First batch please advise: American Pale Ale

[MikeSkril]

Still figuring out which should be my first batch.
I wanted to make a strong Belgian but I don’t want do a starter and wait much longer before being able to taste at my very first batch.

Now I'm going in the direction American Pale Ale. I looked at the Brewers Best receipt but added 1LB fermentables to get the ABV a little up.

Please let me know what you think about that. Will this yeast still be ok with a little higher ABV?

Thanks!

Brew Method: Extract
Style Name: American Pale Ale
Boil Time: 60 min
Batch Size: 5 gallons (fermentor volume)
Boil Size: 3 gallons
Boil Gravity: 1.095
Efficiency: 35% (steeping grains only)

STATS:
Original Gravity: 1.057
Final Gravity: 1.013
ABV (standard): 5.77%
IBU (tinseth): 35.97
SRM (morey): 7.28

FERMENTABLES:
3.3 lb - Liquid Malt Extract - Light (38.4%) Boil 60 min
3.3 lb - Liquid Malt Extract - Light (38.4%) Boil 20 min
1 lb - Dry Malt Extract - Light (11.6%)	   Boil 60 min	

STEEPING GRAINS:
1 lb - American - Caramel / Crystal 20L (11.6%)

HOPS:
2 oz - Cascade, Type: Pellet, AA: 6, Use: Boil for 60 min, IBU: 30.42
1 oz - Citra, Type: Pellet, AA: 11, Use: Boil for 5 min, IBU: 5.56

YEAST:
Danstar - Nottingham Ale Yeast
Starter: No
Form: Dry
Attenuation (avg): 77%
Flocculation: High
Optimum Temp: 57 - 70 F

 

[flars]

Looks good. An 11 gram pack of Nottingham will handle the beer, if you rehydrate. Ferment 60° to 62° for a clean taste. Nottingham yeast can have some funky flavors if it is fermented to warm.

 

[WayFrae]

It looks good to me. I would take an ounce from your bittering addition and add it at flameout. I would also dry hop this beer with at least 2 oz but preferably 4 oz. I love a ton of hop aroma in my pales though.

I love Nottingham yeast. I prefer to ferment Nottingham at 55°F to keep it super clean tasting.

 

[flars]

Just thought I would add these two sites. You can compare your recipe to the style.
http://www.lubberwortbrewing.com/ I haven't used this new tool yet.
https://www.brewtoad.com/recipes/new I have been using this one.

 

[MikeSkril]

Nottingham yeast can have some funky flavors if it is fermented to warm.

Oh, I'm up in Quebec...no fear that it will get too hot.

 

[MikeSkril]

I would also dry hop this beer with at least 2 oz but preferably 4 oz.

I guess I can try hop in primary after fermentation has been finished, right? Which hops would you use?

 

[WayFrae]

I guess I can try hop in primary after fermentation has been finished, right? Which hops would you use?

Yep I always dry hop in primary. I absolutely love dry hopping with Citra. It can get expensive but is totally worth it.

 

[MikeSkril]

So I just drop 2oz into the hole where the airlock normally sits (making sure that all is sanitized)? Will hop pose an infection risk? How long does it have to stay in there?

 

[WayFrae]

So I just drop 2oz into the hole where the airlock normally sits (making sure that all is sanitized)? Will hop pose an infection risk? How long does it have to stay in there?

So after 1-2 weeks in primary, after fermentation is complete and the beer has cleared quite a bit, you just dump your hops right in the carboy. Hops are a natural preservative so you don't need to worry about infecting the beer with hops. I prefer to dry hop for 5-7 days.

 

[btbnl]

If you don't want to make a starter, you could still do your strong Belgian and just buy extra yeast.

 

[MikeSkril]

If you don't want to make a starter, you could still do your strong Belgian and just buy extra yeast.

Thats right but I'm afraid not being able to wait for aging after brewing my first beer.

 

[madscientist451]

The recipe looks good. If you want to get more experience making beer, then make a lot of brews. One way to do this is to cut your recipe in half and do a 3 gallon batch with a full wort boil. You can experiment more and if you don't like the beer you aren't stuck with 5 gallons of it.
Once you make 15 or 20 brews you can dial in a few favorite recipes and then increase volume from there. Keep good notes on brewing day and through the fermentation process so you can go back and repeat what you did right.

 

[MikeSkril]

Why does late extract addition change the IBU? I checked my recipe and realised that if I add half of the LME late, my IBU changes from 36 to 50. Why is that?

 

[flars]

I have had the same problem with an American amber ale. The late extract addition did seem to increase the hop bitterness and decrease the perceived malts.
Bitterness extraction has been based on wort gravity, boil time, and of lesser impact the boil intensity. Lower gravity worts, because of less sugars, will allow a greater percentage of hop oils to be isomerized. Longer boil times will also increase the hop oil isomerization.

http://realbeer.com/hops/research.html

I've been considering changes for the amber ale. Going back to full extract addition at the beginning of the boil, resulting in a darker beer, which had a very good flavor/bitterness balance that I liked.
OR
Experiment with boil time, with late extract addition, to achieve the same bitterness/flavor balance that I enjoyed and a lighter colored beer.

Full extract addition and a darker amber ale, for me, has less risk for having a very palatable beer in the end.

 

[MikeSkril]

Thanks! Clear now.

 

[MikeSkril]

I opened a new Thread for the pitch rate question.

 

[MikeSkril]

I added some dry hops to the recipe. Would you mind having a look at it?
I've got the ingredients already, so a big change wont be possible.

But I have a spare once of Citra which I could add (or keep for later).