Creature Comforts Tropicalia Clone

[weshorsford]

Had this beer for the first time this weekend and loved it. Wondering if anyone's worked up a clone recipe at all...

 

[connormcfall]

Hey there! I actually tried to clone the Tropicália for my first brew ever. I'm at about 1 week in to carbonating/conditioning my bottled beer. Been bad about not cracking one open every other day or so just to check up on the progress, but so far so good. I wouldn't say it's exactly like the Tropicália since I eyeballed it, but once I feel it's fully carbonated, I will test the two together and let you know!

Here's my tentative recipe (a few things went wrong due to the time crunch we brewed in).

Grains:
10 lbs Pale 2-Row
2 lbs Caramel/Crystal 10L

Mash: 1.33 qt/lb @ ≈152 degrees (thermometer was acting up)

Hops:
0.5 oz Citra (45 min)
0.75 oz Mosaic (30 min)
0.5 oz Mosaic (15 min)
1 oz Mosaic (dry hop 7 days)
1 oz Citra (dry hop 7 days)

Yeast: WLP001


So far, it tastes a bit watery (which also might be because of the lack of carbonation), so maybe I sparged with a tad too much or something. It was my first brew so I'm happy it didn't turn out worse. Cheers!

P.S. I found a link to another clone recipe here https://www.brewtoad.com/recipes/tropicalia-ipa

 

[BamaPhil]

I have nothing to add as far as recipe suggestions but I'd love a clone recipe too! This is probably my current favorite beer, easily hanging in there with the best IPAs in the country.

 

[connormcfall]

This is probably my current favorite beer, easily hanging in there with the best IPAs in the country.

Agreed, I feel very lucky to live within minutes of the brewery.

 

[weshorsford]

Appreciate it guys--Mosaic was my missing link. I took a shot at a reasonable facsimile in my last session that I really liked. Not a clone but rather inspired by for lack of a better term. Heavy Amarillo/Citra hop bill with Centennial for bittering and some Simcoe at 30/15/FO. Dry hopped with Amarillo/Citra--loved it. Ill revise on my next batch subbing in the Mosaic and see how it adds up.

 

[Sleepyemt]

Anyone try emailing the brewery? Of talk with anyone there? I'd love to get this down as well

 

[BamaPhil]

Anyone try emailing the brewery? Of talk with anyone there? I'd love to get this down as well

I'll send 'em a quick note, can't hurt!

 

[weshorsford]

I had found a Hi-5 clone that ultimately went off of and tweaked it a little...as noted above turned out somewhere in between...here's what I did there:

5gal batch
OG 1.072
FG 1.010
ABV 8.2%

7lbs Light DME
Steeping Grains
- 1lb 2-row
- 3/4lb Crystal 10L
- 1/2lb Carapils

0.5oz Zythos (FWH)
0.75oz Centennial (60mins)
0.25oz each Amarillo/Citra/Simcoe (30min)
0.25oz each Amarillo/Citra/Simcoe (15min)
0.25oz each Amarillo/Citra/Simcoe (Whirlpool)

1.0oz each Amarillo/Citra (7-day Dry Hop)

Wyeast 1056 (2x smack packs)

Steeped Grains in 1.25gal @ 165 for 30 mins
Sparged with 0.5gal
Added 0.5lb DME to 1.75gal volume
Temp @ 155 added FWH for 20 mins
Volume to 5 gal & added 2lbs DME after boil began

Loved end result--would like to dial it in a bit closer though--anxious to see if @BamaPhil can work some magic

 

[redllama]

Gave this a go over the weekend:

OG: 1.061
FG: 1.012 (est.)
ABV: 6.43%
IBU: 68

Grains
- 10# Pale Ale
- 1.5# Caramel 20
- 6oz Flaked Barley

Mash
- 1.33qt/# @ 152*

Hops
- 1oz Centennial @ 60
- .5oz Galaxy @ 20
- 1oz Citra @ 10
- 1oz Centennial @10
- 2oz Citra @ 0
- .5oz Galaxy @ 0

Yeast
- WLP001

Used this article as the basis for my hop choices. I'll let you know how it turns out in a couple weeks when it is ready.

 

[weshorsford]

Nice. I hadn't found any articles in the past that outlined their hop bill. Anxious to hear how it turns out. Thanks for sharing

 

[Bluejays219]

Any word?

