Can you Brew It recipe for Epic Pale Ale

[weiht]

More of a british ale kinda of guy but after all the raves it has received, I just to brew it. 4 days into the fv and it has dropped to 1016, and Im wondering if I shld wait till it hit fg or just throw in the first dry hops tomorrow. The nose on this is just amazing, but the bitterness at the end is a little harsh and wOody.

 

[14thstreet]

Digging up an old one, but I brewed this about 10 days ago. I must have gotten my notes switched up as I mashed this one at 158-160F and NOT 148F. Along with the 16% or so crystal malt, I went from 1.052 to 1.020 in about 4 days with dry Nottingham.

I'll admit that my fermentation control was lousy on this batch. It started a cool 60F but I moved it to warmer environs and the weather decided to get in the 80s. Beer temp climbed to 74 by day two and I moved it to the basement again to get it in the mid 60s. With the high "FG" it's possible the temp swings have caused the yeast to shut down early. But with the crystal amount and high mash temps, I'm not so sure. Rousing for a couple days at warmer temperature may have brought FG to 1.018.

Any ideas? I'll be dry hopping and kegging in a week (vacation). Beer is still hoppy bitter so the sweetness seems to be in check somewhat in its uncarbonated warm state. No real showstopper off-flavors at this point yet.

 

[NZLunchie]

Being from NZ, Epic Pale Ale has to be one of my favourite beers. The Hop Zombie is AWESOME but you really do need to love or have an obsession with hops!!

I brewed this yesterday for my first All Grain (BIAB). Seemed to go OK, a truck load of hops!!! Only differences, I'm using New Zealand Cascade @ 8.8% and I used Carahell Malt instead of the Pale Crystal. I hit an OG of 1.065 not 1.052, but shouldn't be to much of an issue.

Cooled it overnight and chucked the yeast in, should be a good brew. Just in time for my birthday next month.

Question though, I don't have anywhere to cold crash, since I bottle instead of keg. For the last edition hops it says to add at cold crash temps for 5 days. Am I OK to just chuck the hops in there at colder temps then bottle? Or should I just chuck em in at 5 days anyways and not worry?

Next on the list, an Irish Red.

 

[14thstreet]

If you cannot cold crash or reduce temperature in any way, I would add your last addition at your current temps and leave to sit for an additional 5 days before you bottle. The cold crash helps remove the hop debris and yeast, helps prevent chill haze and may provide a different dry hop character than at warmer temperatures.

This is what I plan to do if I cannot get my kegerator working this week.

 

[14thstreet]

Just an update a month from brewday. Concerns regarding a higher FG have vanished at least in my opinion. Racking to add dryhops may have restarted a small fermentation (didn't take a final reading). That said, it's been in the keg for at least a week now (without the 2nd dryhopping) and I am pleased with the results so far. 3 year old cascade hops have held up though are not ideal for a fresh hoppy ale, that I've learned now. Still a nose to it since it's been carbed but have noticed that most of the aroma from the late additions were more or less scrubbed off the beer during fermentation. Still not sold on the late whirlpool additions (while not using a dryhop) to provide lasting aroma. Otherwise, I feel the amount of crystal is needed to help balance some of the strong/harsher bitterness given by the Cascades at this gravity. It's not cloying or overly chewy despite mashing at a higher 158F. Nice drinkable pale ale. But use fresh hops to get the desired effect!!!

 

[NZLunchie]

Brewed and bottled.

I didn't cold crash though, just threw in the last hop addition straight into the fermenter and left it for a further 5 days.

Bottled a week ago, I'll pop a smaller (500ml) bottle into the fridge and let it settle for a couple of days before I try it. Then leave the rest (if I can) for my birthday bash next month along with Schlenkerla's Irish Red.

Experience of my first All Grain brew - http://manawabrew.blogspot.co.nz/2012/04/all-grain-and-american.html

 

[nobita]

The comment below is from the brewing network page for this recipe.

http://thebrewingnetwork.com/shows/668

"In the interview the brewer says he does a protein rest @ 55 deg C (131F) and then mashes @ 68.5 deg C (155F) but then later in the show when Jamil gives the recipe he says to do a 148 deg F mash. Is my hearing F'ed or what?"


I listened to the show and the brewer did say 155. Wondering if jamil said 148 to account for system differences or by mistake. What do you guys think?


Votes: 5report abusevote downvote up

 

[14thstreet]

Well, I used Nottingham and that chews through most beers for me, so I ended up mashing higher than 148F. In fact, I must have been drinking while brewing and it was 158F instead. I've always mashed higher than normal when using attenuative strains such as Nottingham, US-05, 1056, 001, etc. In any event, I think the beer came out pretty good, even with the large amount of crystal in the recipe. Nothing about the beer tells me to stop drinking after a pint. If you are using the suggested yeast, which I've never used, go with what the brewer said or use your previous experiences in your own brewery. Good luck and enjoy!

