IPA's

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noreaster40s

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So far I've brewed 2 different IPA's, Octane IPA from Midwest and a Harpoon IPA clone from Austin Homebrew. While both beers have been good, I've been a bit disappointed that they haven't had the hop "bite" to them that I was hoping for. I live not that far away from the Harpoon Brewery in Vt. and it would be easy to get quite comfortable there on a nice afternoon with their fresh IPA. Was hoping mine would be similar but just doesn't have the little extra "umph". Wonder why.
 
I am guessing you don't want more bitterness, which is hops in the boil, but you want more flavor and aroma, and this is a result of DHing.

You may want to dry hop the IPA's, or DH them more than you have been.

You just need more hops, it's understandable. :D
 
If it's an extract batch, it's really hard to get a good IPA "bite" with a partial boil. Sometimes, in my opinion, extract recipes have too much crystal, which seems to counteract the hops.

If you post your recipes and the techniques you used (volumes, etc), maybe we can pick out something.
 
Yes, they were both extract recipes. We do it as a 5 gallon boil. Other than that we follow what the instructions say to do. We're considering going to all grain sometime in the not too distant future. The beers are good but just don't have that character about them that make them stand out like at the micro breweries we've visited. But we're working on that. :mug:
 
Dude, if you are doing full boils then you are halfway there. Convert an old cooler into your mash tun for about the price you would pay for an extract kit (if you have the cooler) and you are set. Going AG has added a new level to my beer. It was yummy before, but now its super yummy.
-Me
 
I got the Hop Head Double IPA from Midwest and it just finished on Sunday, being a hop lover myself I think this one might suit you more. This recipe does call for dry hopping two oz. of leaf hops. It has a good pine smell with a nice citrus undertone and dry finish, really yummy :) Here's a pic from Sunday.



Here it is right before bottling.
 
Maybe you need more late hop additions. I brew an IPA that has 6oz of hops in the last 10 minutes (3oz at 10 mins, 3oz at flameout), plus an ouce for dry hopping. It has huge hop flavor and aroma.
 
agreed...mroe late hop additions and dry hopping. of course, this will change the recipe. If it were me, I'd use leaf hops for these additions.
 
My money is on the water as well. A crisp, hoppy beer does well with a moderately hard water with high sulfate content. A high-bicarbonate, high chlorine, low sulfate water will produce a very dull hoppy beer. If you aren't sure of your water quality, get some RO or distilled bottled water (I refill 5 gallon jugs for $1.35 at my local Walmart from the Culligan machine), and add two tsp of Gypsum and 1 tsp of Calcium Chloride (available from LHBS everywhere) to it to make 5 gallons.

Another factor with hoppy beers is the head retention. If your head is weak you won't get the hop aroma to your nose as well -- all that foam carries the hop aroma. If that is the case add some extra carapils steep or maltodextrin powder next time and consider increasing your dry hopping rate. An extra ounce of hops in dry hop won't ever hurt. ;)
 
Thanks, everyone. All of you gave me something to think about. Got alot going on so I'm tackling this one thing at a time but I get the drift of what you're saying. It's sounding like either some late hop additions or trying one of the suggested kits. Would really like to go to all grain though. We'll see where the road takes us.

Meanwhile, the IPA that I have now (Harpoon clone) is really good even though it's not like what I've tasted at their Windsor, Vt. brewery on many an occasion. I don't think it's going to be around long. :mug:
 
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