New England IPA "Northeast" style IPA

[marchuk96]

Cold crash will be hard for me, I usually do it in the keggerator since I ferment in keg. I never used bags before but I feel like it will be a clogged mess without one. I think I’ll try a closed loop with a water purged keg like the picture below. Then again the bag might get sucked into the spigot and clogg it anyway. Idk maybe I’ll just build one with a floating dip tubeView attachment 617694

Does your fermentor not fit in your kegerator??? If you have no way to cold crash I would say you have no choice but to bag em...I used to use bags but I noticed a pretty significant improvement in aroma and flavor once I went loose...I have never had mine clog ever during transfer...the crash really compacts everything to below the spigot and leaving it on a tilt helps prevent a mess also...

 

[leesmith]

Does your fermentor not fit in your kegerator??? If you have no way to cold crash I would say you have no choice but to bag em...I used to use bags but I noticed a pretty significant improvement in aroma and flavor once I went loose...I have never had mine clog ever during transfer...the crash really compacts everything to below the spigot and leaving it on a tilt helps prevent a mess also...

I’ve gone back and forth with bagging and not bagging...many times.

You can get the same aroma and flavor.

One trick I learned from couchsending is before taking your dry hops out of the packaging or the vacuum sealed bag you stored them in...crush them.

I use a hammer and a couple paper towels on top of the package to prevent tearing the package (can happen anyways)....crush them into powder...and then bag and proceed.

*Frankly it works without crushing them also...I think the real key to getting good flavor out of bagged hops is shaking the fermenter....of course this requires head pressure to avoid oxidizing.

 

[jakturner]

Does your fermentor not fit in your kegerator??? If you have no way to cold crash I would say you have no choice but to bag em...I used to use bags but I noticed a pretty significant improvement in aroma and flavor once I went loose...I have never had mine clog ever during transfer...the crash really compacts everything to below the spigot and leaving it on a tilt helps prevent a mess also...

I could but it’s a major PITA. I use this 7cu ft fridge and it fits 2 5 gal corny plus a 3 gal corny and co2 bottle on the ‘hump’ in the back. In the past I’ve had to pull all the kegs out and put a step stool in there that’s level with the hump for carboys to fit.

 

[VirginiaHops1]

If you can't cold crash definitely bag the hops. I used to do closed transfers from my carboy to keg and didn't cold crash because of O2 suck back. I had to bag to avoid clogs and still got them sometimes anyways. You can still produce good flavor with bagged hops but my experience has been better with free floating hops now that I ferment in kegs and can do that easily, but my process has also improved gradually over time too so I guess I wouldn't know for sure without doing a side by side with exact same recipe and exact same process.

 

[jakturner]

If you can't cold crash definitely bag the hops. I used to do closed transfers from my carboy to keg and didn't cold crash because of O2 suck back. I had to bag to avoid clogs and still got them sometimes anyways. You can still produce good flavor with bagged hops but my experience has been better with free floating hops now that I ferment in kegs and can do that easily, but my process has also improved gradually over time too so I guess I wouldn't know for sure without doing a side by side with exact same recipe and exact same process.

Yeah, I’ve never bagged before but this got me thinking about it. http://brulosophy.com/2019/03/11/im...ter-on-dry-hop-character-exbeeriment-results/

 

[VirginiaHops1]

Yeah, I’ve never bagged before but this got me thinking about it. http://brulosophy.com/2019/03/11/im...ter-on-dry-hop-character-exbeeriment-results/

The thing those exbeeriments has taught me more than anything is that people's palates generally suck when trying to detect subtle tastes. Even when they test things we basically know are true and matter the results are often split. I wouldn't worry if you bag hops that your beer will suck or anything. If there is any effect it will likely be small, but intuitively it makes sense that pellet hops would have the best chance of imparting max flavor if they aren't crammed into a bag or container(considering how much they expand when wet).

 

[Hannabrew]

The thing those exbeeriments has taught me more than anything is that people's palates generally suck when trying to detect subtle tastes. Even when they test things we basically know are true and matter the results are often split. I wouldn't worry if you bag hops that your beer will suck or anything. If there is any effect it will likely be small, but intuitively it makes sense that pellet hops would have the best chance of imparting max flavor if they aren't crammed into a bag or container(considering how much they expand when wet).

Indeed. I get more value out of the recipes and processes detailed in their articles than the results.

