ANYTHING by Aslin

[TheHairyHop]

Holy sweet baby Jesus. I've had Julius, Heady Topper and IPAs from Trillium. I've had countless traditional, brett, whatever you name it IPAs from the west, and I just had an IPA from northern Virginia that made me drink the Kool Aid so hard, I was buying shirts, decals and whatever else I could my sweaty hands on.

http://www.aslinbeer.com/

Aslin in Herndon, Virginia makes IPAs that warm my cockles in a way that they've never been warmed before. A Google search of "Aslin site:homebrewtalk.com" comes up empty. Has anyone had their beer and been thinking about clones and recipes? If you're within an hour of the area, I can't recommend a trip enough. They're starting to get into a high demand period, however, and I would make sure they have something on tap if you decide to.

Specifically, I had an IPA called Cortes and His Men. It was made with El Dorado and Mandarina Bavaria. It tasted like tropical pineapple pop rocks.

 

[TheCADJockey]

Hype.

 

[TheHairyHop]

Hype.

so.much.hype.

 

[GrogNerd]

15 minute drive from me, never been

have heard not good things about it from local homebrewers

mostly clarity problems

yep. not about to sit down, pay $7 for a snifter full of starter

 

[TheHairyHop]

the lack of clarity is sometimes cited as a desirable characteristic in the newer east coast IPAs that have been coming out recently

 

[GrogNerd]

there's a difference between hazy, which I can handle, and murky, which I can't

I'll drive past Aslin on my way to Lake Anne, or head the other way to Rhino, Ox, Ocelot or Beltway

 

[TheHairyHop]

to each his own their IPAs are about the same clarity of Trillium and Tree House IPAs and those are often talked of as being the best in the country. There was a bit of a difference in what I tasted at Aslin, however.

 

[TheCADJockey]

Best in the country is such an odd term. I've had a bunch of hype beers. Our local stuff knocks a some of that hyped overpriced beer out of the water.

 

[jmark]

I would tend to agree... it's amazing how 'rarity' gets confused with 'awesomeness'. Remember when Westy 12 was the #1 beer in the world according to BA... as soon as they released those six packs and glasses, that #1 rating took a fall, not because it's a bad beer, but because more folks got to try it and that hype couldn't be lived up to.

Now there's the hype with these NE tropical bombs... everyone and their mother is trying their hands at them... I'm sure some are good (heck, my home brewed versions have been quite tasty so it's not the 'style' I'm averse to), but I'm sure others are truly awful - just like any other style out there.

Anyway, with so many local breweries, most with limited distribution, throughout the country, it's very hard to say anyone is making the best beer in the country... according to who, exactly? It's not like anyone can try them all - we can try though

 

[TheCADJockey]

... according to who, exactly?

According to the one turd that is writing the article usually. I just refuse to dish out the big money for these rare, hyped up beers anymore. Each one has been so underwhelming. Don't get it.

 

[Michigan_Wolfman]

15 minute drive from me, never been

have heard not good things about it from local homebrewers

mostly clarity problems

yep. not about to sit down, pay $7 for a snifter full of starter

The contents of that glass looks like my carboy when I've got 5 gallons of Kolsch bubbling away in active fermentation!

 

[GrogNerd]

The contents of that glass looks like my carboy when I've got 5 gallons of Kolsch bubbling away in active fermentation!

THAT'S WHAT I'M SAYING!

but that's an actual pic of an Aslin beer, "borrowed" from a Yelp review

no thanks.

appearance is a huge part of enjoying a beer, and I refuse to follow a trend, because some marketing schlub came up with the idea to turn an obvious flaw into a selling point

 

[UndeadFred]

According to the one turd that is writing the article usually. I just refuse to dish out the big money for these rare, hyped up beers anymore. Each one has been so underwhelming. Don't get it.

heh... it's got to be pretty fricking good to scarf up $10 a bottle...

The only times I've done that and not thought that I got totally ripped off is when the bottle came from Belgium.. just saying....