 

[NZLunchie]

Well, birthday came and went. This was the only beer than ran out, so I take that as a good thing. Will definitely brew this again, house ale even. Sadly I only have 6 750ml bottle left!!

 

[samoir-nz]

And.... how does it compare to the real thing? Interested to hear your thoughts.

 

[NZLunchie]

And.... how does it compare to the real thing? Interested to hear your thoughts.

I'll have to do a taste test. Life got in the way so haven't managed it yet. I'll get a couple of bottles and do a photo compare as well. I got told by some that mine was better, but I can't be sure if they were being nice or actually serious.

 

[NZLunchie]

Well, did the taste test.
First thing to note is I used NZ Cascade only, Epic uses US Cascade only.

Second, please excuse the nasty bottle of wine in the background, player of the day prize for SWMBO.

Third sorry for the pics, camera ran outta juice so used the cell instead. If you want I can out some better pics up tomorrow.

My brew, the All American American is on the left and the Epic Pale Ale is on the right.

Initial thoughts are.
The nose on the AAA is stronger than the EPA.
The bitterness on the AAA is more pronounced than the EPA.
SWMBO liked the AAA more than the EPA.
The EPA is not a cloudy as the AAA.
The AAA doesn't seem to have hop sweetness if that makes any sense.

I think the NZ Cascade fit better than the US Cascade. Personal choice I suppose, but I love hops and for me, the AAA is the better beer of the two. If I could get the clearness of the EPA I'd be onto a winner.

I'll try and answer any questions if anyone has any

 

[14thstreet]

I wouldn't worry about the haze, mine took a while to clear up. I actually thought it tasted better younger than when it did clear (something dropped out)...duh. But hey, thanks for the comparison, looks tasty! What differences do you pick up from the NZ Cascade from the American-grown version?

 

[NZLunchie]

I wouldn't worry about the haze, mine took a while to clear up. I actually thought it tasted better younger than when it did clear (something dropped out)...duh. But hey, thanks for the comparison, looks tasty! What differences do you pick up from the NZ Cascade from the American-grown version?

Sure is tasty!!

Differences between the hops:
NZ Cascade seemed to pack more of a pine and resin nose and taste whereas the US seemed to be more passion/tropical fruit borderline wine smell ant just not as much punch in taste. Might have been the batch of hops Epic used, but I remember the first time I had the EPA and it blew my socks off....this time, not so much.

I will brew it again, think it'll make a great house ale. I think the base beer is good to use as a showcase for any hop. I've thought about using it as a base for some other NZ types, Motueka, Riwaka etc. If I do I'll throw some results up

 

[NZLunchie]

Planning on brewing this again, with some slight changes:

American Pale Ale

Recipe Specs
----------------
Batch Size (L): 23.0
Total Grain (kg): 6.200
Total Hops (g): 254.00
Original Gravity (OG): 1.059
Final Gravity (FG): 1.015
Alcohol by Volume (ABV): 5.80 %
Colour (SRM): 8.4
Bitterness (IBU): 34.2
Brewhouse Efficiency (%): 70
Boil Time (Minutes): 90

Grain Bill
----------------
5.000 kg Golden Promise Malt (80.65%)
0.600 kg Caramalt (9.68%)
0.400 kg Crystal 10 (6.45%)
0.200 kg Carapils (Dextrine) (3.23%)

Hop Bill
----------------
7.0 g Cascade Pellet (7.3% Alpha) @ 75 Minutes
14.0 g Cascade Pellet (7.3% Alpha) @ 30 Minutes
34.0 g Cascade Pellet (7.3% Alpha) @ 10 Minutes
42.5 g Cascade Pellet (7.3% Alpha) @ 5 Minutes
42.5 g Motueka Pellet (7.3% Alpha) @ 5 Minutes
57.0 g Motueka Pellet (7.3% Alpha) @ 5 Days (Dry Hop)
57.0 g Motueka Pellet (7.3% Alpha) @ 7 Days (Dry Hop)

Misc Bill
----------------
Fermented at 21°C with Wyeast 1272 - American Ale II


Recipe Generated with BrewMate

 

[DanaDana]

I know this is an older thread now, but I just bottled up my batch of this.
It smelled fantastic after the first dry hop addition, but after the cold crash addition the aroma was pretty muted (may have been due to the fact it was 43 degrees.)
My question is, did anyone have a low FG? I ended up at 1.004 using the American Ale 2. Took a bit to get started, but apparantly eveything in my home brewery attenuates VERY well.

 

[DanaDana]

I'm bringing this inthe bottle to an interclub competition with my homebrew club. we are all making APA's, hopefully mine does well!