Specialty IPA: Rye IPA Denny Conn's Wry Smile Rye IPA

[Denny]

Only a couple more pints left in the Tap-a-draft.
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Looks just right and delicious!

 

[GCGBrewing]

One of the last pints left before my keg blows! Thanks again Denny, a quite tasty IPA!

 

[juggabrew]

I last brewed this in 2013. Now I have no interest in any IPA over 8% so I can still function. @Denny have you done this in a pale ale or lower ABV style? I like my IPAs closer to 6.5%

 

[kh54s10]

I last brewed this in 2013. Now I have no interest in any IPA over 8% so I can still function. @Denny have you done this in a pale ale or lower ABV style? I like my IPAs closer to 6.5%

Scale it down!!!

 

[Imhoppy]

Only a couple more pints left in the Tap-a-draft.
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Eating cookies with beer! Excellent. I'm not the only one.

 

[Denny]

I last brewed this in 2013. Now I have no interest in any IPA over 8% so I can still function. @Denny have you done this in a pale ale or lower ABV style? I like my IPAs closer to 6.5%

Yep. I just reduce everything proportionally to an OG of 1.060-65

 

[JLeuck64]

I made this for the first time today! I used Brewtarget software and BruN-water software to get set up for brew day. Hit my numbers mostly, but these first runs at a recipe is always to dial in the equipment with the numbers I was seeing today ( ; Looking forward to this batch becoming a very solid 7.5%ABV

 

[cody6173]

Just finished my first batch of this bad boy. Ended up at 1.072 biab. Cant wait to keg it.

 

[cody6173]

FG ended just a tad higher than I had hoped but otherwise a solid brew for the first go round

 

[ChuckS1]

Just got back from the LHBS down in Richmond and realized I forgot the Denny's Favorite yeast. I do have some WLP090 in the frig and an amber ale that should be ready for kegging in a couple of days that was fermented with Wyeast 1272. Anybody tried this with WLP090? Otherwise, I'll pitch it on the 1272 yeast cake. Thoughts?

 

[kh54s10]

How can you have a Denny's Wry Smile Rye IPA without Denny's Favorite 50 yeast?? I'm sure either of those yeasts would make a great beer. It would just be different. I haven't used either of those.

 

[ChuckS1]

How can you have a Denny's Wry Smile Rye IPA without Denny's Favorite 50 yeast?? I'm sure either of those yeasts would make a great beer. It would just be different. I haven't used either of those.

Pretty easily, I imagine. One of the local breweries gave me its rye IPA recipe and, lo and behold, it's Denny Conn's Wry Smile, brewed with WLP001.

 

[juggabrew]

I used imperial A15 independence. Of course I would’ve loved to use 1450 and I have before in previous batches. I’m all about the 200bil nowadays. I’d go back to wyeast if they got with the times.

 

[kh54s10]

How can you have a Denny's Wry Smile Rye IPA without Denny's Favorite 50 yeast?? I'm sure either of those yeasts would make a great beer. It would just be different. I haven't used either of those.

Pretty easily, I imagine. One of the local breweries gave me its rye IPA recipe and, lo and behold, it's Denny Conn's Wry Smile, brewed with WLP001.

 

[Denny]

Just got back from the LHBS down in Richmond and realized I forgot the Denny's Favorite yeast. I do have some WLP090 in the frig and an amber ale that should be ready for kegging in a couple of days that was fermented with Wyeast 1272. Anybody tried this with WLP090? Otherwise, I'll pitch it on the 1272 yeast cake. Thoughts?

1272 is what I used before I ran across 1450

 

[Denny]

Pretty easily, I imagine. One of the local breweries gave me its rye IPA recipe and, lo and behold, it's Denny Conn's Wry Smile, brewed with WLP001.

Then it's not my recipe.

 

[Denny]

I used imperial A15 independence. Of course I would’ve loved to use 1450 and I have before in previous batches. I’m all about the 200bil nowadays. I’d go back to wyeast if they got with the times.

Cell counts are a canard. Chris White said to me "homebrewers are too hung up on numbers"

 

[eric19312]

Cell counts are a canard. Chris White said to me "homebrewers are too hung up on numbers"

Didn’t he write a book with all sorts of directions about how and why to get the right cell counts?

 

[juggabrew]

Cell counts are a canard. Chris White said to me "homebrewers are too hung up on numbers"

Yea I feel the same to a point. But still, I’d rather pay the same price for double the amount.

Plus I don’t make starters to build cell counts. I just do a 1 liter starter to get the yeast pre gaming for the big show.

 

[Denny]

Didn’t he write a book with all sorts of directions about how and why to get the right cell counts?

Aimed at commercial brewers, as are all the AHA Ingredients series

 

[Denny]

Yea I feel the same to a point. But still, I’d rather pay the same price for double the amount.

