2-Below clone anyone?

[user 40839]

Spotted 2-Below today at the local shop while snagging some groceries, and am kicking myself for forgetting about this beer. (For forgetting about brewing something nice for the holidays in general - should really have done this last month!)

Loads of info on the recipe on New Belgium's site. They list the grains as Pale, Munich, Caramel, Crystal 80L, Carapils, and Victory. Hops are Target, Sterling, and Liberty. IBUs are 32, ABV is 6.6%, with an OG of 18.3 plato. (about 1.075, which seems high, since that would have the ABV coming out around 8%) I want something that's a little more sessionable, so I'm sticking with the goal of 6.5% or so. I'm guessing at the SRM of this, but I think 15-17 seems about right.

So after messing around in Beertools, and checking some of the clone recipes mentioned in this thread, this SHOULD be pretty close. (I'm sticking with the original clone suggestion of 2oz each of Liberty and Sterling for dry hopping, but am just going to go with American Ale II, I think, with a nice big starter.) Here goes...

------------------------------------------------------

[size=+1]2-Below Clone?[/size]

Size: 11.0 gal
Efficiency: 80.0%
Attenuation: 75.0%
Calories: 203.87 kcal per 12.0 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.062 (1.026 - 1.120)
Terminal Gravity: 1.015 (0.995 - 1.035)
Color: 17.18 (1.0 - 50.0)
Alcohol: 6.48% (2.5% - 14.5%)
Bitterness: 31.7 (0.0 - 100.0)

Ingredients:
17.5 lb American 2-row
4.0 lb Munich Malt
3.0 lb Caramel Malt 80L
1.5 lb Victory® Malt
1.0 lb Cara-Pils® Malt
1.0 tb 5.2 pH Stabilizer - added during mash

1.5 oz Target (10.0%) - added during boil, boiled 60.0 min
1.0 oz Sterling (7.5%) - added during boil, boiled 15.0 min
1.0 tsp Wyeast Nutrient - added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
2.0 ea Whirlfloc Tablets (Irish moss) - added during boil, boiled 10.0 min

1.0 ea WYeast 1272 American Ale II
2.0 oz Liberty (4.0%) - added dry to secondary fermenter
2.0 oz Sterling (7.5%) - added dry to secondary fermenter

------------------------------------------------------

(I go with 11 gallon batch sizes, to make sure I end up with 10 gallons after accounting for trub, hop absorption, angel's share, etc.)

I'm thinking I'd want a bit more body to this, so mashing high may be a good idea, 155 or so?

 

[mbischoff]

I honestly believe there is some honey in this beer at the finish. I would almost bet they use Tupelo honey, hence the name 2 below....

 

[jkarp]

I honestly believe there is some honey in this beer at the finish. I would almost bet they use Tupelo honey, hence the name 2 below....

The name comes from the fact that it's conditioned at -2C before bottling. Nothing to do with honey, sorry.

 

[TRainH2o]

I'm bumping this thread up as I just read that New Belgium is replacing 2˚ Below with a new Winter seasonal called Snow Day. Seeing how this is my favorite NB Seasonal, I have to brew it.

One thing that I am seeing is a 60 minute Magnum hop addition and then nothing else in the boil. Is this correct......no 15-0 minute additions?

 

[markg388]

yep, just bittering and dry hops

 

[TRainH2o]

That hop schedule seems really odd to me considering how much hop presence I remember the beer having. I would have thought there would have been a late edition for sure in addition to the dry hops.

 

[bhambrew]

I'm bumping this thread up as I just read that New Belgium is replacing 2˚ Below with a new Winter seasonal called Snow Day. Seeing how this is my favorite NB Seasonal, I have to brew it.

I always get excited when I start seeing all the winter seasonal brews on the shelf, and I was particularly excited to find NB "Snow Day" as 2 Below is been one of my all time favorites.

Unfortunately, I did not like the new offering better than the old 2 below. It seemed much more bitter, with more hop "punch", and did not have the great balance of subtle malty-ness and fruity-hop-goodness of 2 below. I for one hope that 2 Below is not gone and forgotten...

 

[TRainH2o]

Yes, Snow Day is showing 55 IBUs as opposed to 32 for the 2˚ Below.

