Feedback on "Semi-Hazy" IPA Recipe

[IrondaleBrewing]

I'm drinking my first pint of this one now but absent sending everyone a bottle I'd love to get some feedback from more experienced brewers than myself on this recipe since it's my first shot at it, and I suppose it's good that I can share some tasting notes to see what tweaks people might have for next time.

I won't say I wanted to clone it per se, but the inspiration for this batch was Deschutes Cosmic Creatures, which to my palate is kind of a hybrid East Coast/West Coast IPA in that it has a lot of tropical fruit aroma and flavor, but the drier/crisper mouthfeel and some pine/resin hop qualities of a West Coast IPA.

Here's the recipe I used for the first batch (2.5 gal, 30 min boil):

• 4 lb 6 oz (88.6%) Rahr 2-Row
• 9 oz (11.4%) Briess White Wheat
• Mash: 60 min @ 152 F
• Hops:
  • 0.38 oz Citra - 30 min (24.1 IBU)
  • 0.38 oz El Dorado - 15 min (14.8 IBU)
  • 0.38 oz Strata - 7 min (8.2 IBU)
  • 0.5 oz Simcoe - 2 min (3.6 IBU)
• Lallemand BRY-97 Yeast - 14 days @ 68 F
• Dry hop - 5 days:
  • 0.5 oz Citra
  • 0.5 oz El Dorado
  • 0.5 oz Mosaic
• Water profile: started with distilled water and used Brewfather's "hoppy" profile as the target

Here's a photo (apologies for drinking some first!):

I'm really happy with the nice light color and slight haze from the white wheat, the aroma is pretty fantastic -- lots of citrus and tropical fruit -- and the flavor is pretty darn good too, with citrus, tropical fruit, and some strawberry and pine in the finish.

So I'm in the ballpark of what I was shooting for, which I was happy with for a first run at this recipe.

Now that I've tasted it I think what I'd change next time is the pine bite is maybe a bit strong and there's almost a little spice note to the more "old school IPA" bitterness, and it's maybe just a tad on the sweet side in the finish so I might do a bit lower mash temp next time, but if others see stuff going on with the recipe that might contribute to any sweetness I'd love to hear your insights. (It honestly might just be the Strata strawberry notes in the finish I'm tasting; tough to tell).

Anyway, I'd love to hear feedback on the recipe based on the goal of having a hybrid IPA but maybe reducing the piney bitterness a bit, but honestly anything like different hop combos that might work better, adjustments to the grain bill, or whatever other ideas/feedback anyone might have on this recipe, I'd be very appreciative.

Thanks for any input anyone has!

Thanks,
Matt

 

[Jag75]

Hey Matt , it looks like you got what you wanted , congrats on that . If your wanting a little less piney my suggestions would be to eliminate the simcoe. I'd also suggest doing a whirlpool under 180f.

Maybe toss in some Munich . What was your OG - FG?

 

[IrondaleBrewing]

Hey Matt , it looks like you got what you wanted , congrats on that . If your wanting a little less piney my suggestions would be to eliminate the simcoe. I'd also suggest doing a whirlpool under 180f.

Maybe toss in some Munich . What was your OG - FG?

Thanks for the suggestions! OG was 1.054, FG was 1.008.

Coincidentally I had a West Coast Pilsner from a brewery out of Lakewood, CO last night that had Strata as the primary hop, so now I know where the spice I'm tasting is coming from. It adds an interesting note and is growing on me, I might just tone it down slightly next time.

 

[IrondaleBrewing]

Thanks for the suggestions! OG was 1.054, FG was 1.008.

Coincidentally I had a West Coast Pilsner from a brewery out of Lakewood, CO last night that had Strata as the primary hop, so now I know where the spice I'm tasting is coming from. It adds an interesting note and is growing on me, I might just tone it down slightly next time.

Sorry, accidentally hit post on my phone before I finished.

I really appreciate the suggestions, particularly adding Munich for a bit more maltiness and especially a hint of orange to the color; seems like that could amp things up in a nice way.

Thanks again for the feedback!