 

[SRJHops]

Had a nice visit to PianoMan's town (Austin, Tx) last week and made it to 6 breweries. Thanks to his recommendations, we had some tasty NEIPAs, with our favorites found at Southern Heights Brewing (see photo below).

By our count they had at least 4 NEIPA's. Not sure if it was the 7.6 ABV, but our favorite was 93 Bronco, which used Idaho 7, El Dorado, and Citra.

Close behind was To the Cloud!, followed by Friends with Benefits, which they brewed in collaboration with our second favorite brewery, Zilker. Tahitian Dreamin was also solid. Love that they post the hops they use for their beers.

We also had Pinthouse Pizza's "Electric Jellyfish" on tap at a local bar. It was easily the best beer we had that day -- very good NEIPA that I bet tastes even better at the source.

 

[ba-brewer]

Yes but I’d rather only have it sitting at room temp to carbonate for 5-7 days instead of 14 when priming.

Do you check the gravity after 5-7days or just go by pressure?

I capped a keg with 4points to target FG and the pressure when up to 22psi pretty quick like 24hours but when I checked it 5 days later it had only dropped 1 point. 7days and it is still building pressure and has not moved mush on gravity. I left to continue normally and it hit final gravity as expected. I kegged 3.5days post pitch at 1016 still only about 1015, non kegged went to 1012. 1050 start gravity.

 

[GnenieGone]

Had a nice visit to PianoMan's town (Austin, Tx) last week and made it to 6 breweries. Thanks to his recommendations, we had some tasty NEIPAs, with our favorites found at Southern Heights Brewing (see photo below).

By our count they had at least 4 NEIPA's. Not sure if it was the 7.6 ABV, but our favorite was 93 Bronco, which used Idaho 7, El Dorado, and Citra.

Close behind was To the Cloud!, followed by Friends with Benefits, which they brewed in collaboration with our second favorite brewery, Zilker. Tahitian Dreamin was also solid. Love that they post the hops they use for their beers.

We also had Pinthouse Pizza's "Electric Jellyfish" on tap at a local bar. It was easily the best beer we had that day -- very good NEIPA that I bet tastes even better at the source.

View attachment 618144

Glad you had a good time man! Maybe next tume I can join you for a round.

 

[couchsending]

Do you check the gravity after 5-7days or just go by pressure?

I capped a keg with 4points to target FG and the pressure when up to 22psi pretty quick like 24hours but when I checked it 5 days later it had only dropped 1 point. 7days and it is still building pressure and has not moved mush on gravity. I left to continue normally and it hit final gravity as expected. I kegged 3.5days post pitch at 1016 still only about 1015, non kegged went to 1012. 1050 start gravity.

I base it off the fermenting beer I pull it from and when it finishes fermentation.

 

[AnttiLeh]

Hello all,

firsttimer here in this forum. Im planning to brew this recipe tomorrow and have few questions about fermentation times and dry hop.

I dont have kegs, so im going to bottle this set.

From Braufessors second update, im going to make it with one dry hop. Im planning to dry hop on day 3 like the
recipe. On day 6 move the worth to second fermentation bottle. Keep it there for 6-8 days and bottle this lovely beer
with sugar.

Im planning to move the beer to second fermentation bottle to avoid too long dry hop time, is this unnessesery?
What other stuff should I take note on this recipe because im bottling and not kegging?

Thanks guys!

 

[leesmith]

I base it off the fermenting beer I pull it from and when it finishes fermentation.

So no testing? Either with hydrometer or checking pressure against temperature on a carbonation chart?

 

[Hannabrew]

Hello all,

firsttimer here in this forum. Im planning to brew this recipe tomorrow and have few questions about fermentation times and dry hop.

I dont have kegs, so im going to bottle this set.

From Braufessors second update, im going to make it with one dry hop. Im planning to dry hop on day 3 like the
recipe. On day 6 move the worth to second fermentation bottle. Keep it there for 6-8 days and bottle this lovely beer
with sugar.

Im planning to move the beer to second fermentation bottle to avoid too long dry hop time, is this unnessesery?
What other stuff should I take note on this recipe because im bottling and not kegging?

Thanks guys!

Definitely unnecessary and will do more harm than good. If I were you I would bottle straight out of the primary if possible

 

[doogie]

Hello all,

firsttimer here in this forum. Im planning to brew this recipe tomorrow and have few questions about fermentation times and dry hop.

