American IPA Bell's Two Hearted Ale Clone (close as they come)

[z-bob]

I'm brewing this tonight (2nd time in a row) and my LHBS is clean out of Centennial. Would anyone have suggestions on hop substitutions and maybe a different schedule? I have some:
* Amarillo
* Simcoe
* Chinook
* Cascade
* Sorachi Ace (only 1oz)
* Denali

Any suggestions? Thanks!

I would probably follow this recipe https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2239/2667/files/Two_Hearted_Instructions_-_All_Grain.pdf but substitute Chinook for the boiling hops and Cascade for the dry hops. (I'm not familiar with Amarillo, Simcoe, or Denali. You don't have enough Sorachi Ace for this; use it to make something nice that doesn't need a lot)

 

[kappy]

Thanks guys! I started before your responses, but I ended up with 1oz Chinook at 60, doing 0.5oz each of Amarillo/Cascade at 15, 5, and 0 - and then at 170º I did a stand w/ Simcoe. I plan to dry hop with 1oz of each of Amarillo, Cascade, and Simcoe (I'm sure I could get some Centennial by then, but I kinda like the idea of keeping it out to compare with my last all-Centennial batch). I'm really curious how this turns out - my last brew based on this thread was insanely good, and I want to find out if Centennial is, in fact, a magic hop.

 

[Angus Young]

I brewed this beer about 1.5 months ago and it tasted like an OK beer. I threw 1oz Centennial in the keg 2 weeks ago and sampled it again just today, it tastes amazing. Time and aging makes a very big difference. I will definetly brew this again!

 

[InspectorJon]

Two Hearted

• InspectorJon
• Feb 5, 2019
• 1

Comparison between mine and theirs

Here is one more data point. I brewed this in November and am finishing the last as I write. For a 3 gallon batch:

5.5 lb 2 row pale
20 oz Vienna
4 oz CaraPils
6 oz Crystal 15
7.375 lb

14g Northern Brewer 8.3% FWH 60 min boil

7g Centennial 9.6% 15 min

5g Vic Secret 21 %
4g Amarillo 8.6%
5g Citra 14.3%
7g Centennial 5 min

4g Amarillo 8.6%
5g Citra 14.3%
10g Centennial 1 min

16g Centennial 7 days dry hop
16g Centennial 5 days dry hop

US-05 yeast in the upper 60's and finishing at 71F

Hops are what were in the freezer and the Centennial I bought.

Taste tested by me, my daughter and her husband. We had a hard time telling the difference based on taste. There was an ever so slight different taste but non of us could really describe it. Maybe its the yeast but is is so slight it is insignificant. Someone with a very sensitive pallet might describe it but they would be splitting hairs. The real Two Hearted Ale is my daughters favorite beer but she says this is just as good.

Two Hearted is not distributed where I live and the kids brought me some from Texas to compare. I have brewed variations based on this thread in the past due to the overwhelming positive reviews. This is my third effort at a variation of the original recipe based on available hops and all were outstanding. The grain bill has remained true.

This version was ever so slightly darker and had better head retention. I'll do this again over and over. Thanks to everyone that has contributed to this thread.

 

[Tommy Selggren]

Hi all!

Has anyone of you tried the original recipe from eschatz but changed the hop amounts as the recipe from Bell's?

If so, is there any difference in taste?

Best regards,
Tommy

 

[Tommy Selggren]

Hi all!

Has anyone of you tried the original recipe from eschatz but changed the hop amounts as the recipe from Bell's?

If so, is there any difference in taste?

Best regards,
Tommy

No one that have tried that?

 

[InspectorJon]

Lots of people have done that. Different hops have different flavors. Using different hops will result in a different flavored beer. This grain bill is a great one for experimenting with. It is an old thread but there is some discussion about that here: Bells Two Hearted IPA Recipe

 

[Oldskewl]

I would give it a try. The Bell's version uses less kettle hops and more dry hops. I like eschatz version(but I usually go with 2 oz of Centennial in the dry hop), but I find it is fairly bitter for about 2 months, then it seems to turn into a nice well rounded IPA. I think the Bell's version would be more enjoyable earlier. I will probably try the bells hop schedule next time. I have a friend doing the Bell's kit soon. If he shares any, I'll give my feedback.

 

[str8jkt]

Anyone tried using Centennial Hop Hash in this brew?