 

[bigmauler]

I am brewing this now at a friends house. We just moved it into the secondary last night. We can't quite get to -2 F but his fridge was the best we can do. Unfortunately we forgot a rubber stopper for the airlock and carboy...so we had to quickly improvise

 

[BenAthar]

That's too funny! Talk about Safe Airlocking!!!! LMAO!

 

[8eerGarage]

I want some 2 below this winter!

Looks like a solid recipe.

Anyone brew this and have feedback on Ubermick's recipe? How does it compare to the real thing and how does it compare with the C-40 recipe that started this thread? Does it have enough victory?

Cheers!

Spotted 2-Below today at the local shop while snagging some groceries, and am kicking myself for forgetting about this beer. (For forgetting about brewing something nice for the holidays in general - should really have done this last month!)

Loads of info on the recipe on New Belgium's site. They list the grains as Pale, Munich, Caramel, Crystal 80L, Carapils, and Victory. Hops are Target, Sterling, and Liberty. IBUs are 32, ABV is 6.6%, with an OG of 18.3 plato. (about 1.075, which seems high, since that would have the ABV coming out around 8%) I want something that's a little more sessionable, so I'm sticking with the goal of 6.5% or so. I'm guessing at the SRM of this, but I think 15-17 seems about right.

So after messing around in Beertools, and checking some of the clone recipes mentioned in this thread, this SHOULD be pretty close. (I'm sticking with the original clone suggestion of 2oz each of Liberty and Sterling for dry hopping, but am just going to go with American Ale II, I think, with a nice big starter.) Here goes...

------------------------------------------------------

[size=+1]2-Below Clone?[/size]

Size: 11.0 gal
Efficiency: 80.0%
Attenuation: 75.0%
Calories: 203.87 kcal per 12.0 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.062 (1.026 - 1.120)
Terminal Gravity: 1.015 (0.995 - 1.035)
Color: 17.18 (1.0 - 50.0)
Alcohol: 6.48% (2.5% - 14.5%)
Bitterness: 31.7 (0.0 - 100.0)

Ingredients:
17.5 lb American 2-row
4.0 lb Munich Malt
3.0 lb Caramel Malt 80L
1.5 lb Victory® Malt
1.0 lb Cara-Pils® Malt
1.0 tb 5.2 pH Stabilizer - added during mash

1.5 oz Target (10.0%) - added during boil, boiled 60.0 min
1.0 oz Sterling (7.5%) - added during boil, boiled 15.0 min
1.0 tsp Wyeast Nutrient - added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
2.0 ea Whirlfloc Tablets (Irish moss) - added during boil, boiled 10.0 min

1.0 ea WYeast 1272 American Ale II
2.0 oz Liberty (4.0%) - added dry to secondary fermenter
2.0 oz Sterling (7.5%) - added dry to secondary fermenter

------------------------------------------------------

(I go with 11 gallon batch sizes, to make sure I end up with 10 gallons after accounting for trub, hop absorption, angel's share, etc.)

I'm thinking I'd want a bit more body to this, so mashing high may be a good idea, 155 or so?

 

[Horace]

Spotted 2-Below today at the local shop while snagging some groceries, and am kicking myself for forgetting about this beer. (For forgetting about brewing something nice for the holidays in general - should really have done this last month!)

Loads of info on the recipe on New Belgium's site. They list the grains as Pale, Munich, Caramel, Crystal 80L, Carapils, and Victory. Hops are Target, Sterling, and Liberty. IBUs are 32, ABV is 6.6%, with an OG of 18.3 plato. (about 1.075, which seems high, since that would have the ABV coming out around 8%) I want something that's a little more sessionable, so I'm sticking with the goal of 6.5% or so. I'm guessing at the SRM of this, but I think 15-17 seems about right.

So after messing around in Beertools, and checking some of the clone recipes mentioned in this thread, this SHOULD be pretty close. (I'm sticking with the original clone suggestion of 2oz each of Liberty and Sterling for dry hopping, but am just going to go with American Ale II, I think, with a nice big starter.) Here goes...