I dont have kegs, so im going to bottle this set.

From Braufessors second update, im going to make it with one dry hop. Im planning to dry hop on day 3 like the
recipe. On day 6 move the worth to second fermentation bottle. Keep it there for 6-8 days and bottle this lovely beer
with sugar.

Im planning to move the beer to second fermentation bottle to avoid too long dry hop time, is this unnessesery?
What other stuff should I take note on this recipe because im bottling and not kegging?

Thanks guys!

This beer is exceptionally prone to oxidation. Give it a shot, but I would not perform a transfer to secondary, it's just another place where oxygen gets introduced. Very few have had success bottling. My versions of this got a lot better when I started doing a closed transfer to a purged keg.

 

[Hannabrew]

So no testing? Either with hydrometer or checking pressure against temperature on a carbonation chart?

Are you referring to taking measurements before spunding or to determine if it's finished?

If the latter, you go by pressure as long as your valve is not leaking.

If the former, you take a hydrometer or adjusted refractometer reading and use that and the fft to determine timing of the spund

 

[tld6008]

Hello all,

firsttimer here in this forum. Im planning to brew this recipe tomorrow and have few questions about fermentation times and dry hop.

I dont have kegs, so im going to bottle this set.

From Braufessors second update, im going to make it with one dry hop. Im planning to dry hop on day 3 like the
recipe. On day 6 move the worth to second fermentation bottle. Keep it there for 6-8 days and bottle this lovely beer
with sugar.

Im planning to move the beer to second fermentation bottle to avoid too long dry hop time, is this unnessesery?
What other stuff should I take note on this recipe because im bottling and not kegging?

Thanks guys!

That length for dry hopping is not excessive. If you bottle you are already planning to oxidize, moving to secondary is another plan to do the same so keep it in primary.
I would use those sugar pills in each bottle and bottle from primary.

 

[marchuk96]

That length for dry hopping is not excessive. If you bottle you are already planning to oxidize, moving to secondary is another plan to do the same so keep it in primary.
I would use those sugar pills in each bottle and bottle from primary.

Imhbo...i would def not transfer...no need for secondary...leave it in primary the whole time...I would also hold the dry hop to like 24-48 hr's before you plan on bottling...u can try soft crashing if u are capable of doing so to try and drop some yeast out...rewarm to room temp then dry hop and then bottle...some studies have shown after 6 hr's at a home brew level maximum extraction takes place when dry hopping...I have employed about a 40 hr time frame between dry hop cold crash and packaging(keg) and yielded fantastic results...good luck

 

[lupulinaddict]

Imhbo...i would def not transfer...no need for secondary...leave it in primary the whole time...I would also hold the dry hop to like 24-48 hr's before you plan on bottling...u can try soft crashing if u are capable of doing so to try and drop some yeast out...rewarm to room temp then dry hop and then bottle...some studies have shown after 6 hr's at a home brew level maximum extraction takes place when dry hopping...I have employed about a 40 hr time frame between dry hop cold crash and packaging(keg) and yielded fantastic results...good luck

How are you, and others, that dry hop in primary the day before kegging adding the hops? Are you doing a diacetyl rest too? I thought at the time of packaging the beer would be finished, and the yeast would be exhausted so it couldn’t expel the introduced o2 from opening the airlock to add the hops.

Lately, I have been adding hops in the keg so I didn’t have to open the primary. Wondering if it’s worth the effort or not.

 

[SRJHops]

Hello all,

firsttimer here in this forum. Im planning to brew this recipe tomorrow and have few questions about fermentation times and dry hop.

I dont have kegs, so im going to bottle this set.

From Braufessors second update, im going to make it with one dry hop. Im planning to dry hop on day 3 like the
recipe. On day 6 move the worth to second fermentation bottle. Keep it there for 6-8 days and bottle this lovely beer
with sugar.

Im planning to move the beer to second fermentation bottle to avoid too long dry hop time, is this unnessesery?
What other stuff should I take note on this recipe because im bottling and not kegging?

Thanks guys!

Welcome! I'm one of the few bottlers on this site (most seem to keg), so I'm happy to share what I've learned about bottling this style. My NEIPA's don't oxidize anymore, and in fact taste best after about 5 weeks in the bottle.

