Columbus IPA recipe help?

I just picked up the Columbus IPA kit from MoreBeer and will probably work on it this coming week. I have been curious about dry hoping, but have yet to do it and was wondering if It would be worth it to try with this recipe. The recipe does not call for any dry hoping but was wondering if it would be worth it or if it would be overkill. The recipe profile is as follows for the 5 gal batch:

OG: 1.058-62
SRM: 10
IBU: 63-66

1oz Columbus hops 60 mins.
2 oz Columbus hops 5 mins.
2 oz Columbus hops 1 min.

If you think I could go ahead with some dry hoping, any suggestions on variety/amounts?

Personally, being a hop-head, I would definitely dry-hop the crap out of it. If you have access to a secondary, I would drop a few ounces in there for at least a week. Although, for optimal results I'd probably go 2-3 weeks.

As for hop variety.... It really depends on what profile you want to achieve...Floral/Citrus or Herbal/Earthy/Spicy.

Personally, I would dry-hop with some low AA stuff, like some cascade, goldings, etc. But it really comes down to your preference.

I don't have a secondary right now. I was thinking I'll probably just get some whole hops and drop them in the primary after the fermentation settles down a bit. Cascade is one of my favorites, so I'm leaning that way right now

For sure man. The first time I "dry hopped" I didn't have access to a secondary either. I (being the noob I am) dropped pellets in shortly before pitching yeast in the initial fermentation. Hahahaha. Believe it or not, it still turned out really, really good.

If you like cascade, definitely give that a go. You'll enjoy it.

Sounds like dry hopping in the primary is ok to do... I was thinking I'd let my Citra IPA sit in primary for two weeks and then add the dry hops for 7-10 days. Anyone see a problem with this approach?

BryceL said:

I don't have a secondary right now. I was thinking I'll probably just get some whole hops and drop them in the primary after the fermentation settles down a bit. Cascade is one of my favorites, so I'm leaning that way right now

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That was one of the first few beers that i made. Great beer.

There is no need to rack to a secondary. Once fermentation is done, get a hop bag from morebeer and add 1-2oz of dry hops for an additional 1-2 weeks. Try to not keep it in there for more than 2 weeks though. It will turn out great and have that great additional aroma that you get from dryhopping.

Enjoy.

Dry hopping in primary is just fine. The issue is making sure primary fermentation is done. Excessive co2 release and incomplete fermentation will blow a lot of your aroma out the airlock. Verify fermentation is done, then hop away in the primary...it will save you having to clean another container for no reason.

HDEEZ said:

Sounds like dry hopping in the primary is ok to do... I was thinking I'd let my Citra IPA sit in primary for two weeks and then add the dry hops for 7-10 days. Anyone see a problem with this approach?

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I just made a citra ipa using exactly that method and it's delicious.

I've been emperimenting with Columbus a bit lately. It has a very distinct flavor - slight citrus, but more heady/pungent. I put about 45 IBUs into mine, but I think a more assertive bitterness like you have planned will help round out the flavor. I would definitely dry hop if you are looking for Columbus flavors to dominate, but I would just pull some of your 5-0 min to do it. I might also push some to 10 minutes... maybe something like:

1 oz 60
1 oz 10
1 oz 5
1 oz 0
1 oz dry hop

On a side note, IME Columbus dry hop aroma hangs around longer than other varieties I've used.

I use columbus all the time for bittering in my IPA's but I never thought about trying them for flavor or aroma......I've always liked amarillo and cascade at the end of the boil.