Black IPA

Here is a recipe idea I have been tinkering with, any input would be awesome.

6 lbs Briess GOLD LME
6 lbs Briess Amber LME
2 lb Briess Dark DME
8 oz Crystal Rye Malt
8 oz Caramel 10L
8 oz Debittered Black Malt

3 oz Chinook Hops 60 min
2 oz Cascade Hops 30 min
2 oz Amarillo Hops 20 min
2 oz Citra Hops 10 min
1 oz Amarillo Hops dry hop
2 oz Summit Hops dry hop

Safale Ale S-04 dry yeast (pitching two packs)

I am planning on 10 days primary fermentation, 7 days secondary fermentation and then 7 days of dry hopping.

Then 8-10 weeks of conditioning.

Is all that for a 10gal batch, or are you trying for a double?

F secondary, let it go in primary until it's actually ready for bottles... Yeast will work on it's own schedule... I wouldn't even check on it until a month in primary.

Also, that's a LOT of extract (IMO), unless it's a 10 gallon batch.

I do think we need to come up with a better name than "Black IPA" since it's not a "Pale Ale"... Maybe IBA (India Black Ale) would be better.

I would be concerned with that much extract, not getting below 1.020 in the batch.

You're planning on using nutrient in the brew, I do hope.

I can only imagine how much all that extract is going to cost. Unless you buy in bulk, it's going to be an expensive brew (IMO)... If I buy liquid yeast, a typical ~5 (~6 into primary) gallon batch (all grain) runs me under $22...

I'd skip the amber and dark LME completely and replace it with light. You get more than color from those darker LMEs- they have crystal malt in them and can be quite a bit sweeter than you'd think. That's ok in a stout, but NOT an IPA. I'd use the lightest extract you can find, and use an ounce of carafa III to get dark color, since you have an additional pound of crystal malt already in there (not including the crystal in the darker extracts). I don't like much crystal malt in an IPA, as it shouldn't be cloyingly sweet, but a pound would be alright.

It definitely should have been more appropriately named DIBA. It is a double idea and I will probably need to pull at least a little extract out.

Yooper, that's a good point about picking up the extra sweetness from the extract, I hadn't really accounted for that. As far as using the carafa III, would that really be necessary since the main coloring for it is going to be the debittered black malt?

I agree with Yooper on dropping the black addition... Personally, I've never cared for what black malt brought to a brew. Maybe the debittered is better, but I'm not about to use it without trying a brew made with it. I would go with de-husked carafa III. Run your recipe through software to see how much you'll need to reach the color you desire.

If you still want the same strength/kick, consider using some extra light DME in the batch. Or do a partial mash/mini-mash with some 2 row malt. Doing a mini-mash (BIAB method comes to mind) means you'll get more from the other grains in the brew. Using just 2# of 2 row malt would let you drop the dark DME completely. Plus, your brew batch cost will actually go down. Depending on your pot sizes, you could mash more grain, reducing your need for extracts.

Isnt it now officially "Cascadian Dark" ale? Kinda silly if you dint wanna use cascade hops. I like India Black Ale for the record. I think Widmers Pitch Black recipe was in the Brew Your Own. Not as big a recipe as you may think.

sivdrinks said:

Isnt it now officially "Cascadian Dark" ale? Kinda silly if you dint wanna use cascade hops. I like India Black Ale for the record. I think Widmers Pitch Black recipe was in the Brew Your Own. Not as big a recipe as you may think.

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I thought I had read somewhere (maybe it was right off a Cascadian Ale I was drinking) that Cascadian Ales got its name from where they originated; the Cascadian Pacific Northwest region of the USA.

I have been messing with the numbers and it seems I can't reach what I want if I alter this recipe much. I may just brew a small batch and see what it's like. I'll let you guys know how it turns out.

What is it that you think you will be missing? I have a fresh double in my fridge that's plenty huge and only had ~70% of the fermentables and 2/3 the hops.

Part of what I want is to be able to age it for about 9 months, and I fear that reducing the fermentables and lowering the SG is going to cause the shelf life of it to significantly decrease. I want to brew it now for next spring, almost like a barley wine and as far as I know having higher SG with a lower FG will help that.