 

[TheHairyHop]

I don't believe that the point of this thread was to deride a certain company, style, beer or trend. I suggest, if you are able, to try some of the beers and, if you like them, contribute to building a recipe. I emailed them in one of those typical "Contact Us" sections, so I don't hope to hear too much back. I'll probably try to weasel some thoughts out of the staff tomorrow

 

[GrogNerd]

OP: you mentioned Orange Julius

NOT a murky beer, it's hazy, but I would definitely drink it

HUGE difference between this that Aslin pic I posted upstream

 

[TheHairyHop]

Please, go somewhere else with the negativity. I'm not sure what you're hoping to gain. I had a beer that I very much enjoyed and hope to share the experience with other so we can home brew it. That is the point of this forum. Not trying to prove someone else's tastes and experience wrong

 

[mongoose33]

OP: you mentioned Orange Julius

NOT a murky beer, it's hazy, but I would definitely drink it

HUGE difference between this that Aslin pic I posted upstream

I agree with you that the Aslin beer looks....murky isn't even the right word.....like kaopectate, maybe.

But I'd try it once. Maybe the trick is a blindfold?

I have a Rye beer I'm fond of. First time I brewed it I added six ounces of chocolate wheat to the grain bill, to make it a little darker--after all, a Rye should look like Rye, eh?

Well, its appearance is somewhere between a porter and a stout. I've had several people look at it in a glass and immediately say "I don't like dark beers." But it's neither--it just is a little darker than....well, a lot darker than they might think they like.

But man, to me it's fabulous. I just need to get them to taste it and stop looking at it.

 

[MaryB]

Dang that looks like the sample tube I drew off my last IPA that got a glug of yeast from the valve...I let it settle an hour then poured off the sample to test it.

15 minute drive from me, never been

have heard not good things about it from local homebrewers

mostly clarity problems

yep. not about to sit down, pay $7 for a snifter full of starter

 

[madscientist451]

Aslin in Herndon, Virginia makes IPAs that warm my cockles in a way that they've never been warmed before. A Google search of "Aslin site:homebrewtalk.com" comes up empty. Has anyone had their beer and been thinking about clones and recipes?

Specifically, I had an IPA called Cortes and His Men. It was made with El Dorado and Mandarina Bavaria. It tasted like tropical pineapple pop rocks.

I looked on their web page and nothing there about ABV, or malts used. Is it a DIPA?
Is there any information in their beer menu that would give a clue to make a clone? Perhaps email the brewer and just ask?
I'd guess a good start would be a similar "northeast IPA" recipe, perhaps use the Conan yeast and hop burst the varieties you mentioned they use.
The brewery is about 2 hrs from me and I'm curious, and will make the trip someday, probably to try some of the barrel aged offerings.
I think its great that small breweries can develop local fans and compete for drinkers with the more established players in the market.

 

[tagz]

The guy likes the beer and was looking for info, no need to knock him down.

 

[TheHairyHop]

I looked on their web page and nothing there about ABV, or malts used. Is it a DIPA?
Is there any information in their beer menu that would give a clue to make a clone? Perhaps email the brewer and just ask?
I'd guess a good start would be a similar "northeast IPA" recipe, perhaps use the Conan yeast and hop burst the varieties you mentioned they use.
The brewery is about 2 hrs from me and I'm curious, and will make the trip someday, probably to try some of the barrel aged offerings.
I think its great that small breweries can develop local fans and compete for drinkers with the more established players in the market.

It was 6.7 percent. I didn't get as much creamy oats that I get from Hop Hands, and it was more opaque than Julius, but along the same lines as Tree House's Sap. It has that orange glow that is sometimes found in this style. I also have had their Bringing Sexy Back. It's 6.4, less orange and single hopped with Mosaic. My goodness was it a melon bomb. I'm thinking there's a fair amount of flaked wheat in these beers.

As far as that drive, I'm an hour away. The haul is worth it, but I would advise going on Thursdays or Saturday mornings. They had problems with tap availability recently, but since switched to a more limited take away model. It's paying off with respect to the tap offerings not disappearing

 

[bandt9299]

That beer looks just like the Trillium Vicinity I drank yesterday, everyone seems to love Trillium, I thought it was loaded with yeast and not that good, once it hit my tongue the beer went down hill fast. Thanks for the heads up my friend lives in Virginia.

 

[TheHairyHop]

for what it's worth, none of the beers I've had there have been that murky. I just didn't figure there was any point in a rebuttal. I should have taken some pictures when I was there this week! Unfortunately, the crowlers that I got today are the Bringing Sexy Back with blueberries and vanilla. So, the color is very burgundy and not representative of their IPA family. I'll see what I can do this Thursday.