First and foremost, oxygen is your enemy. I would be way more worried about oxidizing your beer than dry hop lengths.

This means do not transfer to secondary, and do not transfer to the bottling bucket. Just bottle right from the primary fermenter into bottles with sugar in them. I bottle into bombers and use 2 Cooper's carbonation drops, but you could also use regular bottling sugar.

You don't have to worry about the first dry hop, because you'll have plenty of co2 that will force out the oxygen. For the second one, though, I purge using a can of wine preserver spray (about $7 on the internet).

Let me know if you have any questions, and while they mean well, don't let anyone tell you that you can't bottle a NEIPA if you take some simple steps to keep oxygen away from your beer!

 

[beervoid]

Welcome! I'm one of the few bottlers on this site (most seem to keg), so I'm happy to share what I've learned about bottling this style. My NEIPA's don't oxidize anymore, and in fact taste best after about 5 weeks in the bottle.

First and foremost, oxygen is your enemy. I would be way more worried about oxidizing your beer than dry hop lengths.

This means do not transfer to secondary, and do not transfer to the bottling bucket. Just bottle right from the primary fermenter into bottles with sugar in them. I bottle into bombers and use 2 Cooper's carbonation drops, but you could also use regular bottling sugar.

You don't have to worry about the first dry hop, because you'll have plenty of co2 that will force out the oxygen. For the second one, though, I purge using a can of wine preserver spray (about $7 on the internet).

Let me know if you have any questions, and while they mean well, don't let anyone tell you that you can't bottle a NEIPA if you take some simple steps to keep oxygen away from your beer!

This might be true for the short term but they do not live up as well as canned neipa's. The caps on bottles leak oxygen no matter what and oxygen absorbing caps absorb aroma.
I've had multiple examples of commercialy brewed and bottled new england ipa's. Not one of them had held up well and came even remotely close to the flavor of canned examples.
Light plays a role here as well. I recommend wax to close it and wrapping them in something that blocks the light if not stored dark.

 

[AnttiLeh]

Thanks guys for the advices, Ill take note from those and wont do secondary and also will work about the style how to minimize
the oxygen exposure. At the moment strait away bottling from primary sounds like the best idea with carbonation drops.

If i skip the FG measurement and put all the dry hop from water lock hole, will it help? Sounds stupid but had to ask.

Can you guys tell me why NEIPAs are so fragile towards oxygen? I have done few IPAS, Amber ales and wheats and they have came out damn nice. I havent use secondary on those but i have used bottling bucket for suger.

 

[leesmith]

Are you referring to taking measurements before spunding or to determine if it's finished?

If the latter, you go by pressure as long as your valve is not leaking.

If the former, you take a hydrometer or adjusted refractometer reading and use that and the fft to determine timing of the spund

He’s not spunding.

He’s finishing primary fermentation...conditioning...and then krausening to carbonate.

I believe his response was how he determines the final product is done carbonating.

Which he says he bases it on the beer he krausened from. When it’s done the beer he’s carbonating is done.

I understand you can go by pressure but that’s not what he indicated....just wanted clarification from him.

 

[couchsending]

He’s not spunding.

He’s finishing primary fermentation...conditioning...and then krausening to carbonate.

I believe his response was how he determines the final product is done carbonating.

Which he says he bases it on the beer he krausened from. When it’s done the beer he’s carbonating is done.

I understand you can go by pressure but that’s not what he indicated....just wanted clarification from him.

I’ll put a valve on it and check the pressure for sure. Ideally I believe it’s 28psi at roughly 68*. It never quite gets there but I just adjust with Co2 when it’s in the keezer. The scale I have isn’t digital so the amount of fermenting beer I transfer isn’t always exact. I usually get to 22-24 PSI when all is said and done.

 

[SRJHops]

Thanks guys for the advices, Ill take note from those and wont do secondary and also will work about the style how to minimize
the oxygen exposure. At the moment strait away bottling from primary sounds like the best idea with carbonation drops.

If i skip the FG measurement and put all the dry hop from water lock hole, will it help? Sounds stupid but had to ask.

Can you guys tell me why NEIPAs are so fragile towards oxygen? I have done few IPAS, Amber ales and wheats and they have came out damn nice. I havent use secondary on those but i have used bottling bucket for suger.