 

[atom]

not a clone (and i've never had this beer) but the hop bill looked interesting so i brewed an apa based on it this weekend.

6 gallons
11 lb pale ale
.5 lb medium crystal
.5 lb golden naked oats

.5 magnum (60)
1 oz cent (10)
1 oz citra (10)
1 oz each cent/citra/galaxy (20 min hopstand @ 180)

may or may not dryhop with more galaxy...

US-05

should be a nice 6% apa ...i'll update in a few weeks.

 

[redllama]

I bottled my attempt yesterday morning. Sample had great aroma and tasted pretty good as well. Only "issue" was that my FG was 1.014 vs my estimate of 1.012. Not sure it's going to make a huge difference, but I may drop back on the Caramel 20 next go around to see if that helps. I'll post more updates once I crack a few open in the next couple of weeks as well as do a side by side comparison with a can of Tropicalia.

 

[mbbransc]

Gave this a go over the weekend:

OG: 1.061
FG: 1.012 (est.)
ABV: 6.43%
IBU: 68

Grains
- 10# Pale Ale
- 1.5# Caramel 20
- 6oz Flaked Barley

Mash
- 1.33qt/# @ 152*

Hops
- 1oz Centennial @ 60
- .5oz Galaxy @ 20
- 1oz Citra @ 10
- 1oz Centennial @10
- 2oz Citra @ 0
- .5oz Galaxy @ 0

Yeast
- WLP001

Used this article as the basis for my hop choices. I'll let you know how it turns out in a couple weeks when it is ready.

I reached out to a brewer and this is close. Change the yeast to WY1968; use pilsner, munich, wheat and a li'l crystal. He didn't say this, but I'd dry hop the hell out of it! I'm planning on brewing this but it won't be until the end of June.

 

[Bluejays219]

I'll try to brew this this weekend and report back. What temp do you think for the yeast? I haven't used esb before.

 

[gbarron]

This is one of my favorite new fruity IPA's and it is difficult to get even here in Atlanta. I may give this one a try in the next few weeks and I will report back.

As far as fermenting 1968, I recommend on the low end to reduce esters - I usually keep this around 64ish degrees for at least the first 7-10 days of fermentation then let it warm up to finish off/clean up. It is a great yeast.

 

[redllama]

Just did a side by side comparison this evening. Color seems to be spot on. The aroma and flavor both seem to be somewhat subdued compared to the original. I am going to take @mbbransc's advice on the grain bill and see if reducing the maltiness from the pale ale and caramel malts helps the hops shine through on the flavor side. I tend to prefer 20 min hop stands versus dry hopping so its understandable why the aroma would not be as intense as the original.

Overall a really nice beer and one that I am happy with for a first attempt.

 

[mbbransc]

I'm brewing this on Saturday. I'm leaving the crystal out. I always seem to pick up some staling flavor in my IPAs when I use crystal. We'll see how it goes.


Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Boil Size: 13.12 gal
Post Boil Volume: 12.27 gal
Batch Size (fermenter): 11.00 gal
Bottling Volume: 10.00 gal
Estimated OG: 1.060 SG
Estimated Color: 5.2 SRM
Estimated IBU: 66.4 IBUs
Brewhouse Efficiency: 67.00 %
Est Mash Efficiency: 71.9 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amt Name Type # %/IBU
8.00 g Gypsum (Calcium Sulfate) (Mash 60.0 mins Water Agent 1 -
1.00 Items Campden Tablet (Mash 5.0 mins) Water Agent 2 -
19 lbs Pilsner (Weyermann) (1.7 SRM) Grain 3 73.1 %
5 lbs Munich I (Weyermann) (7.1 SRM) Grain 4 19.2 %
1 lbs 8.0 oz Wheat - White Malt (Briess) (2.3 SRM) Grain 5 5.8 %
8.0 oz Acid Malt (3.0 SRM) Grain 6 1.9 %
1.50 oz Warrior [15.00 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 7 34.9 IBUs
1.00 Items Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 15.0 mins) Fining 8 -
2.00 tsp Yeast Nutrient (Boil 15.0 mins) Other 9 -
2.00 oz Centennial [10.00 %] - Boil 5.0 min Hop 10 6.2 IBUs
2.00 oz Citra [12.00 %] - Boil 5.0 min Hop 11 7.4 IBUs
2.00 oz Citra [12.00 %] - Boil 0.0 min Hop 12 0.0 IBUs
2.00 oz Galaxy [14.00 %] - Boil 0.0 min Hop 14 0.0 IBUs
2.00 oz Citra [12.00 %] - Steep/Whirlpool 20.0 Hop 13 11.3 IBUs
1.00 oz Galaxy [14.00 %] - Steep/Whirlpool 20.0 Hop 15 6.6 IBUs
1.0 pkg Vermont Ale Yeast (The Yeast Bay #) Yeast 16 -
4.00 oz Citra [12.00 %] - Dry Hop 4.0 Days Hop 17 0.0 IBUs
2.00 oz Galaxy [14.00 %] - Dry Hop 4.0 Days Hop 18 0.0 IBUs