I've attached some pictures I found on the web. the beer in the upper right of the photo is about on par to what I was looking at. More interestingly, there's a menu saying their DIPA uses an English yeast strain. yet another brewery using 1318 for IPAs? Seems like it

 

[Germainium]

I came across this also looking for a clone recipe. Have you made any progress or have any luck?

I've had countless "Hazy" or "Northeast" IPAs, whatever you want to call them and I disagree with the negative posts. I'm no professional homebrewer or AHA judge, and I'm also newer to homebrewing, but I could give a damn about "clarity". For me it's flavor, mouthfeel, aroma, etc. I stumbled across a few Aslin beers on tap in DC at ChurchKey (awesome place if you haven't been) and both of them were at the very top of "Hazy" IPAs that I've had. I'm the guy who's chased hundreds within this style and I have to say, I thought very highly of Aslin's beer relative to all the NEIPAs I've tried. If you're around there, I recommend checking it out.

 

[Biscuits]

So, you're in a little bit of luck. I actually met Andrew, one of the brewer/owners at Dulles...we were both on a flight to FL. Anyway, we got to chatting about homebrewing and everything else, kinda hit it off and he gave me his card. After moving back to Colorado, I was seeing all the hype Aslin was getting and I never got to try their beers...the one time I made the hour+ trip from Alexandria they were sold out by the time I got there....so I asked him for a clone recipe.

He would not cough up a recipe but agreed to help me design one.

Here is verbatim what he said, "We like to keep it simple with a base malt (i.e. 2-row, maris, or pilsner) and flaked oats."

At his point I had sent him a recipe that I had put together which consisted of:
Golden Promise
2-row
wheat malt
flaked oats

and your typical juicy hops

He said, "I would have your total base malt portion be 80% and up your flaked oats" (my recipe had flaked oats at 7%)

I also included that I would target a mash pH of about 5.3, a water profile of 1:3 sulfate to chloride, and ferment around 66-68. Which he said is pretty close to what they do.

Anyway, I hope this helps.

All the negativity aside in this thread...beer is subjective and to each their own. All I know is that the recipe he helped me design was a huge hit with everyone who tried it.

 

[TheHairyHop]

I came across this also looking for a clone recipe. Have you made any progress or have any luck?

I've had countless "Hazy" or "Northeast" IPAs, whatever you want to call them and I disagree with the negative posts. I'm no professional homebrewer or AHA judge, and I'm also newer to homebrewing, but I could give a damn about "clarity". For me it's flavor, mouthfeel, aroma, etc. I stumbled across a few Aslin beers on tap in DC at ChurchKey (awesome place if you haven't been) and both of them were at the very top of "Hazy" IPAs that I've had. I'm the guy who's chased hundreds within this style and I have to say, I thought very highly of Aslin's beer relative to all the NEIPAs I've tried. If you're around there, I recommend checking it out.

Churchkey is great. I didn't know that they served Aslin on tap. I haven't come close as far as mouthfeel goes. It doesn't help that I've spent the last year doing single hopped beers in order to get to know some varieties

 

[Germainium]

Biscuits - I appreciate the info! He mention anything about hop schedule/dry hopping?

I did find a youtube video where he talks a little about process. The thing I find interesting is "changing temperatures during brewing to impact the flavor profile".

Hairy - I generally use over 20% or more in flaked wheat/oats in my NEIPAs and find that gives great mouthfeel. The challenge I'm having is hops blasting through in the flavor and aroma. One thing I noticed about the Aslin beers I had (Vapid and Neutrino DDH) was that the hop flavor was so clear in the flavor. I tend to feel like my hops blend with the yeast and I can't distinguish huge differences in similar NEIPA recipes with different hops. I've made 6 straight NEIPA batches, all logged on brewersfriend if you had any interest. Below was the recipe I felt had great mouthfeel and was the best one I made if you're interested:

https://www.brewersfriend.com/homebrew/recipe/view/486851/freezing-runway-model-neipa-

()

 

[TheHairyHop]

I'll check it out when not at work. I do 80/20 base to oats and ~200:100 chloride to sulfate. Not much luck on the mouthfeel

 

[Biscuits]

No, I told him what I intended to do and he said it sounded good...but didn't mention whether or not that is what they do.

