Recipe Help - Final Four IPA

[amh61]

I was feeling a little inspired by the NCAA tourney and decided that tomorrow morning will be a brew day. A cider and an IPA. My last IPA came out poor (it was a midwest Furious IPA clone). At the time I was an extract brewer and was only able to boil 2.5 gallons.

Since then my equipment has changed and now I BIAB and can boil down to my final 5 gallon volume.

So I want to make another run at an IPA. NCAA themed - four different hops. I have a half pound of simcoe and citra that I know I want to use. I also have:
1/2 oz cascade
1/2 oz williamette
1/2 oz crystal
1/2 oz centennial

I plan on using US-05 yeast.

Any advice on a hops schedule and a grain bill. I want this to be a nice sessionable IPA.

 

[SilverZero]

My basic grain bill would be 80% 2-row, 5% Cara-pils, and 5% C60. Look for an OG in the 1.055 range. Since you don't have a lot of bittering hops other than the Simcoe, that's probably going to be your best bet unless you want to hit the shop for some Magnum or Apollo. Bitter for 60 minutes with the Simcoe and/or Centennial to get you to 60-70 IBUs, then put 2oz or more of a blend of the 4 hops you want to use in for a 30-45 minute hop stand at 170F. Dry hop with another 1-2oz of the same blend or whatever you have left.

That's totally from the hip, but it's hard to mess these up.

I've really started to get into 80-90 minute boils with a single bittering addition and then a hop stand for aroma and flavor. Dry hopping will give you some different aromas as well.

Another thing to consider is first-wort hopping. I've done it "wrong" by just adding my bittering addition to the kettle as I'm sparging and not doing a normal 60-minute addition, and I've loved it. Technically you're supposed to move some of your late hops into the FWH, and keep the regular bittering addition, but I just don't agree. Supposedly you will get some late-hop flavoring from the FWH, but if you're doing an IPA don't back off on the flameout/hop stand and/or dry hopping.

I'm sure somebody will suggest doing that flameout addition as a 15-to-5 minute addition instead (or in addition). I know Yooper loves the 15 + 5 minute combo, probably of Citra. I still recommend a hop stand either way.