 

[redllama]

I'm brewing this on Saturday. I'm leaving the crystal out. I always seem to pick up some staling flavor in my IPAs when I use crystal. We'll see how it goes.


Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Boil Size: 13.12 gal
Post Boil Volume: 12.27 gal
Batch Size (fermenter): 11.00 gal
Bottling Volume: 10.00 gal
Estimated OG: 1.060 SG
Estimated Color: 5.2 SRM
Estimated IBU: 66.4 IBUs
Brewhouse Efficiency: 67.00 %
Est Mash Efficiency: 71.9 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amt Name Type # %/IBU
8.00 g Gypsum (Calcium Sulfate) (Mash 60.0 mins Water Agent 1 -
1.00 Items Campden Tablet (Mash 5.0 mins) Water Agent 2 -
19 lbs Pilsner (Weyermann) (1.7 SRM) Grain 3 73.1 %
5 lbs Munich I (Weyermann) (7.1 SRM) Grain 4 19.2 %
1 lbs 8.0 oz Wheat - White Malt (Briess) (2.3 SRM) Grain 5 5.8 %
8.0 oz Acid Malt (3.0 SRM) Grain 6 1.9 %
1.50 oz Warrior [15.00 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 7 34.9 IBUs
1.00 Items Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 15.0 mins) Fining 8 -
2.00 tsp Yeast Nutrient (Boil 15.0 mins) Other 9 -
2.00 oz Centennial [10.00 %] - Boil 5.0 min Hop 10 6.2 IBUs
2.00 oz Citra [12.00 %] - Boil 5.0 min Hop 11 7.4 IBUs
2.00 oz Citra [12.00 %] - Boil 0.0 min Hop 12 0.0 IBUs
2.00 oz Galaxy [14.00 %] - Boil 0.0 min Hop 14 0.0 IBUs
2.00 oz Citra [12.00 %] - Steep/Whirlpool 20.0 Hop 13 11.3 IBUs
1.00 oz Galaxy [14.00 %] - Steep/Whirlpool 20.0 Hop 15 6.6 IBUs
1.0 pkg Vermont Ale Yeast (The Yeast Bay #) Yeast 16 -
4.00 oz Citra [12.00 %] - Dry Hop 4.0 Days Hop 17 0.0 IBUs
2.00 oz Galaxy [14.00 %] - Dry Hop 4.0 Days Hop 18 0.0 IBUs

Looks good. Let us know how it turns out. I am in the process of crafting a session version of this as I was a bit loud at the pool the other week. It just goes down too easily for a 6.5% at the pool for me.

 

[rockernino]

Just tried this beer today. One of the best IPAs I've had. Would love to recreate it.

 

[gbarron]

Brewed this a couple of weeks ago. I will report back after dry hopping and kegging.

72% Pilsner
16% Munich
8% Wheat Malt (used red wheat because I needed to use it up)
4% Crystal 20L (actually used 10L because I was out of 20L)
Wyeast 1968
OG - 1.062
IBU's - 72

I decided to hop burst it.

35g Galaxy @ 20min
35g Citra @ 10min
35g Centennial @ 10min
28g Galaxy @ 5min
56g Citra @ 0min
56g Citra and 56g Galaxy planned in a double dry hop

 

[chrilr]

Any update on how this turned out?