 

[TKWoody]

I haven't read all 34 pages, so maybe this has been mentioned already. Bell's sells a Two Hearted clone kit on their website, and they list the ingredients. For 5 gallons:
10 pounds American 2-row
3 pounds American pale ale
8 ounces American crystal 40L
6 ounces of Centennial hops

https://store.bellsbeer.com/collect...wo-hearted-ale-clone-all-grain-ingredient-kit
https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2...ructions_-_All_Grain.pdf?17529720828637141219

I've been thinking of doing a 2H clone and was researching recipes. I saw this kit as well. Just wanted to point out that the hops they include with the kit are from the hops they buy for brewing, so higher quality than most.

Also, you can buy Bell's house yeast on their website if you don't want to do a starter. (But, then you miss drinking the beer to get to the dregs.) It's Imperial Yeast A62.

 

[Shenanigans]

I've been thinking of doing a 2H clone and was researching recipes. I saw this kit as well. Just wanted to point out that the hops they include with the kit are from the hops they buy for brewing, so higher quality than most.

Also, you can buy Bell's house yeast on their website if you don't want to do a starter. (But, then you miss drinking the beer to get to the dregs.) It's Imperial Yeast A62.

I can't get any Imperial yeasts here in Europe anymore, only leftover stock from before they stopped shipping here.
Think there are some discussions about what is considered Organic in the USA is not considered Organic in the EU.

I also don't get any Bell's beer here so I can't harvest from anywhere either. I did drink TH on holidays in NY a few years ago though and loved it.
Has it been agreed on which other commercially available yeast would come closest? Chico should be close but not quite there, I was wondering about WY 1098 as I have some of that. I could also use M42 or M36 from Mangrove Jacks.

I also have London III and WLP005 British ale but they probably attenuate to low and also a bit too British.

 

[InspectorJon]

Has it been agreed on which other commercially available yeast would come closest? Chico should be close but not quite there, I was wondering about WY 1098 as I have some of that. I could also use M42 or M36 from Mangrove Jacks.

I also have London III and WLP005 British ale but they probably attenuate to low and also a bit too British.

I made this last winter using US05. Three of us did a side by side with the real thing in cans. We all agreed it was very hard to tell any difference. It was hardly detectable. For what difference there was we all liked the US05 version better. Perhaps that was because it was fresher.

See this above: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/forum/...close-as-they-come.91488/page-34#post-8514537

 

[Shenanigans]

I made this last winter using US05. Three of us did a side by side with the real thing in cans. We all agreed it was very hard to tell any difference. It was hardly detectable. For what difference there was we all liked the US05 version better. Perhaps that was because it was fresher.

See this above: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/forum/...close-as-they-come.91488/page-34#post-8514537

Ok, thanks for your reply. What I get from this is that this beer will turn out great with a number of yeasts. I might just go the dry yeast route as I usually brew 4 beers on one day and it helps when they are not all liquid yeasts. So from what I have on hand it'll be one of US05, M42, M44, M36.

 

[kingmatt]

I've brewed Two Hearted clones a few times with a number of different yeasts (04, 05 and Imperial Flagship) and they have all turned out great and very close to the original. I just brewed another batch using the Bell's "Select" hops (advertised as the same crop they use in the real beer) and the Imperial "Bell's House" yeast and have to say, using their house yeast makes a difference. My beer is indistinguishable from the real thing (to my palate at least) and the yeast is incredibly versatile and easy to harvest (top crop).

I highly recommend trying to get a hold of their house yeast either through Imperial or harvesting from their bottles.

 

[kingmatt]

I can't get any Imperial yeasts here in Europe anymore, only leftover stock from before they stopped shipping here.
Think there are some discussions about what is considered Organic in the USA is not considered Organic in the EU.

I also don't get any Bell's beer here so I can't harvest from anywhere either. I did drink TH on holidays in NY a few years ago though and loved it.
Has it been agreed on which other commercially available yeast would come closest? Chico should be close but not quite there, I was wondering about WY 1098 as I have some of that. I could also use M42 or M36 from Mangrove Jacks.

I also have London III and WLP005 British ale but they probably attenuate to low and also a bit too British.

Bell's house yeast from Imperial is currently only available through the Bell's Homebrew website. I just checked their shipping policy and it looks like you may be able to score some through a courier if you really want to try it. From their website:

We will ship to international couriers, but please note our shipments are packaged only for domestic shipping and Bell's General Store releases all responsibility for a package once tracking shows it was delivered to the domestic address provided.

 

[kingmatt]

Here is my latest batch (left) vs. the real thing.

 

[Shenanigans]

Bell's house yeast from Imperial is currently only available through the Bell's Homebrew website. I just checked their shipping policy and it looks like you may be able to score some through a courier if you really want to try it. From their website:

We will ship to international couriers, but please note our shipments are packaged only for domestic shipping and Bell's General Store releases all responsibility for a package once tracking shows it was delivered to the domestic address provided.

