your IBU's are too high and your abv a little low for a Pliny. Pliny runs @ 92 IBU and the abv is 8%.

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He is estimating IBU via extrapolation. RR is testing it in a lab. That is the disconnect.

For me the sweet spot for my Tits Up (Pliny inspired) is anytime after 4-5 weeks and within 3-4 months.

Too early on a higher ABV beer and you may still be in the hot-alcohol zone. That will go away within a few weeks. Too long and the fresh hop aroma will dissipate. The bitterness will linger, but the floral aspect will fade.

I am confused, you don't like too much hops but you made a pliny clone????


hoppy beers are made to be drank fresh in the case of an IPA or IIPA, barlywine is a different story but at any rate, I have gotten my system down where I ferment for 5-6 days, toss in the dry hops for 7 days, crash cool for 2-3 days add gelatin for 1-2 days and keg and carb. So I am pulling the tap about day 17-19.

i just finished making 15 gal. of Pliny clone. it's off the chain. drink it quick. it will melt your face. don't age this beer - it will waste all that dry-hopping.

after i finished the first dry hop, i siphoned into the keg and used the tea ball to dry hop the last five days. Now it is below the tea ball and off the hops. Perfect.

Although (cautionary tale), next time i will be more careful about removing as much hop residue as possible. after about 3 gallons, the keg is clogged. boo. i will be planning on extracting the last ~2 gallons this weekend harming the beer as little as humanly possible. (The other 10 gallons went into bottles - not ready yet)

http://mysite.verizon.net/vze4ynxh/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/1plinytheelderclonepdf.pdf. The Pliny recipie if anyone is interested.

remilard said:

4 days from bottling or brewing? That would be basically when they start dry hopping it.

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They didn't say- just that the Pliny was "4 days old". I would assume it'd been kegged 4 days?

I brewed a Pliny clone on May 3rd. Just drank the last bottle last week and I did not like it at all. IIPA's don't age well, plus the aroma hops will fade significantly with time. I like them fresh.

The Pliny clone recipe
calls for: (when dry hopping)

1.00 oz CTZ 13.90% A.A. Dry Hop (12 to 14 Days Total)
1.00 oz Centennial 9.10% A.A. Dry Hop (12 to 14 Days Total)
1.00 oz Simcoe 12.30% A.A. Dry Hop (12 to 14 Days Total)
.25 oz CTZ 13.90% A.A. Dry Hop (5 days to go in dry hop)
.25 oz Centennial 9.10% A.A. Dry Hop (5 days to go in dry hop)
.25 oz Simcoe 12.30% A.A. Dry Hop (5 days to go in dry hop

Unfortunatley I don't have these hops on hand. Do you guys think I would be ok dry hopping with northern brewer instead of these hops?

redalert said:

The Pliny clone recipe
calls for: (when dry hopping)

1.00 oz CTZ 13.90% A.A. Dry Hop (12 to 14 Days Total)
1.00 oz Centennial 9.10% A.A. Dry Hop (12 to 14 Days Total)
1.00 oz Simcoe 12.30% A.A. Dry Hop (12 to 14 Days Total)
.25 oz CTZ 13.90% A.A. Dry Hop (5 days to go in dry hop)
.25 oz Centennial 9.10% A.A. Dry Hop (5 days to go in dry hop)
.25 oz Simcoe 12.30% A.A. Dry Hop (5 days to go in dry hop

Unfortunatley I don't have these hops on hand. Do you guys think I would be ok dry hopping with northern brewer instead of these hops?

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You can dry hop it with what ever you want but it wont be close to a pliny if you use NB hops.

Pat

redalert said:

The Pliny clone recipe
calls for: (when dry hopping)

1.00 oz CTZ 13.90% A.A. Dry Hop (12 to 14 Days Total)
1.00 oz Centennial 9.10% A.A. Dry Hop (12 to 14 Days Total)
1.00 oz Simcoe 12.30% A.A. Dry Hop (12 to 14 Days Total)
.25 oz CTZ 13.90% A.A. Dry Hop (5 days to go in dry hop)
.25 oz Centennial 9.10% A.A. Dry Hop (5 days to go in dry hop)
.25 oz Simcoe 12.30% A.A. Dry Hop (5 days to go in dry hop

Unfortunatley I don't have these hops on hand. Do you guys think I would be ok dry hopping with northern brewer instead of these hops?

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lehr said:

You can dry hop it with what ever you want but it wont be close to a pliny if you use NB hops.

Pat

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Exactly. If you want the grapefruity/citrusy in-your-face hoppiness that Pliny has, you'll need some simcoe and centennial at least, or some simcoe and amarillo or cascade. Northern brewer hops are more earthy and kind of minty. Nothing at all like those other US hops.