------------------------------------------------------

[size=+1]2-Below Clone?[/size]

Size: 11.0 gal
Efficiency: 80.0%
Attenuation: 75.0%
Calories: 203.87 kcal per 12.0 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.062 (1.026 - 1.120)
Terminal Gravity: 1.015 (0.995 - 1.035)
Color: 17.18 (1.0 - 50.0)
Alcohol: 6.48% (2.5% - 14.5%)
Bitterness: 31.7 (0.0 - 100.0)

Ingredients:
17.5 lb American 2-row
4.0 lb Munich Malt
3.0 lb Caramel Malt 80L
1.5 lb Victory® Malt
1.0 lb Cara-Pils® Malt
1.0 tb 5.2 pH Stabilizer - added during mash

1.5 oz Target (10.0%) - added during boil, boiled 60.0 min
1.0 oz Sterling (7.5%) - added during boil, boiled 15.0 min
1.0 tsp Wyeast Nutrient - added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
2.0 ea Whirlfloc Tablets (Irish moss) - added during boil, boiled 10.0 min

1.0 ea WYeast 1272 American Ale II
2.0 oz Liberty (4.0%) - added dry to secondary fermenter
2.0 oz Sterling (7.5%) - added dry to secondary fermenter

------------------------------------------------------

(I go with 11 gallon batch sizes, to make sure I end up with 10 gallons after accounting for trub, hop absorption, angel's share, etc.)

I'm thinking I'd want a bit more body to this, so mashing high may be a good idea, 155 or so?

Update?

 

[bhambrew]

I brewed Ubermick's clone recipe about a month ago, and I am enjoying now as I type this message. I had to substitute all three varieties of hops due to what was available at the LHBS on brew day, and the fact that I didn't plan ahead. I don't have my notes in front of me, and don't remember my bittering and aroma hops, but remember using only one variety during the boil (Hallerteau maybe) and Saaz for dry hopping in the secondary.

In any case, the beer is good, and if I used the specified hops I'm sure it would be very close to 2 Below. Even with my poor hop substitutions the beer is tasty and I have received positive feedback from friends. If you can get your hands on the hop varieties in the recipe from the NB site, I think this clone is a winner!

 

[TRainH2o]

Adding a little new info to this thread.

I emailed New Belgium a while back and asked about the hop schedule for 2 Below. Well I finally got an answer a couple of days ago.

Hi Tracy,
A while back you asked about the hop schedule for 2 Below.
Here is basically how it goes:

Target hops for bittering
Sterling and Liberty at the end of the boil and Sterling and Liberty for dry hopping.

Hope this helps answer your question.
Cheers,

 

[jkarp]

I just kegged up my "imperialized" version of Two Below - 9% ABV. Bittered with Magnum, Liberty and Sterling for flavor and dry hopping. Tastes great. Definitely a Winter warmer!

 

[uncleleon]

2BELOWCLONE - American Amber Ale
================================================================================
Batch Size: 5.060 gal
Boil Size: 6.310 gal
Boil Time: 60.000 min
Efficiency: 75%
OG: 1.066
FG: 1.017
ABV: 6.5%
Bitterness: 33.6 IBUs (Tinseth)
Color: 18 SRM (Morey)

Fermentables
================================================================================
Name Type Amount Mashed Late Yield Color
Briess - 2 Row Brewers Malt Grain 12.000 lb Yes No 80% 2 L
Briess - 2 Row Carapils Malt Grain 8.000 oz No No 75% 2 L
Briess - Caramel Malt 90L Grain 2.000 lb No No 75% 90 L
Briess - Victory Malt Grain 1.000 lb No No 75% 28 L
Briess - Vienna Malt Grain 1.000 lb Yes No 78% 4 L
Total grain: 16.500 lb

Hops
================================================================================
Name Alpha Amount Use Time Form IBU
Willamette 5.0% 0.500 oz Boil 0.000 s Pellet 0.0
Fuggles 4.5% 0.500 oz Boil 10.000 min Pellet 2.0
Simcoe 13.0% 1.000 oz Boil 60.000 min Pellet 31.6
Willamette 5.0% 1.000 oz Dry Hop 0.000 s Pellet 0.0

Yeast
================================================================================
Name Type Form Amount Stage
WLP001 - California Ale Yeast Ale Liquid 2.367 tbsp Primary

Mash
================================================================================
Name Type Amount Temp Target Time
Infusion 5.000 gal 152.600 F 154.000 F 0.000 s
Infusion 3.000 gal 152.600 F 165.000 F 0.000 s

 

[mackerman]

It looks like the original suggested recipe on the rockhopbrewersclub.com is now gone. Does anyone have a copy of that recipe, or is Ubermick's just as good/better? Also, thanks for the great update from New Belgium on their actual hop schedule.

