AB Clone

I'm doing an AB clone tonight from AHS. The recipe is for a half boil, but i intend to a full boil. Do I need to make any adjustments to the hop addition amounts and times.
All Chinook
2.5 at 0
3/4 at 45
1/2 at 55

Thanks, I am super excited to make this kit....

That seems like a lot of hops for an Anheuser Busch clone.

blacklab said:

That seems like a lot of hops for an Anheuser Busch clone.

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LOL!

It really depends on the AA% of those hops. Are you planning a 60 minute boil or a 90 minute boil?
Are you planning on dry hopping this beer?

blacklab said:

That seems like a lot of hops for an Anheuser Busch clone.

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Pardon my abbreviation error, AB was supposed to be Arrogant Bastard. I am laughing at the Anheuser clone comment, I make an Anheuser clone every morning in the bathroom.

The boil will be 60 minutes, with a late extract addition. No dry hopping.

Sorry, couldn't resist. 2.5 seems like a lot for the bittering addition. I would personally use 1 oz and do more late additions if you're looking for a big hop presence. Then dry hop as well. BUT, that woudn't be a clone, then would it?

I would search this forum for 'hop utilization'(I know I've seen some discussions of this exact issue, but some time ago), OR just email AHS and ask them for their AG hop schedule for this kit.

If you're doing a full boil, there isn't any reason to do late extract addition. You'll want to use all the extract in the boil, just as you would if you were doing an AG boil. You can start with about 6.25 gallons or so, and it'll be boiled down to about 5.25 or so, depending on your evaporation rate. My AB clone is AG, but the hopping rate should be the same:

1.25 oz Chinook [14.30 %] (90 min) Hops 56.4 IBU
1.00 oz Chinook [14.30 %] (30 min) Hops 32.4 IBU
0.50 oz Chinook [13.00 %] (0 min) (Aroma Hop-Steep) Hops

(A 60 minute boil vs a 90 minute boil would not make much difference in the hops- maybe 4 IBUs or so. I boil 90 minutes, but 60 would work if that's your plan).

YooperBrew said:

If you're doing a full boil, there isn't any reason to do late extract addition. You'll want to use all the extract in the boil, just as you would if you were doing an AG boil. You can start with about 6.25 gallons or so, and it'll be boiled down to about 5.25 or so, depending on your evaporation rate. My AB clone is AG, but the hopping rate should be the same:

1.25 oz Chinook [14.30 %] (90 min) Hops 56.4 IBU
1.00 oz Chinook [14.30 %] (30 min) Hops 32.4 IBU
0.50 oz Chinook [13.00 %] (0 min) (Aroma Hop-Steep) Hops

(A 60 minute boil vs a 90 minute boil would not make much difference in the hops- maybe 4 IBUs or so. I boil 90 minutes, but 60 would work if that's your plan).

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So, do you think a 90 minute boil would be best or does it matter vs the 60? And the recipe has 4 oz of hops i'm sure the extra hops wont hurt but where should they go?

If you're doing a full boil, you get better hops utilization. That hopping schedule gives me 89 IBUS in about a SG of 1.070. I only need 2.75 ounces of 14.3 % AAU chinook to get me there. Your hopping may vary, if you have lesser AAU % in your hops, but the schedule should be the same.

The recipe you got from AHS would assume a partial boil, that's why there are more hops. What does the recipe say you should have for IBUs?

The recipe doesn't mention IBU's , and I'm not all that concerned with this beer tasting spot on with the Bastard. I assume at full boil if I add the hops listed it will be hoppier which doesn't bother me much. So , i guess a half ounce of hops difference wont make the beer off balance which is my only concern.

In my opinion, an extra half ounce of 14% AAUs hops is alot. You can run it through some software to see how much. Or one of us can do it for you. I like hoppy beers, and I like the AB clone very much. But chinook can be harsh and in very large doses, it might take months to mellow. Just my opinion, of course.

Trust me I value your opinion, so how about this.

Back off the bittering by half ounce and add it to the aroma? Or just not add it at all.

YooperBrew said:

The recipe you got from AHS would assume a partial boil, that's why there are more hops. What does the recipe say you should have for IBUs?

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I got the all grain kit from AHS and it had the same hops and hop schedule. It was one of the best beers that I have ever made, but it did take months to mellow, like Yooper said.

I brewed this clone from AHS as well, but backed off the hops on the bittering. I sampled just this past weekend and it turned out VERY good. It was noticeably less hoppy than the real deal, but since I'm still learning to love the hops, it turned out perfect for my taste.

Brewed the AHB clone recipe back in early February. It is FANTASTIC! Follow the recipe. you won't be sorry.

PeteOz77 said:

Brewed the AHB clone recipe back in early February. It is FANTASTIC! Follow the recipe. you won't be sorry.

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It's bubbling away right now. Ferm started at about twelve hours. I backed off the bittering by a half ounce, since it was a full boil.

I made my pseudo AB clone a few weeks ago, all Chinook (6 oz!), and it tasted wonderful racking into the secondary. I basically took someone's AB clone recipe found here and hopped it up w/ more Chinook. Recipe as follows:

Hoppy Bastard

2 lbs Pale Malt (2-row US)
.5 lb Special-B 147L
.5 lb Biscuit 24L
.5 lb Aromatic 19L
.5 lb CaraMunich 47L

3 lbs Light DME
3 lbs Extra Light DME
2 lbs Amber DME

1 oz Chinook 13% AA 60 min
1.5 oz Chinook 13% AA 45 min
1 oz Chinook 13% AA 20 min
1.5 oz Chinook 13% AA 2 min
1 oz Chinook 13% Dry Hopped

Don't know what the IBU's came out @, but the base malt flavor and bitterness tasted close to AB to me, only with alot heavier aroma. If I made it again, since I'm a hophead, I'd probably cut the 60, 45 & 2 minute additions to .5 oz each...and add more in the flavor range (25-15). Mmmm....Chinook....