 

[mbbransc]

My recipe is in Post #18. I brewed 10gal and fermented them separately. My 5-gal batch was decent, reminiscent of the real deal. On Saturday we brewed again at my buddy's house and I poured a glass from his keg and it was MUCH closer. Same recipe, brewed at the same time, same dry hops. Everything is the same except he let his sit another week or so before sticking it in the fridge. Mine picked up some grassiness that faded somewhat. His was straight hop juice. We brewed something different on Saturday but are planning another IPA on 08/29 brew day. I'm still deciding if I'm going to give this one another go, try a PseudoSue clone, or go back to my faithful HDnR version.

 

[BamaPhil]

My recipe is in Post #18. I brewed 10gal and fermented them separately. My 5-gal batch was decent, reminiscent of the real deal. On Saturday we brewed again at my buddy's house and I poured a glass from his keg and it was MUCH closer. Same recipe, brewed at the same time, same dry hops. Everything is the same except he let his sit another week or so before sticking it in the fridge. Mine picked up some grassiness that faded somewhat. His was straight hop juice. We brewed something different on Saturday but are planning another IPA on 08/29 brew day. I'm still deciding if I'm going to give this one another go, try a PseudoSue clone, or go back to my faithful HDnR version.

Thanks for the report! I saw your water additions, are you using distilled water or are those additions to tap water?

 

[mbbransc]

^ Additions to tap but I have very soft water.

 

[tadkays]

I substituted Mosaic for Galaxy and Pacman yeast for London ESB.
Malt: Pale, Munich, Wheat, C-20
Hops: Citra, Centennial, Mosaic
65 IBU hopburst & hopstand
1.060 OG
Hoping to get 1.012 or below.
#cravecuriosity

 

[gbarron]

Brewed this a couple of weeks ago. I will report back after dry hopping and kegging.

72% Pilsner
16% Munich
8% Wheat Malt (used red wheat because I needed to use it up)
4% Crystal 20L (actually used 10L because I was out of 20L)
Wyeast 1968
OG - 1.062
IBU's - 72

I decided to hop burst it.

35g Galaxy @ 20min
35g Citra @ 10min
35g Centennial @ 10min
28g Galaxy @ 5min
56g Citra @ 0min
56g Citra and 56g Galaxy planned in a double dry hop

Just an update on mine. Finished out at 1.011 FG. The hop aroma is extremely strong with lots of tropical fruit. Hop flavor dominates the malt completely and is a bit grassy right now. I'm hoping it fades a bit.

I haven't done a full on side-by-side yet but I have a few cans of 8/6/15 Tropicalia in the fridge and will try to do so soon. Just based on comparisons so far, I would say the hop aroma, flavor, and bitterness are significantly stronger in the homebrewed version. Color is nearly identical. Brewing this again I would probably go to a traditional hopping schedule and drop the hopbursting. I would also add some Centennial and possibly even Nelson to the dry hop and cut back on the other two.

 

[gbarron]

Here is a side by side. The homebrew is a little darker. Hop aroma and bitterness are much higher in the homebrew, but similar aromas/flavors. Just more intense. The real thing is more restrained in terms of hop flavor, aroma, and bitterness. As I said before, I would cut back on hopbursting and go with a traditional hop schedule on a re-brew. Maybe even throw in some Nelson in lieu of some of the Galaxy.View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1442874531.553250.jpg

 

[Doctor_M]

Here is a side by side. The homebrew is a little darker. Hop aroma and bitterness are much higher in the homebrew, but similar aromas/flavors. Just more intense. The real thing is more restrained in terms of hop flavor, aroma, and bitterness. As I said before, I would cut back on hopbursting and go with a traditional hop schedule on a re-brew. Maybe even throw in some Nelson in lieu of some of the Galaxy.View attachment 304708

There appears to be a huge difference in color between the two of those beers in the picture you posted. Not sure many people would agree that it looks only a "little" darker.


That being said thanks guys for working on a clone for this; had it at DLD 2015 thanks to @skeezerpleezer and have been craving it ever since!

 

[skeezerpleezer]

There appears to be a huge difference in color between the two of those beers in the picture you posted. Not sure many people would agree that it looks only a "little" darker.


That being said thanks guys for working on a clone for this; had it at DLD 2015 thanks to @skeezerpleezer and have been craving it ever since!

Glad you enjoyed it.

I know for a fact that 1968 is their house yeast, so that would be a good one to use here. Haven't really asked for any info about Trop though. They have changed a few things process wise recently to get the beer to market fresher. I think its around 3 weeks from brewing to store now. They likely use a water profile more similar to some of the IPA brewers in the NE than those out west.