I'd like to brew this in a couple days and am just wanting to see which recipe is preferred.

 

[mackerman]

Answering my own question.

New domain:
http://logs.rhbc.co/index.php?page=recipeDetail&filter=wchleva&id=125

 

[Ki-ri-n]

I just found a folly pack with 2 below in it :rockin:

 

[LampyB]

With the recipe below, how long is the mash? Everyone mentions a 60 min boil, but I need to know mash time. Need this info ASAP, I'm going to have an early morning session tomorrow. Thanks!!

Spotted 2-Below today at the local shop while snagging some groceries, and am kicking myself for forgetting about this beer. (For forgetting about brewing something nice for the holidays in general - should really have done this last month!)

Loads of info on the recipe on New Belgium's site. They list the grains as Pale, Munich, Caramel, Crystal 80L, Carapils, and Victory. Hops are Target, Sterling, and Liberty. IBUs are 32, ABV is 6.6%, with an OG of 18.3 plato. (about 1.075, which seems high, since that would have the ABV coming out around 8%) I want something that's a little more sessionable, so I'm sticking with the goal of 6.5% or so. I'm guessing at the SRM of this, but I think 15-17 seems about right.

So after messing around in Beertools, and checking some of the clone recipes mentioned in this thread, this SHOULD be pretty close. (I'm sticking with the original clone suggestion of 2oz each of Liberty and Sterling for dry hopping, but am just going to go with American Ale II, I think, with a nice big starter.) Here goes...

------------------------------------------------------

[size=+1]2-Below Clone?[/size]

Size: 11.0 gal
Efficiency: 80.0%
Attenuation: 75.0%
Calories: 203.87 kcal per 12.0 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.062 (1.026 - 1.120)
Terminal Gravity: 1.015 (0.995 - 1.035)
Color: 17.18 (1.0 - 50.0)
Alcohol: 6.48% (2.5% - 14.5%)
Bitterness: 31.7 (0.0 - 100.0)

Ingredients:
17.5 lb American 2-row
4.0 lb Munich Malt
3.0 lb Caramel Malt 80L
1.5 lb Victory® Malt
1.0 lb Cara-Pils® Malt
1.0 tb 5.2 pH Stabilizer - added during mash

1.5 oz Target (10.0%) - added during boil, boiled 60.0 min
1.0 oz Sterling (7.5%) - added during boil, boiled 15.0 min
1.0 tsp Wyeast Nutrient - added during boil, boiled 10.0 min
2.0 ea Whirlfloc Tablets (Irish moss) - added during boil, boiled 10.0 min

1.0 ea WYeast 1272 American Ale II
2.0 oz Liberty (4.0%) - added dry to secondary fermenter
2.0 oz Sterling (7.5%) - added dry to secondary fermenter

------------------------------------------------------

(I go with 11 gallon batch sizes, to make sure I end up with 10 gallons after accounting for trub, hop absorption, angel's share, etc.)

I'm thinking I'd want a bit more body to this, so mashing high may be a good idea, 155 or so?

 

[TRainH2o]

With the recipe below, how long is the mash? Everyone mentions a 60 min boil, but I need to know mash time. Need this info ASAP, I'm going to have an early morning session tomorrow. Thanks!!

I usually mash for 60 minutes. I don't do an iodine test, I just let it go for 60 minutes.

None of those malts are particularly had to convert.

 

[norrisk66]

Answering my own question.

New domain:
http://logs.rhbc.co/index.php?page=recipeDetail&filter=wchleva&id=125

This will be my next brew-has anyone attempted this Rockhoppers recipe, and how did it turn out?

Thanks!
Keith