I didn't quite understand "put all the dry hop from water lock hole," but I do recommend skipping ALL gravity measurements except the the final one you take when you bottle. (Heresy, I know!) It's not worth the oxygen exposure.

As long as you saw active fermentation the first week, and let your beer clean up the second week, odds are that you hit whatever FG you were going to hit. If you didn't, then you probably couldn't do much about it anyway -- and if your beer didn't ferment or you didn't even come close to your FG goal, then there are other things to worry about as far as technique.

I think the short answer from a non-technical perspective is the massive amount of hops is what makes the style so prone to oxidation -- or perhaps it's the oats. But whatever the reason, it's crazy how a little oxygen will ruin this style. Of course, these low oxygen techniques are probably good for regular IPAs too, if not ALL beers.

 

[SRJHops]

This might be true for the short term but they do not live up as well as canned neipa's. The caps on bottles leak oxygen no matter what and oxygen absorbing caps absorb aroma.
I've had multiple examples of commercialy brewed and bottled new england ipa's. Not one of them had held up well and came even remotely close to the flavor of canned examples.
Light plays a role here as well. I recommend wax to close it and wrapping them in something that blocks the light if not stored dark.

Certainly won't argue against canning. People thought Surly Brewing was doing something odd when they canned Furious back in the day, and now everyone is canning. Only makes sense -- but is there a low cost canning system for home brewers?

The wax idea is interesting. I am not having problems with oxidation, even after being in the bottle for 6 weeks, but it could be worth exploring. Is there are special technique you are using? Just melt some wax and dip in the bottle?

 

[Loud Brewing]

Depends on what you consider low cost, but kegland the company who makes the robobrew is releasing a can seamer that will be half the price of the current american made offerings. Here's a video

 

[couchsending]

Issue with canning is O2 uptake. On the pro scale it’s tough to keep O2 pickup to a minimum. On a manual setup geared toward homebrewers I can’t imagine what the TPO levels would be.

Ingress is higher with bottles but it’s so much easier to start with a low level.

 

[leesmith]

Issue with canning is O2 uptake. On the pro scale it’s tough to keep O2 pickup to a minimum. On a manual setup geared toward homebrewers I can’t imagine what the TPO levels would be.

Ingress is higher with bottles but it’s so much easier to start with a low level.

Pretty good write up here: http://www.********************/uncategorized/packaging-canning-beer-home/

 

[KyleF318is]

Depends on what you consider low cost, but kegland the company who makes the robobrew is releasing a can seamer that will be half the price of the current american made offerings. Here's a video

I wonder if this is USD? $399 is a lot cheaper than The Oktober Sl1 which I’ve been dragging my feet on waiting for a free shipping or discount code.

 

[Genuine]

Planning a brew day tomorrow with Citra, Mosaic and El Dorado! Package of hops are coming in for YVH today. These beers help to buy hops in bulk.

 

[Dgallo]

Planning a brew day tomorrow with Citra, Mosaic and El Dorado! Package of hops are coming in for YVH today. These beers help to buy hops in bulk.

The last batch of citra and Mosiac I’ve gotten from YVH were outstanding. Both hops must of come from a quality farm.

 

[emr25]

Another NE IPA tomorrow, recipe below. Going simple and lighter in color on the grain bill to let the hops take center stage.

OG - 1.060
FG - 1.012
ABV - ~6.3%
~55 IBU

Malts
(61.5%) 12 lbs Weyermann Barke Pilsner
(20.5%) 4 lbs Weyermann Pale Ale
(13%) 2 lbs 8 oz White Wheat
(5%) 1 lbs Weyermann Acidulated

Mash Schedule
131* (Dough-In)
144* (15 Min Rest)
148* (15 Min Rest)
153* (15 Min Rest)
163* (20 Min Rest)
172* (10 Min Rest)

Hops
30 Min - 3 mL Warrior Extract
10 Min - 1 oz Galaxy / 1 oz Vic Secret
160* Whirlpool - 3 oz Galaxy / 3 oz Vic Secret
Keg Dry Hop - 3 oz Galaxy / 3 oz Vic Secret

Yeast
London Ale III (WY1318)

 

[AnttiLeh]

Did my first NEIPA with Braufessors recipe (edit II) and everything went quiet well.
OG 1.061, placed in fermentation bucket to fridge 19 celsius and now waiting for it to come alive.

