American IPA Bell's Two Hearted Ale Clone (close as they come)

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I've been thinking of doing a 2H clone and was researching recipes. I saw this kit as well. Just wanted to point out that the hops they include with the kit are from the hops they buy for brewing, so higher quality than most.

Also, you can buy Bell's house yeast on their website if you don't want to do a starter. (But, then you miss drinking the beer to get to the dregs.:() It's Imperial Yeast A62.

I can't get any Imperial yeasts here in Europe anymore, only leftover stock from before they stopped shipping here. :(
Think there are some discussions about what is considered Organic in the USA is not considered Organic in the EU.

I also don't get any Bell's beer here so I can't harvest from anywhere either. I did drink TH on holidays in NY a few years ago though and loved it.
Has it been agreed on which other commercially available yeast would come closest? Chico should be close but not quite there, I was wondering about WY 1098 as I have some of that. I could also use M42 or M36 from Mangrove Jacks.

I also have London III and WLP005 British ale but they probably attenuate to low and also a bit too British.
 
Has it been agreed on which other commercially available yeast would come closest? Chico should be close but not quite there, I was wondering about WY 1098 as I have some of that. I could also use M42 or M36 from Mangrove Jacks.

I also have London III and WLP005 British ale but they probably attenuate to low and also a bit too British.

I made this last winter using US05. Three of us did a side by side with the real thing in cans. We all agreed it was very hard to tell any difference. It was hardly detectable. For what difference there was we all liked the US05 version better. Perhaps that was because it was fresher.

See this above: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/forum/...close-as-they-come.91488/page-34#post-8514537
 
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I made this last winter using US05. Three of us did a side by side with the real thing in cans. We all agreed it was very hard to tell any difference. It was hardly detectable. For what difference there was we all liked the US05 version better. Perhaps that was because it was fresher.

See this above: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/forum/...close-as-they-come.91488/page-34#post-8514537

Ok, thanks for your reply. What I get from this is that this beer will turn out great with a number of yeasts. I might just go the dry yeast route as I usually brew 4 beers on one day and it helps when they are not all liquid yeasts. So from what I have on hand it'll be one of US05, M42, M44, M36.
 
I've brewed Two Hearted clones a few times with a number of different yeasts (04, 05 and Imperial Flagship) and they have all turned out great and very close to the original. I just brewed another batch using the Bell's "Select" hops (advertised as the same crop they use in the real beer) and the Imperial "Bell's House" yeast and have to say, using their house yeast makes a difference. My beer is indistinguishable from the real thing (to my palate at least) and the yeast is incredibly versatile and easy to harvest (top crop).

I highly recommend trying to get a hold of their house yeast either through Imperial or harvesting from their bottles.
 
I can't get any Imperial yeasts here in Europe anymore, only leftover stock from before they stopped shipping here. :(
Think there are some discussions about what is considered Organic in the USA is not considered Organic in the EU.

I also don't get any Bell's beer here so I can't harvest from anywhere either. I did drink TH on holidays in NY a few years ago though and loved it.
Has it been agreed on which other commercially available yeast would come closest? Chico should be close but not quite there, I was wondering about WY 1098 as I have some of that. I could also use M42 or M36 from Mangrove Jacks.

I also have London III and WLP005 British ale but they probably attenuate to low and also a bit too British.

Bell's house yeast from Imperial is currently only available through the Bell's Homebrew website. I just checked their shipping policy and it looks like you may be able to score some through a courier if you really want to try it. From their website:

We will ship to international couriers, but please note our shipments are packaged only for domestic shipping and Bell's General Store releases all responsibility for a package once tracking shows it was delivered to the domestic address provided.
 
Here is my latest batch (left) vs. the real thing.
20190725_182059.jpeg
 
Bell's house yeast from Imperial is currently only available through the Bell's Homebrew website. I just checked their shipping policy and it looks like you may be able to score some through a courier if you really want to try it. From their website:

We will ship to international couriers, but please note our shipments are packaged only for domestic shipping and Bell's General Store releases all responsibility for a package once tracking shows it was delivered to the domestic address provided.

Thanks for the tip Kingmatt.:mug:
Might be a bit over the top for me to order the yeast via a courier :drunk:
Probably involves a lot of costs.
For now I'll try it with one of the other readily available alternatives.
Maybe I'll look online to see if there are some Bell's beers available from the beer shops.
 