Plus I don’t make starters to build cell counts. I just do a 1 liter starter to get the yeast pre gaming for the big show.

Exactly what I do.

 

[juggabrew]

Exactly what I do.

I actually just did the method you talk about for the first time. Shaking the crap out of the starter wort then adding yeast. I only used a 2l flask for a 1l starter and it was fine. I need to clean up yeast in my chest freezer from the blowoff.

 

[ChuckS1]

Then it's not my recipe.

So maybe I should have said, "same grains in the same percentages, same hops at the same intervals, same OG, same IBU, same SRM, same alcohol level, but a different yeast". Close enough for Goverment work, or maybe a Brulosopher experiment.

 

[JLeuck64]

My first attempt at this recipe started back on December 22nd. I hit 1.080 that day, it finished at 1.015 after about a month fermenting. A SOLID 8.5% ABV ( ; I have no complaints, except one... there are not near enough pictures in this thread to do this fine brew justice. So I aim to fix that


This home brew recipe is in a league of it's own, brewed by a commercial brewery no doubt! C'mon and share pics of your attempts!

 

[eric19312]

Aimed at commercial brewers, as are all the AHA Ingredients series

Really? Certainly these books were aggressively promoted to homebrewers. I guess anybody has a right to make a return on their investment but seems he was also part of that promote to homebrewers effort.

Actually I think his statement may be frustration about the investment he made in packaging over increasing cell counts into the package. I think it is possible that his new packs which start at 100 billion cells have as many or more viable cells at 4-6 months than the older packages which started at 150-200 billion. But nobody is posting that data so maybe not.

Really we are all still relying on microscope study he did with Jamil some 20 years ago to project viability of cell counts past packaging date. This ended up as Mr Malty calculator and likely was good predictor of WLP-001 in the old plastic test tube packages. But there are many more packages available now, and likely all have improved over time.

Maybe I’m misinterpreting your take on the subject. Is the issue that cell counts are not relevant on home brew scale or something more like the cell count formulas everyone relies on are pretty much BS except within pretty narrowly defined ranges?

 

[Denny]

Really? Certainly these books were aggressively promoted to homebrewers. I guess anybody has a right to make a return on their investment but seems he was also part of that promote to homebrewers effort.

Actually I think his statement may be frustration about the investment he made in packaging over increasing cell counts into the package. I think it is possible that his new packs which start at 100 billion cells have as many or more viable cells at 4-6 months than the older packages which started at 150-200 billion. But nobody is posting that data so maybe not.

Really we are all still relying on microscope study he did with Jamil some 20 years ago to project viability of cell counts past packaging date. This ended up as Mr Malty calculator and likely was good predictor of WLP-001 in the old plastic test tube packages. But there are many more packages available now, and likely all have improved over time.

Maybe I’m misinterpreting your take on the subject. Is the issue that cell counts are not relevant on home brew scale or something more like the cell count formulas everyone relies on are pretty much BS except within pretty narrowly defined ranges?

I assure you that homebrewers were the secondary market of those books.

The idea is that cell copunt really doesn't matter all that much for homebreweres as along you're close and in the ballpark. Due to what's been called the "nuclear effect" of yeast growth, there will be plenty of yeast in a coulpe hours after pitching. See...

https://www.experimentalbrew.com/blogs/denny/old-dognew-tricks

https://www.homebrewersassociation.org/forum/index.php?topic=24447.msg311482#msg311482

 

[eric19312]

Thanks for the response, sorry if I was a little snarky before. Enjoy your podcast and admire your contribution to the hobby.

Sounds like Brülosophy’s vitality starter is winning the day at least for typical home brew yeast packages and 5 gallon batches.

What’s your thinking on best strategy for larger batches? I’m normally at 18 gallons...3 packs all boosted with vitality starter or can I use fewer packs with that starter?

 

[Denny]

Thanks for the response, sorry if I was a little snarky before. Enjoy your podcast and admire your contribution to the hobby.

Sounds like Brülosophy’s vitality starter is winning the day at least for typical home brew yeast packages and 5 gallon batches.

What’s your thinking on best strategy for larger batches? I’m normally at 18 gallons...3 packs all boosted with vitality starter or can I use fewer packs with that starter?

OK, first, it's not "Brulosophy's vitality starter"....

for larger batches like yours, I brew a lower gravity beer first and use the slurry from it. But I admit I haven't done an 18 gal. batch, so it's kinda uncharted territory. I'd guess 2 packs in a qt. would be fine for you.

 

[TheMadKing]

Thanks for the response, sorry if I was a little snarky before. Enjoy your podcast and admire your contribution to the hobby.

Sounds like Brülosophy’s vitality starter is winning the day at least for typical home brew yeast packages and 5 gallon batches.

What’s your thinking on best strategy for larger batches? I’m normally at 18 gallons...3 packs all boosted with vitality starter or can I use fewer packs with that starter?