I was planning to get this set ready for Easter, what do you guys think will it be drinkable then?
Going to bottle it so wont be as fast as kegging.

2weeks in ferm and 2 weeks in bottle.

 

[schematix]

Did my first NEIPA with Braufessors recipe (edit II) and everything went quiet well.
OG 1.061, placed in fermentation bucket to fridge 19 celsius and now waiting for it to come alive.

I was planning to get this set ready for Easter, what do you guys think will it be drinkable then?
Going to bottle it so wont be as fast as kegging.

2weeks in ferm and 2 weeks in bottle.

Ales are done fermenting in a couple days, assuming proper pitching and yeast health. 2 weeks is just inviting oxidation.

Also they’ll carb up quicker if you rack it before all the yeast is dormant.

 

[SRJHops]

Last night I sampled my newest bottle-conditioned NEIPA, which admittedly is still very green and not fully carbonated. If I've learned anything, it's that this style needs a few weeks in the bottle for the hops to blend and everything to settle out. Still... I'm left with a few process thoughts/concerns this morning:

1. Slight chemical taste. This is the first batch where I made water adjustments beyond removing the chlorine and tossing in a little gypsum. I added salts and acids to bring the Ca to 100, CL to 147, and SO to 97. It's not overwhelming, and maybe it's because I know the chemicals are in there, but I did get a slight chemical taste. Do you think it will fade as the hops blend and the beer carbonates fully?

Or perhaps getting the CL up that high is the problem, at least for my taste? I know those levels are close to the common recommendation for the style, but so far I don't notice any greater softness or better mouthfeel, so not sure it's worth it. (I also have to acknowledge the possibility that I didn't get all the chlorine removed -- but I have not had this problem with the previous 8 batches.)

2. More hops is less? Way too early to really know how the flavor will turn out -- and the aroma is rock solid -- but my first taste didn't result in my hoped-for flavor explosion. I brew 6 gallons and dialed down the hops from 18 ounces to 14 ounces, split equally between hot side whirlpool and two dry hop additions.

So far it seems a little less tasty than the previous one with 18 ounces. If this ends up my final conclusion, I might go back to thinking MORE IS MORE.... Does anyone else think this too? (The goal always remains the same: Make a beer as good as the best ones from Toppling Goliath.)

3. Why do we cold crash this style? Since there's going to be some sediment in my bottle-conditioned beers no matter what I do, I'm left wondering why we bother to cold crash this style? Just to drop out some yeast and hop particles and perhaps make a more compact yeast cake?

The downside is possible 02 suck-back into the carboy, as well as stripping out some of the hop oil flavor. Is there anyone out there who thinks that maybe cold crashing is not a good idea for this style?

Random thoughts of a homebrewer... Love to hear some of your thoughts..

 

[stickyfinger]

Last night I sampled my newest bottle-conditioned NEIPA, which admittedly is still very green and not fully carbonated. If I've learned anything, it's that this style needs a few weeks in the bottle for the hops to blend and everything to settle out. Still... I'm left with a few process thoughts/concerns this morning:

1. Slight chemical taste. This is the first batch where I made water adjustments beyond removing the chlorine and tossing in a little gypsum. I added salts and acids to bring the Ca to 100, CL to 147, and SO to 97. It's not overwhelming, and maybe it's because I know the chemicals are in there, but I did get a slight chemical taste. Do you think it will fade as the hops blend and the beer carbonates fully?

Could be from the hops too depending on what you used. they can sometimes give metallic, medicinal, and many other notes. just a thought. the only salt change was adding calcium chloride? If you added magnesium in excess you can get metallic I think.

Or perhaps getting the CL up that high is the problem, at least for my taste? I know those levels are close to the common recommendation for the style, but so far I don't notice any greater softness or better mouthfeel, so not sure it's worth it. (I also have to acknowledge the possibility that I didn't get all the chlorine removed -- but I have not had this problem with the previous 8 batches.)


3. Why do we cold crash this style? Since there's going to be some sediment in my bottle-conditioned beers no matter what I do, I'm left wondering why we bother to cold crash this style? Just to drop out some yeast and hop particles and perhaps make a more compact yeast cake?

Seems the main reason to crash is to drop yeast and hops so you can rack more easily/get less particulate into the keg/bottle. Since you are bottling, I don't think it really matters unless you are getting clogging. The danger of sucking in air is huge in my opinion, so only crash if you can keep air out. I had problems with diacetyl for many beers and it was due to cold crashing and then racking to a keg and force carbonating. However, now that I use a more secure bung, I think I might try a crash again sometime.

