So I went to my local shop yesterday with no idea what i was going to brew this weekend and just kind of bought some base malt and a bunch of hops. I am pretty new to formulating my own recipes so i was wondering if anyone could critique what i came up with out of what i got.
10lbs pale 2row
1lb C20
Mash at 150 for 75 minutes, single batch sparge
1oz centennial 75 min mash hop
.5oz centennial 60 min
.5oz centennial 40 min
.5oz simcoe 20 min
1oz mosaic 10 min
.5oz Amarillo 5 min
.5oz simcoe flame out
.5oz Amarillo flame out
Wyeast 1056 1.5L starter. Ferment at 63* recipe is for 5 gallons
I still have 1 oz each simcoe, amarilo and mosaic left over; what combo of these is the best for dry hopping?
I think mashing any longer than 60 minutes is a waste, particular since this isn't a very big grain bill.
I also think that mash hopping is a waste of hops, particularly in a hoppy beer like an IPA. The only effect that mash hopping will have will be very subtle, and will be masked by the heavy hoppiness of an IPA. Isomerization of alpha acids doesn't take place at mashing temps, and just barely may take place during sparging temps. And then the mash and sparge water will be strained through the grain bed, leaving the vast majority of the hops with the spent grains. If you were doing a beer with a much lower hop profile, where hoppy subtleties could shine through, I'd be much more inclined to do a mash hop. This are just my thoughts on this subject though. Others may disagree.
You hop additions seem a big puzzling to me. Why add the mosaic at 10 minutes, and then the amarillo at 5 minutes? If I were you, I'd just add them both at 5 minutes. Other than a couple of IBUs, there's no benefit to be gained adding them five minutes earlier. In the same regards, there's not too much of a benefit to adding centennial at 60 minutes, then again at 40 minutes, and same with the 20 minute addition. This being said, I've done IPAs with hop additions throughout, but those were in IPAs with one or two hops, and the same hops were added throughout.
What is your average efficiency? I haven't plugged in the numbers, but if you average 70-75%, I think your grain bill might be a bit light compared to your hop bill, since most of those hops are pretty big AA% hops.
Your color will most likely be lighter than an IPA generally is, but you could overcome that with a bit of crystal 60 or higher. Or if you like it lighter, not a big deal.
I think those hop flavors will blend very nicely together.
I'm not trying to pick apart your recipe either. All in all, if you do your recipe as is, I'm sure you'll make a very tasty IPA.
