Help with Imp Red Ale recipe!

[krugulitis]

I am putting the finishing touches on a recipe for a massive, hoptastic Imperial Red Ale (similar to Ballast Point's tongue buckler) and I wanted to get some feedback. I have some concerns on whether I will produce the brilliant red color that I desire. Any and all feedback, criticism, and advice is welcome! Thanks in advance!

Malt and Fermentables

% LB OZ Malt or Fermentable ppg °L
51% 7 00 Light Dry Malt Extract 45 08
29% 4 00 British Pale (Maris Otter) 37 03
07% 1 00 Munich Malt - 10L 35 10
06% 0 12 American Crystal 40L 34 40
04% 0 08 Victory Malt 34 25
02% 0 04 American Crystal 120L 34 120
01% 0 02 Roasted Barley 25 300

Batch size: 5.0 gallons

Original Gravity
1.098
(1.088 to 1.102)
Final Gravity
1.024
(1.021 to 1.025)
Color
17° SRM
Mash Efficiency
75%

Hops
time oz variety form aa
Boil 60 mins 2.5 Chinook pellet 11.4
Boil 10 mins 3.5 Chinook pellet 11.4
Boil 01 mins 1.0 Simcoe pellet 13.0
Boil 01 mins 1.0 Centennial pellet 10.0

Dry hop 7 days 1.0 Centennial pellet 10.0
Dry hop 7 days 1.0 Simcoe pellet 13.0

Bitterness
28.5 HBU
92.7 IBU
ƒ: Average
BU:GU
0.95

Boil: 3.0 avg gallons for 60 minutes

yeast
White Labs California Ale (WLP001)

Alcohol
9.9% A.B.V.
7.6% A.B.W.

 

[Grizzlybrew]

I've got an imperial red on deck (going to model after Lagunitas). When I looked at a couple of clones and other imperial reds, they had no 60 min hop addition, but twice as much in the last 30. I think I'm going to try something like that. Probably a 60 min boil to reach volume, but like in the case of your recipe, what if you took the chinook at 60 and at 10 and put both in at 30?...

Or, FWH the first chinook, you'd only lose maybe 7-9 IBU's, but may be able to pull out some of that flavor/aroma from the 60 min.

Also, why the MO? If you're using DME, why not just use American 2-row? Color? In that grain bill with the aggressive hopping, I'm not sure you would notice the difference in flavor, but might save a few pennies with domestic malt.

Overall, looks pretty good.

 

[brewt00l]

I've done a few big hoppy reds and my most recent was definitely my favorite to date. The recipe is AG but it might point out some differences to consider. Loads of hop flavor from this one and a really nice malt profile:

Size: 5.42 gal
Efficiency: 77.0%
Attenuation: 75.0%
Calories: 221.22 kcal per 12.0 fl oz

Original Gravity: 1.066 (1.056 - 1.075)
Terminal Gravity: 1.017 (1.010 - 1.018)
Color: 15.72 (6.0 - 15.0)
Alcohol: 6.54% (5.5% - 7.5%)
Bitterness: 63.1 (40.0 - 70.0)

Ingredients:
5 lb Maris Otter Pale Ale Malt
5 lb Munich 10L Malt
1 lb Carared®
.75 lb Caramel Malt 40L
.25 lb Caramel Malt 120L
1 lb White Table Sugar (Sucrose)
1 oz Centennial (9.0%) - added first wort, boiled 60 min
1 ea Whirlfloc Tablets (Irish moss) - added during boil, boiled 15 min
2.5 oz Centennial (9.0%) - added during boil, boiled 5 min
1.5 oz Centennial (9.0%) - added during boil, boiled 0 min
.8 oz Centennial (9.0%) - added dry to secondary fermenter
1.0 ea White Labs WLP013 London Ale

 

[krugulitis]

Not a big fan of putting hops in at 30 minutes. Seems like a waste of money. I doubt you will get flavor from an addition that long, and for half as many hops you can get the same bitterness at 60 minutes. I am a big fan of late hop additions, but anything longer than 15 minutes or so in the boil and the hops begin to lose all flavor from my experience. So if you want bitterness, or need to up the ibu's i just throw in less at 60 minutes.

Good advice on the FWH - I may just do that. Also, I love Maris Otter and I already have some so that is why I was planning on using it, but you are probably right about there not really being much of a difference given how aggressively I am hopping the beer. Nice feedback either way.