Lack of carbonation can make it seem like the hops aren't as strong too...

 

[SRJHops]

I used Citra, Mosaic, Simcoe, and Amarillo. I added some calcium chloride, gypsum, and a very small amount of epsom salt, plus lactic acid. The metallic taste is subtle, so we'll see if it dies down. Have you ever tried reversing the Cl and SO targets? Like 150 So and 75 Cl? That's more west coast IPA, right?

I do get a little clogging of the spigot, which I am still working on reducing. I can usually get it unclogged, though. For now I just use the first beer coming out for the hydrometer, and the first bottle or two as the ones to drink first to test the carbonation (because they have some hop floaters and sometimes some extra yeast).

I can't really keep the air out, so I think I'm going to skip the cold crash from now on for this style. It doesn't seem worth it to me...

I also go back and forth regarding whether to bag the dry hops or do commando style. Seems like there may only be some slight advantages to commando, based on Brulosophy exbeeriments I have read and such, so I might go back to bagging...

 

[stickyfinger]

I used Citra, Mosaic, Simcoe, and Amarillo. I added some calcium chloride, gypsum, and a very small amount of epsom salt, plus lactic acid. The metallic taste is subtle, so we'll see if it dies down. Have you ever tried reversing the Cl and SO targets? Like 150 So and 75 Cl? That's more west coast IPA, right?

well, the only one of those with something maybe having chemical taste would be certain lots of amarillo. doesn't sound like a hope issue though unless they were old.

i've done 150 sulfate and like 35 chloride. i like it personally, but many won't. it is very crisp. west coast is 150ppm and on up for sulfate. i've only ever done 150ppm or lower. some have gone higher with success. Brau did some at 150/75, 75/150 and 75/75 i think. they are all different but all good.

 

[beervoid]

Last night I sampled my newest bottle-conditioned NEIPA, which admittedly is still very green and not fully carbonated. If I've learned anything, it's that this style needs a few weeks in the bottle for the hops to blend and everything to settle out. Still... I'm left with a few process thoughts/concerns this morning:

1. Slight chemical taste. This is the first batch where I made water adjustments beyond removing the chlorine and tossing in a little gypsum. I added salts and acids to bring the Ca to 100, CL to 147, and SO to 97. It's not overwhelming, and maybe it's because I know the chemicals are in there, but I did get a slight chemical taste. Do you think it will fade as the hops blend and the beer carbonates fully?

Or perhaps getting the CL up that high is the problem, at least for my taste? I know those levels are close to the common recommendation for the style, but so far I don't notice any greater softness or better mouthfeel, so not sure it's worth it. (I also have to acknowledge the possibility that I didn't get all the chlorine removed -- but I have not had this problem with the previous 8 batches.)

2. More hops is less? Way too early to really know how the flavor will turn out -- and the aroma is rock solid -- but my first taste didn't result in my hoped-for flavor explosion. I brew 6 gallons and dialed down the hops from 18 ounces to 14 ounces, split equally between hot side whirlpool and two dry hop additions.

So far it seems a little less tasty than the previous one with 18 ounces. If this ends up my final conclusion, I might go back to thinking MORE IS MORE.... Does anyone else think this too? (The goal always remains the same: Make a beer as good as the best ones from Toppling Goliath.)

3. Why do we cold crash this style? Since there's going to be some sediment in my bottle-conditioned beers no matter what I do, I'm left wondering why we bother to cold crash this style? Just to drop out some yeast and hop particles and perhaps make a more compact yeast cake?

The downside is possible 02 suck-back into the carboy, as well as stripping out some of the hop oil flavor. Is there anyone out there who thinks that maybe cold crashing is not a good idea for this style?

Random thoughts of a homebrewer... Love to hear some of your thoughts..

In my experience more is def not more.
Its cheaper to start on the lower side and slowly up the amounts. 6oz dry hop is a really good amount and if your process is right and hop choice you will have great flavor and aroma. Simply upping hop additions isnt going to make the beer better and you are just wasting hops.
I would focus on the process first and once you can make a great tasting neipa with 6oz u can up and see for yourself where the point of diminishing returns is.
For me its not far above 6oz