Bells 2HA is a recipe I like to brew a few times a year as a solid go to beer. I’ve used a few yeast strains and for my next batch I’ll likely use either Joystick or TYB Midwestern but I’d love to get my hands on the actual Imperial Bells House yeast but alas we won’t see it here in the U.K.

If anyone was interested in sending me a pouch I’d be happy to reimburse via Paypal as Bell’s don’t show an option to ship to the U.K.
 
I've heard good things about Bell's Imperial yeast but I want to use what I have on hand.

So which would be best?.......
Imperial Darkness or Imperial Pub

I could go to lhbs and get something else if there is a strong argument for it, but it would be nice to use what I have.
 
I've heard good things about Bell's Imperial yeast but I want to use what I have on hand.

So which would be best?.......
Imperial Darkness or Imperial Pub

I could go to lhbs and get something else if there is a strong argument for it, but it would be nice to use what I have.
If it were me, I'd definitely use Pub. It's supposed to be the Fullers strain, and I think that would give some nice esters that would go nicely in this recipe.
 
I've heard good things about Bell's Imperial yeast but I want to use what I have on hand.

So which would be best?.......
Imperial Darkness or Imperial Pub

I could go to lhbs and get something else if there is a strong argument for it, but it would be nice to use what I have.

my vote goes for split batch, do both
 
Thanks kappy!
I'll report back in a few weeks.
Ok so I brewed a batch with.....Omega Lutra kveik.
I know it’s nowhere near the original yeast but it came out real clean and delicious. I fermented at 72f (ambient temp was 68f).
I’ve never tried the original so I can’t compare but the beer was a success.
I lost my keezer to covid frozen food storage and ever since I’ve been brewing with the seasons. My garage is about 50f so I had to ferment in the house.
 
The actual gravity for this beer is 1.064
The FG is 1.010
Yeast is taken from a bottle of Bells Amber (their Pale Ale also works)

10 lbs Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 76.92 %
2 lbs Vienna Malt (3.5 SRM) Grain 15.38 %
8.0 oz Cara-Pils/Dextrine (2.0 SRM) Grain 3.85 %
8.0 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt - 20L (20.0 SRM) Grain 3.85 %

*mash at 150 F

1.00 oz Centennial [9.50 %] (60 min) Hops 30.3 IBU
0.50 oz Centennial [9.50 %] (Dry Hop 5 days) Hops -
1.00 oz Centennial [9.50 %] (15 min) Hops 15.0 IBU
1.00 oz Centennial [9.50 %] (5 min) Hops 6.0 IBU
1.00 oz Centennial [9.50 %] (1 min) Hops 1.3 IBU

7% ABV

This beer is so damn close to the original. If you let it wait at least 2 months in the bottle/keg it'll clear up EXACTLY like the original. I had SWMBO mix the glasses up and I couldn't pick my clone out between two Two Hearted Glasses and one Clone. This is the best clone I've made and possibly the best IPA I've made. :mug:

Edit: Fixed yeast and gravity issues along with mash temp for a lower FG.
You can also order the kit from Bell's General store and have it shipped to your house. They include the liquid yeast which they use.
:)
 
Made a slightly off-kilter Two Hearted clone and thought y'all might enjoy reading about my results:

https://www.yeastdriven.com/2022/01/31/bells-two-hearted-ale-clone-recipe-double-bypass/
It sounds like yours turned out pretty good. Mine did too with the kit I ordered at Bells General Store. The liquid yeast survived the journey from Michigan to S. Florida with 3 day Fed-Ex shipping.

Mine is hazy, but should sit in the bottle longer. I started sampling after 1 week. After a month I have 2 six packs left and the beer is still hazy. I did the dry hop and cold crash thing, and Irish moss in the boil too.
If I can hold out another month, the last 12 bottles will be pretty good.

Every step of the way i complained to myself what a chore it is to brew my own beer. I've only ever done about 12 batches over 20 years learning as I go. I want to brew this kit again but am lacking motivation. Brewing is a big ole pain, every step. But i am going to brew this kit again, maybe better this time. :)

Erik
 
have made the recipe several times, don't think I've come even close to a "clone" but holy EFF, it's still good beer

the grain bill ended up becoming my standard starting point for many other beers, maybe change the crystal/caramel & added other specialty grains to make a stout, changed hops or yeast.
 
I use the grain bill a lot and change up the hops. Increase the grain amount some and keep the percentages the same and it becomes a double. My best clear IPA to date uses this grain bill with a combination of Azacca, Mosaic and Vic Secret. Use Vic Secret all whirlpool or dry hop or it can take a while for the hop burn to age out.
 
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