Thanks for the tip Kingmatt.
Might be a bit over the top for me to order the yeast via a courier
Probably involves a lot of costs.
For now I'll try it with one of the other readily available alternatives.
Maybe I'll look online to see if there are some Bell's beers available from the beer shops.

 

[brew703]

Has anyone brewed this recipe using lager yeast?

 

[krispn]

Bells 2HA is a recipe I like to brew a few times a year as a solid go to beer. I’ve used a few yeast strains and for my next batch I’ll likely use either Joystick or TYB Midwestern but I’d love to get my hands on the actual Imperial Bells House yeast but alas we won’t see it here in the U.K.

If anyone was interested in sending me a pouch I’d be happy to reimburse via Paypal as Bell’s don’t show an option to ship to the U.K.

 

[AzOr]

I've heard good things about Bell's Imperial yeast but I want to use what I have on hand.

So which would be best?.......
Imperial Darkness or Imperial Pub

I could go to lhbs and get something else if there is a strong argument for it, but it would be nice to use what I have.

 

[kappy]

I've heard good things about Bell's Imperial yeast but I want to use what I have on hand.

So which would be best?.......
Imperial Darkness or Imperial Pub

I could go to lhbs and get something else if there is a strong argument for it, but it would be nice to use what I have.

If it were me, I'd definitely use Pub. It's supposed to be the Fullers strain, and I think that would give some nice esters that would go nicely in this recipe.

 

[AzOr]

If it were me, I'd definitely use Pub. It's supposed to be the Fullers strain, and I think that would give some nice esters that would go nicely in this recipe.

Thanks kappy!
I'll report back in a few weeks.

 

[GrogNerd]

I've heard good things about Bell's Imperial yeast but I want to use what I have on hand.

So which would be best?.......
Imperial Darkness or Imperial Pub

I could go to lhbs and get something else if there is a strong argument for it, but it would be nice to use what I have.

my vote goes for split batch, do both

 

[GrogNerd]

you know... for science

 

[AzOr]

you know... for science

View attachment 708602

I’m gonna pull a Jesse and say no because I’m too lazy. Or high.

 

[Shenanigans]

Might try Denny's favourite myself. Just ordered a pack for the first time and also have a load of centennial i want to use up.

 

[K_tile]

Not sure if this has been posted on here but I just remembered this... Doppelgänger: Two Hearted Ale From Bell’s Brewery | exBEERiment Results!

Seems fitting!

 

[RePete]

https://flagshipfebruary.com/2021/02/05/larry-bell-on-two-hearted-ale/

 

[AzOr]

Thanks kappy!
I'll report back in a few weeks.

Ok so I brewed a batch with.....Omega Lutra kveik.
I know it’s nowhere near the original yeast but it came out real clean and delicious. I fermented at 72f (ambient temp was 68f).
I’ve never tried the original so I can’t compare but the beer was a success.
I lost my keezer to covid frozen food storage and ever since I’ve been brewing with the seasons. My garage is about 50f so I had to ferment in the house.

 

[Rick Crane]

The actual gravity for this beer is 1.064
The FG is 1.010
Yeast is taken from a bottle of Bells Amber (their Pale Ale also works)

10 lbs Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 76.92 %
2 lbs Vienna Malt (3.5 SRM) Grain 15.38 %
8.0 oz Cara-Pils/Dextrine (2.0 SRM) Grain 3.85 %
8.0 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt - 20L (20.0 SRM) Grain 3.85 %

*mash at 150 F

1.00 oz Centennial [9.50 %] (60 min) Hops 30.3 IBU
0.50 oz Centennial [9.50 %] (Dry Hop 5 days) Hops -
1.00 oz Centennial [9.50 %] (15 min) Hops 15.0 IBU
1.00 oz Centennial [9.50 %] (5 min) Hops 6.0 IBU
1.00 oz Centennial [9.50 %] (1 min) Hops 1.3 IBU

7% ABV

This beer is so damn close to the original. If you let it wait at least 2 months in the bottle/keg it'll clear up EXACTLY like the original. I had SWMBO mix the glasses up and I couldn't pick my clone out between two Two Hearted Glasses and one Clone. This is the best clone I've made and possibly the best IPA I've made.

Edit: Fixed yeast and gravity issues along with mash temp for a lower FG.

You can also order the kit from Bell's General store and have it shipped to your house. They include the liquid yeast which they use.