First IPA - requesting input

I am preparing to brew my first IPA this weekend. All my other brews had very simple hop schedules, and were styles where the hops were not at all up front (mostly stouts, belgians, and a wit). I've had two IPAs recently that featured Citra hops, so I immediately bought 6 oz hoping to do something similar. I'm planing on using WLP023 (Burton Ale), I figured the estery profile would compliment the citrusy hops.

My goal with this brew is to feature that Citra flavor and aroma. In addition to the 6 oz of Citra, I also have 2 oz of Centennial and 2 oz of Chinook on hand (everything is pellets). I have in mind that the Centennials will sort of round out the Citra profile (while still leaving the Citra up front), and the Chinook will provide a little balance to the overall hop profile. I plan on having the average hop bitterness for an IPA (~70-80 IBU).

Here's the hop schedule I'm thinking:
.5oz Citra (13.5%) 60 min
.5oz Chinook (11.4%) 60 min
.5oz Centennial (10.4%) 60 min
1 oz Citra (13.5%) 15 min
1 oz Citra (13.5%) 10 min
1 oz Citra (13.5%) 5 min
1 oz Citra (13.5%) 0 min
1 oz Chinook (11.4%) 0 min
1 oz Centennial (10.4%) 0 min

Dry hop (10 days):
.5oz Chinook (11.4%)
.5oz Centennial (10.4%)
1.5oz Citra (13.5%)


For completeness, here's my grain bill:
13 lb 2-row
1 lb Munich
8 oz cara 60

Any comments, suggestions, critisism, etc is much appreciated!

Yes, yes, and more yes. And maybe more centennial, but that's just me

Looks pretty good to me, though I'd personally use a less fruity yeast.

Looks good. Mash low at around 148 for about 90-120 min. That will get you a drier beer that will let the hops shine more.

Also, don't dry hop that long. Only give it around 3-4 days the get those hops out otherwise you might run into grassy flavors ruining that citrus your aiming for.

Looks like a nice IPA to me, like previously said I'd change the yeast up on it. I'd go with WL002. Just my $.02.

Thanks for the replies!!

Like I said, this is my first hop-forward beer, so I'm happy at the advice you all have given. I was concerned about this being my first hop schedule that involved more than 2 additions, but I'm relieved (and kind of proud) that no one has any substantial concerns about what I was most worried about.

chickypad & WDT: WLP023 is what I was planning on using from the conception of this beer for the reasons I already stated (emphasizing citrus and fruit, rather than pine, spice, earth, and bitter). However, I see that more neutral strains are also often used, so when I do another IPA in about two months, I (or the person who I got hooked onto homebrewing recently) will use a more neutral strain like you two are suggesting like WLP002.

TahoeRy: Thanks. I've never dry hopped before. I've heard of the grassy flavors coming out in 2 weeks, which is why I cut it back to 10 days. But I've never dry hopped before so I will go with your suggestion of 3-4 days. I was also planning on going with 150F as my mash temp (since Palmer suggests 150F at the low end), but my brother who works at Santa Fe Brewing recently showed me that they sometimes mash lower than that, so 148 sounds good! I'll just have to figure out the right amount of gypsum to add for high bicarbonate water we have here.

lowtones 84: When would you add the centennial? It's not too late for me to buy more (and I might have to run up to the brew store for a hop scale tomorrow anyway).

Thanks again everyone. I like how the hop schedule was what I was the most unsure about, but the things I got feedback about were the mash, yeast, and hop selection. Makes me feel like I've got a good intuition when I'm not trying to be creative

Cheers!

Eagle,

Or an even better idea, is to split the batches and use 2 different yeasts to see what they do? Make a big starter with the Burton and you should be ok. I know a lot of people like WLP002, but it has a tendency to be fickle if temps fluctuate a little where you brew (I usually opt for another choice). I would suggest WLP007 as it attenuates better than 002--007 is probably my favorite neutral ale next to US-05 & Pacman.

And, your hops schedule looks fine as is. I wouldn't change anything.

First off... methinks you don't need advice. You just need a quiet place to write your book. You've got some good instincts and it sounds like you know what you are looking for. Opinions will vary on the fruit complexity but you'll never really know until you give it a go and see if it is what you were after. Empiricism is the root of all knowledge and damn sexy to boot!

Personally, I like a good fruit-balanced IPA. I make mine with passionfruit and Galaxy hops in generous proportions and after about 35 batches I think it is where I want it. Admittedly, my mind hasn't drifted towards Burton Ale but it sets my mind to wandering (and I was so very focused before I read this. Thanks for ruining my night). I typically use American Ale II.

I think your grain bill looks really good, nice and clean to showcase the hops and the advice above about getting your dry hops out before the grass starts growing is good as well (all these smart people in beer forums make me giddy).

I'm curious how this pans out. Let me know what you end up with. This sounds really impressive!

shine said:

First off... methinks you don't need advice. You just need a quiet place to write your book. You've got some good instincts and it sounds like you know what you are looking for. Opinions will vary on the fruit complexity but you'll never really know until you give it a go and see if it is what you were after. Empiricism is the root of all knowledge and damn sexy to boot!

Click to expand...

Couldn't agree more, most of the suggestions here are really personal preference and not problems with design (e.g., I'm not a fan of too much fruit).

Be sure to report back, OP!

Reporting back, as requested.

I kegged this last night after 2 weeks in primary and 2 weeks in secondary, with a 4 day dry-hopping at the end of secondary. Haven't given this a full tasting yet, but the flat, room temperature, trub laden sample I had last night tasted surprisingly light on esters (and that citrusy hop flavor I was hoping for -- nice aroma and and bitterness though).

Now as soon as I find a good thread on unclogging a dip tube and adding a filter, I'll be in business.