Just to weigh in on the vitality starter thing: it's just a rebranding of Krausening.. No different at all


Second, from my observations 90% of homebrewers leave their starters too long. The goal of a starter is to produce yeast, not ferment. So if your starter is fermenting (I.e. You see Krausen) that means you are already at (or very close to) maximum cell density. At that point you should either cold crash or pitch your starter because the only thing letting it continue will do, is to decrease overall cell health by producing more cell generations with less and less resources available.

Usually for my setup with a stir plate, that's in the 12-18 hour range before I cold crash. Then I cold crash for 2-3 days before decanting to ensure that even the most nonflocculant yeast are left behind.

 

[Denny]

Just to weigh in on the vitality starter thing: it's just a rebranding of Krausening.. No different at all


Second, from my observations 90% of homebrewers leave their starters too long. The goal of a starter is to produce yeast, not ferment. So if your starter is fermenting (I.e. You see Krausen) that means you are already at (or very close to) maximum cell density. At that point you should either cold crash or pitch your starter because the only thing letting it continue will do, is to decrease overall cell health by producing more cell generations with less and less resources available.

Usually for my setup with a stir plate, that's in the 12-18 hour range before I cold crash. Then I cold crash for 2-3 days before decanting to ensure that even the most nonflocculant yeast are left behind.

Well, not exactly like krausening.

 

[TheMadKing]

Well, not exactly like krausening.

Depends on which definition for Krausening you choose I suppose.

https://beerandbrewing.com/dictionary/oqdYkx8Usd/

This definitely fits the bill of a vitality starter. Pitching actively fermenting wort into fresh wort to induce fermentation. How you produced your actively fermenting wort doesn't seem terribly consequential to me

Also, Denny you keep popping up on my Facebook friend suggestions for some reason. I must be brewing too much

[emoji482]

 

[eric19312]

Depends on which definition for Krausening you choose I suppose.

https://beerandbrewing.com/dictionary/oqdYkx8Usd/

This definitely fits the bill of a vitality starter. Pitching actively fermenting wort into fresh wort to induce fermentation. How you produced your actively fermenting wort doesn't seem terribly consequential to me

Also, Denny you keep popping up on my Facebook friend suggestions for some reason. I must be brewing too much

[emoji482]

I’m surprised by that definition but understand your previous statement now.

Also...
I called it the Brülosophy vitality starter because they introduced the concept to me. Doing some more digging on their site Marshal claims he got the idea from Colin Kaminski who told him it was based on process developed at Coors England that would be “perfect for home brewers”.

 

[juggabrew]

Dry hopped this brew w/ 2oz Columbus in corny. Deciding to leave while serving or transfer off hops...

I’m leaning towards leaving on due to baby duty and being lazy.

 

[eric19312]

Dry hopped this brew w/ 2oz Columbus in corny. Deciding to leave while serving or transfer off hops...

I’m leaning towards leaving on due to baby duty and being lazy.

Leave it in if you don’t expect the keg to last more than say a month.

 

[Denny]

Leave it in if you don’t expect the keg to last more than say a month.

I've gone 2-3 months with no problem

 

[JohnnyJohnJohns]

Kegged with dry hopsoods last night, so sneaky sample this evening. Really nice beer! I did a 2 gallon batch and used US-05 and hallertaur.

Really nice beer, I think I ended up fairly close to the recipe in terms of numbers. It's a well balanced beer, good bitterness and a nice mix of hops and malt to balance it out. Next time I might lower the bitterness a bit but that's about it.

 

[scottsteenburg]

I'm gearing up to make this one. What's a good water profile for this brew? Ca 100 Cl 50 SO4 300 ????
Thanks!

 

[Denny]

I'm gearing up to make this one. What's a good water profile for this brew? Ca 100 Cl 50 SO4 300 ????
Thanks!

It's this, plus a tsp. of gypsum in the boil. I started making this beer before I ever did much with water. It turned out so well I didn't see any reason to do more.

pH 7.4
Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) Est 164
Electrical Conductivity, mmho/cm 0.27
Cations / Anions, me/L 2.8 / 2.7
ppm
Sodium, Na 11
Potassium, K 2
Calcium, Ca 34
Magnesium, Mg 7
Total Hardness, CaCO3 114
Nitrate, NO3-N < 0.1 (SAFE)
Sulfate, SO4-S 19
Chloride, Cl 3
Carbonate, CO3 < 1
Bicarbonate, HCO3 90
Total Alkalinity, CaCO3 74

 

[trevelynzx]

I just brewed up my second batch of this today and felt like I was visiting an old friend. This is by far the pinnacle of my brewing career and the best recipe I have ever brewed. Granted I’ve made a bunch of mistakes on other really good recipes, but this one even at 80% correct is just an astoundingly tasty beer.

SWMBO says this will need to stay on draft @ all times. Completely agree.

 

[trevelynzx]

Here’s to Denny.