I typically do .75 Oz or @ 20-25 IBU @ 60 mins and then everything else is whirlpool / dry hop. I am usually putting a total of 12 Oz. per 5 gallons.

 

[TheHairyHop]

I know that certain varieties really take that kind of hopping rate better than others. I did >1 Oz per gallon of Ekuanot dry hop and it ended up tasting like gasoline because the flavor was so darn potent. The same rate with El Dorado? Fantastic

 

[Germainium]

No, I told him what I intended to do and he said it sounded good...but didn't mention whether or not that is what they do.

I typically do .75 Oz or @ 20-25 IBU @ 60 mins and then everything else is whirlpool / dry hop. I am usually putting a total of 12 Oz. per 5 gallons.

I think I need to lower my late boil additions to hit lower IBUs like you state above, then use additional in whirlpool. I'm also thinking of letting the whirlpool cool like 50 degrees during the hop stand to see if this makes a difference. It would be hard with the immersion chiller to get it right but could try.

What yeast are you using? I've been using Wyeast 1318 and dry-hopping twice with half at day 4. I plan to change that to double my dry-hop and drop that 2 days into fermentation then more in the keg. I've been using around 6 oz for a 2.5 gallon.

 

[Morrey]

Pic looks like the first pint from a new keg. I toss that pour.

Some folks may like it, but as someone already said, appearance is a big part of the appeal.

 

[Germainium]

Haha you'd have to toss the whole keg! That's the style. I love the juicy, creamy, haziness. On the other hand, I love the crystal clear hop blast like an alpine. All about the other characteristics for me, but that's what's great about beer, to each their own!

 

[nick_a]

there's a difference between hazy, which I can handle, and murky, which I can't

I'll drive past Aslin on my way to Lake Anne, or head the other way to Rhino, Ox, Ocelot or Beltway

+1 for Ocelot.

 

[GrogNerd]

+1 for Ocelot.

and now here in Sterling Park there's Crooked Run and, coming soon Rocket Frog

 

[Biscuits]

I think I need to lower my late boil additions to hit lower IBUs like you state above, then use additional in whirlpool. I'm also thinking of letting the whirlpool cool like 50 degrees during the hop stand to see if this makes a difference. It would be hard with the immersion chiller to get it right but could try.

What yeast are you using? I've been using Wyeast 1318 and dry-hopping twice with half at day 4. I plan to change that to double my dry-hop and drop that 2 days into fermentation then more in the keg. I've been using around 6 oz for a 2.5 gallon.

I usually use 1318 or WLP008, but I have used WLP001.

I usually split my dryhops also...one around 48 hours into fermentation (as it begins to slow) and one 3 days before cold crash.

 

[Rob2010SS]

Omega DIPA works well for this style too. I've used it twice now with decent results.

 

[degivens]

Having had a lot of their beers I really get a feeling that their yeast blend must contain both 1318 and conan — not sure past that.

Really surprised by the hate in this thread. Aslin and Triple Crossing are a better version of Treehouse nowadays in my opinion.

 

[TheHairyHop]

For better or worse, there is sometimes a bias against the new. Maybe I'm too quick to embrace change. There isn't a very intuitive way to measure that, however.

I do agree that Aslin may be at the top of the game with IPAs in regards to intense flavor. Treehouse has actually been a bit weak since the move. I get both yeast and hop flavors when drinking their beers. Very vibrant peach was on more than a few.

This leads me to think Conan, but I have never been able to coax that much flavor out of it. If anyone can give me a straightforward method to nail peach from Conan, I will gladly begin tinkering

 

[Brew_G]

For better or worse, there is sometimes a bias against the new. Maybe I'm too quick to embrace change. There isn't a very intuitive way to measure that, however.

I do agree that Aslin may be at the top of the game with IPAs in regards to intense flavor. Treehouse has actually been a bit weak since the move. I get both yeast and hop flavors when drinking their beers. Very vibrant peach was on more than a few.

This leads me to think Conan, but I have never been able to coax that much flavor out of it. If anyone can give me a straightforward method to nail peach from Conan, I will gladly begin tinkering

1318 is Aslin's house yeast, which means that Mind The Hop, the Johann variants, Master of Karate, and others are brewed with it. I'm not 100% sure what their other yeasts/blends are, but 1318 is certainly a place to start if you're looking to brew something like their beers.