Help me with the hop schedule for an IIPA

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chemnitz

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I’m a newbie brewer, and I’m planning to brew an American Imperial IPA soon. I’ve devised my own recipe based on a handful of examples. For the hops, I have an unopened 1 lb. bag of Amarillo Gold (7.5% AAU) that I’m dying to try out. I don’t know exactly how to set up the hop schedule, but I know that I want to emphasize hop flavor and aroma rather than pure bitterness. IBUs in the upper 70s to mid 80s sounds about right. I’m hoping to give it just a bit of a Belgian twist by cooking sugar with a little yeast nutrient until it turns a light amber color, as in this thread:
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f12/20-lb-sugar-jar-yeast-nutrient-114837/

Here is the recipe that I’m kicking around at the moment:

De Duabus Naturis
5 gallons

7 lb. extra light DME (half as a late addition)
1 lb. Crystal 40L
2 lb. home-cooked sugar (light amber)

1.75 oz. Amarillo @ 60
2 oz. Amarillo @ 20
2.25 oz. Amarillo @ flameout
2.5 oz. Amarillo – dry hop

1 Whirlfloc Tablet @15

Yeast: Nottingham (or Scottish Ale??)

OG: 1.077
Color: 10 SRM
IBU: 85
ABV: 7.7%

I have two questions:

1. What do you recommend for a hop schedule? Will the above accomplish my goal of a full Amarillo flavor and aroma without ridiculous bitterness? Is there any merit to doing small additions throughout the boil? More late additions? Something else?

2. What yeast would be good for this beer? On hand, I have two packets of Nottingham. Also, in a few days, I will have a nice yeast cake from a Scottish 80/ (Wyeast Labs #1728). If the Scottish one would turn out okay, it would be easier to just use that. Otherwise, is the Notty a good choice?
 
That looks like a pretty reasonable hop bill to me. I wouldnt hold my breath for any belgian-y flavors from the sugar, as it will be pretty overwhelmed by the hops in an IIPA. Most of the character in belgian brews comes from the yeast. The sugar they use will serve to dry the beer out. I use a lb of sugar or more in most of my bigger brews to help dry it out as well, so I think thats a fine idea. Kudos to you to making your own candi sugar as well.
 
Thanks, that is helpful.

Does anyone have anything to say about the yeast question? Or further opinions about the hop schedule?
 
I used Notty in IIPA, and it came out pretty nice. The only thing I don't like is that it doesn't seem to flocculate very well. I'm gonna give US05 a try next time.
 
I would recommend using a clean American style yeast for an American IIPA. You never know and may stumble on something nice but I would play it safe and rely on the hops in this one and ferment cool with a neutral yeast that supports hop character. As far as the hop schedule goes I would keep most of the hops at the end as you have but maybe diversify. Of course using all Amarillo will give you a sweet Amarillo character but I've found that Amarillo works very well with Simcoe and I actually have a very nice IPA with those two and Centennial.
 
I would recommend a yeast which better supports the hop flavors. WLP-001 is a great choice. The english ale yeasts will produce a drier beer and usually accentuate malt character more...

As for hop schedule, I love Amarillo, Centennial, Cascade, etc. However, my 1st AG beer was an all Centennial SMaSH, and these strong citrusy hops can be a tad overwhelming when used as both bittering and aroma hops.

I just did my Speedbump IPA using a lot of Amarillo hops, but bittered with Nugget & Mt. Hood. Personally, I think a traditional bittering hop for the 60 min addition would be great! (Columbus, Warrior, Simcoe, etc.)

That being said, my Centennial hop-fest mellowed out some over a few months, but had a decidedly tangerine flavor throughout...

Good luck!
--LexusChris
 
Thanks for the advice. I think that I'm going to stick with all-Amarillo hops. I'm still developing my hops palate, and I think that this will help me to discern their unique flavor. I'll find a nice, clean yeast to complement the strong hops flavor.
 
I use US-05 in nearly all of my IPA and IIPAs. I have found through experimentation, that I like 05 better than Nottingham, and given the trouble so many have had lately with Nottingham, I will steer clear for a while.
 
I would recommend a yeast which better supports the hop flavors. WLP-001 is a great choice. The english ale yeasts will produce a drier beer and usually accentuate malt character more...

This seems contradictory to me. I thought most english strains were lower attenuating than WLP-001, perhaps with the exception of Nottingham or some of the old ale strains? And I think a highly attenuated dry beer will accentuate hop or yeast flavor, not malt. But then again, I could be completely wrong.
 
This seems contradictory to me. I thought most english strains were lower attenuating than WLP-001, perhaps with the exception of Nottingham or some of the old ale strains? And I think a highly attenuated dry beer will accentuate hop or yeast flavor, not malt. But then again, I could be completely wrong.

I'd agree, english strains tend to bring out the maltiness and mask the hop character. I don't recall them as being dry but it's been a while. I tried using White labs english strains(WLP-002 & 007) in my first few Pale Ales, and they came out Malt forward, which is not what I was going for. It's not a bad thing, just not right for beers that revolve around hops.
 
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