Anything seam like chaos in the neipa

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RabbitHole

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Does this seam chaotic. I did a ton of reading last night trying to nail down where I have been going wrong. I believe water profile is one. Plus going to high on ph and probably should adjust ph during boil too.

I’ve found I don’t like the dry hop during peak fermentation… and there was a ton of support to not to either, as u get more aroma and such later. There is a 1000 ways to skin that cat.

Only going for one session of dry hop and will do it under pressure probably in the 12psi range

I went for a a little higher temp mash profile then what some are suggestion but I like a little sweeter beer and don’t like dryness.

I usually do 11-12 gallon batches. But I’m going to dial it down to 5gal batches till I get this stuff figured out. I’m tired of making ten gallons and it not being what I really want.
 

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Recipe generally looks really good! Mashing a little higher can be nice in a juicy style IMO. It's personal preference though.

I would personally cut out the honey malt and replace with something less intense like CaraHell if you are just looking to add body. Or add victory malt if you are looking for a touch of complexity. IMO Honey Malt (or darker crystals) doesn't have a place in a NEIPA. I also don't see the need for the flaked barley, you've already got oats and wheat that will add plenty of haze and head retention.

Why the chalk? I don't see a reason why you would want to add any alkalinity, plus chalk doesn't readily dissolve in water. You should cut out the chalk and then reduce the lactic acid in the mash. They are basically cancelling each other out (aside from a small calcium contribution).

In terms of water profile, you will also get varying opinions. I personally like higher sulfate than chloride as I like my beers crispy (not as high sulfate as a west coast IPA, but something like 150 Sulfate & 100 Chloride). If you like the oaty creamy style NEIPA then your profile is good.

Here's some insight into my process and what I've found to work well:

A few tips on PH that I've had a lot of success with recently. I generally like to acidify my kettle to 5.1 just prior to adding the hop stand (with a goal for a 5.2 finishing boil PH as big hopstands generally increase PH by at 0.1). It's possible you might hit that naturally if you are doing no sparge brewing, but worth taking a reading. I find the extra acidity at this stage reduces the uptick of polyphenols and harsh vegetal stuff.

I've also had success with adding anywhere from 3ml to 6ml of lactic acid after dry hopping. Different hops behave differently in how they raise the PH at dry hopping. Higher PH of finshed beers can make the flavors seem dull and also contribute to hop burn. Using 3ml of lactic with a large dry hop > 5oz is generally a good rule of thumb for me at this point. Sometimes I add more depending on how the beer tastes. Acidifying post fermentation isn't an exact science, and I usually go off taste. If it needs more, I add more. If it tastes good I leave it alone. Generally 3ml drops most beers 0.1 PH in my experience (although the chemistry is more complicated than that). 3ml is a good starting point for a juicy beer in my experience.

Sounds like you have a pressurized vessel which is great. Anything you can do to combat O2 the better. When I dry hop, I like to add 12g dextrose and 5g of ascorbic acid (per 5 gallons). The dextrose ensures the yeast consumes any residual 02 introduced and the ascorbic acid acts an an antioxidant to slow down staling reactions. Make sure to give the beer at least two days after the sugar addition to ensure hop creep and diacetyl are cleaned up before dropping the temp.

I am also a big advocate of keg conditioning and carbonating in kegs with priming sugar. I do purge kegs and do closed transfers. I add priming sugar through the gas post with a 500 ml syringe to ensure no air is introduced. I let the kegs prime/ carbonate for 3-5 days @ 70F then stick in the keezer. I monitor with a pressure gauge and when pressure spikes and then stabalizes for 36 hours I know its good to throw in the keezer. If you are interested in this process including the equipment I use then I'd be happy to share more info.
 
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