Dry hopping imperial pale ale

[MMachulsky]

I recently racked a brewer's best imperial pale ale into a secondary because I'm considering dry hopping. I sampled when taking my gravity reading and it tastes great. Part of me thinks "if its not broke don't fix it" but the hop head in me thinks throw some extra hops in even just for aroma. I'd appreciate anyone's thoughts especially if they have brewed this kit before.

Cheers!

 

[JefeTheVol]

Yes...dry hop it! At least 2 oz for a beer like an IIPA

 

[scottland]

Yes. Please, dry hop. 2-4 ounces of hops. Without looking at the recipe it's tough to guess what hops to use, but: Centennial, Amarillo, Cascade, Columbus, or Simcoe are good choices for that style.

 

[unionrdr]

I used 4.5oz of Columbus,Nugget,& Cascade in my IPA. I'll be dry hoping with the remaining .5oz of each. I'd rather have had Sorachie Ace in place of the nugget,but JW Dover (my LHBS) never heard of it. It's lemon flavor/aroma qualities would've been a perfect fit. Next crop,I'm getting a but load of it for my future IPA's.

 

[norsk]

Well...if you like the taste as it is....

I bottled an IIPA a week ago which I dry hopped for close to three weeks with an oz each of Simcoe, Cascade, and Columbus. Amazing so far after 1 week....

 

[terrapinj]

keep in mind that the hop aroma will fade in time as well - so good aroma now may not be as strong in ~ 3weeks after its conditioned and carbonated

plus IMO you can't have too much hop aroma in an IIPA

 

[usafbeach]

I have this in my primary now, been in there close to two weeks. Smells great.

The kit provided three packets of Columbus hops, one for bittering, one for flavor and one for aroma. I can't recall the exact amounts in each.

 

[Big_Belgian]

I don't know what an imperial pale ale is exactly, but I think if you dry hop it you've probably got yourself an IPA. I'm not hung up on the BJCP or anything, just making an observation - and agree with the others that you should go ahead and do it if you like the hop aroma. I don't think dry hopping an ounce or two could hurt, assuming you've got a good aromatic hop that you like.

 

[MMachulsky]

You make a good point Big Belgian. I suppose I would be getting away from the original style. I think I'm going to go ahead and dryhop anyway. I'm brewing a batch for my brother and dad and they both enjoy hoppy beers (as do I and i'll be keeping a third of this batch). I'll be stopping by my LHBS so i'll pick up some hops to their liking (depending upon availability). Thanks for the discussion. I always enjoy listening to other brewers insights. Cheers!

 

[NordeastBrewer77]

Dry hop it with more Columbus and/or another of the big C hops. You'll not regret it!! As for dry hop time, IMO, over ten days and you'll start to get a noticeable grassy aroma. It's not bad, but it can start to overpower the nice citrus aromas you get from the C hops. I've found I get a nice citrus/pine type aroma without the grassy vegetive aroma from 5-7 days contact time.

 

[MMachulsky]

Thanks again. I'm going to pick up some hops this Saturday, dry hop Sunday, and probably bottle the following weekend. Getting excited about this batch!

 

[Thehopguy]

I just gravity tested my first beer last night and had the same exact thoughts. It tasted GREAT. My plan was to dryhop all along but I considered the same thing as u. I thought it tastes so damn good, part of me said don't mess with it. But, the hophead in me says more aroma! So im dryhopping it