Specialty IPA: Red IPA India Red Ale

[BOYDBrew]

Tim,

Have you had good results swapping pale malt for Marris Otter?
I really liked what I made a year ago but the hop schedule was different (cent,Amarillo, cent)
I got a hold of simcoe and Amarillo today so I'm going to brew again this weekend.
I'm kind of a hop head and can't wait to drink it, but just wanted to see if you would suggest going with MO. Thanks again El duderino

 

[TimBrewz]

MO is a good choice. Might want to split the basemalt with 1/2 pale and 1/2 MO, then the munich? Then again if you want more bready/biscuity overtones, go with the MO. I use Fawcett and Sons MO and Crisp a lot and really like them both. Go for it.

Happy Mashin!

 

[D_Nyholm]

Decided I wanted a chill Fathers Day so I am going to brew this while the kids are napping. Should be a great day. Breakfast in the morning, pool in the late morning, brewing in the early afternoon, then crab/clambake in the evening with a nice homebrew and a carboy full of IRA! I'm excited for this one!

 

[doublehaul]

Hi what Final Gravity are you getting with both versions? Which version is most everyone brewing (and raving about)? Isn't that a ton of Munich? Sounds like a great couple of recipes - thanks!

 

[TimBrewz]

Hi what Final Gravity are you getting with both versions? Which version is most everyone brewing (and raving about)? Isn't that a ton of Munich? Sounds like a great couple of recipes - thanks!

Hey Doublehaul, nice name by the way. Got to get out fishing soon .

So I think I am the only one to brew the lighter version. I got 1.014 or so on the lighter version and I get 1.016 on the regular recipe. Yes a lot of Munich, but if you read through this thread I don't think you will find any issues with the base malt bill. It makes a complex and in my opinion, unique beer that can stand up to heavy hopping. I would do the original recipe and tweak as desired from there. We have been tinkering with almost every aspect of the recipe over the last 3 years. What had been very gratifying is that almost every brewer loves the original.

Cheers, Tim

 

[doublehaul]

Hey Doublehaul, nice name by the way. Got to get out fishing soon .

So I think I am the only one to brew the lighter version. I got 1.014 or so on the lighter version and I get 1.016 on the regular recipe. Yes a lot of Munich, but if you read through this thread I don't think you will find any issues with the base malt bill. It makes a complex and in my opinion, unique beer that can stand up to heavy hopping. I would do the original recipe and tweak as desired from there. We have been tinkering with almost every aspect of the recipe over the last 3 years. What had been very gratifying is that almost every brewer loves the original.

Cheers, Tim

Great - thanks for the reply. I think this'll be my next brew - but I'd rather not buy any hops since I have a pile of them - Citra, Columbus, Belma, Apollo, some older Chinook. Any suggestions with those hops? I wouldn't be apposed to buying amarillo though.

 

[TimBrewz]

Columbus or Apollo for bittering
Columbus at 30
Citra at 5

 

[doublehaul]

Columbus or Apollo for bittering
Columbus at 30
Citra at 5

Think that would be as good as Simcoe cascade and Amarillo?

 

[DustBow]

that's all personal preference

 

[D_Nyholm]

Brewed this up tonight and hit my numbers very close. Got about 5.75 gallons of 1.064 wort since i was planning on losing a little more to trub with this (finer crush on the mill), so ended up at about 78% efficiency. Looks like it worked for me. Followed the hope schedule exactly but decided to use 5 oz of C120 and 12 oz of C40 to get the sweetness the judges were complaining about. Can't wait to try it out!! Thanks for the recipe!

 

[TimBrewz]

Think that would be as good as Simcoe cascade and Amarillo?

As stated, personal preference. My personal preferences are always toward smooth bitterness and huge aroma. If you like the aroma of your hops in combination, go for it.

"As good as Simcoe, Cascade and Amarillo?" Not in my opinion, but I have an unhealthy affection for Simcoe and Amarillo

 

[doublehaul]

Well lets put it this way - do you think the apollo/citra/ctz combo will be tasty with this malt bill? Here's what I'm thinking so far how does this look?

Amount Variety Time AA IBU Type Use
1 oz Apollo 60 min 12.7 42.5 Leaf/Whole Boil
0.5 oz Columbus 30 min 15 19.29 Leaf/Whole Boil
1 oz Citra 5 min 14 9.34 Leaf/Whole Boil
0.75 oz Citra 7 days 14 Leaf/Whole Dry Hop
0.25 oz Columbus 7 days 15 Leaf/Whole Dry Hop

I could definitely buy a few ozs of something else too if it would make it better. Can i ask why the 30 minute addition? I read where you moved this to 20 for one batch too so was just curious. Thanks

 

[TimBrewz]

The original recipe in Radical Brewing called for Cascade at 60 and 30 , then EKG at 5. I simply replaced that hop bill with Simcoe, Amarillo and cascade. I have moved the 30 minute addition to 20 or 15 for most of my iterations of this beer. So I find 20 min for the second addition makes for a more hop flavored beer. Just shoot for about 70-75 IBU. I would lean on the later additions for your IBUs: less Apollo at 60, more columbus and citra. Since I started brewing this beer, I have played around with lots of late hopping on IPAs. I tend to now lean towards getting at least 1/2 the IBUs from the last 20 minutes of the boil. The hops just pop so much more this way.

As for the hop bill, it looks tasty. I have never blended Citra with Columbus, but like them both. I would be very happy if you brewed this and let us all know what its like. At worst, its a solid beer in my opinion. At best it could be a top notch ale.

Hope this helps,

Tim

 

[doublehaul]

Awesome info, I am glad I asked- thanks! I will definitely report back but it will be a couple weeks

 

[TimBrewz]

Also, I would increase the dry hops to at least 2 oz total.

 

[D_Nyholm]

What would you think about doing half the recipe amount for dry hops for a week and then when I tap the keg, using the remainder to dry hop in the keg? I always like a keg dry hop since it tends to last longer but unfortunately it doesn't give that radical hop aroma as a typical dry hop.

I am basically looking for a way to keep the aroma for a long period as I won't tap the keg for a while and have a few other kegs I am working through at the moment.

 

[TimBrewz]

That is a good plan. I often split my dry hops: 1/2 in primary at end of active fermentation for 5-7 days, then bag the rest and keg them.

 

[D_Nyholm]

After 8 days fermenting at 64, I am at 1.020. I ended up mashing a little high (154) but I am hoping to get a few more points out of it. Raising the temp to 68 and roused the yeast. Tasted my hydrometer sample and it has a really smooth bitterness, not what I would expect from 70+ IBU. It is also a little sweet, but tasty. If the gravity doesn't drop, I think I will just dry hop the crap out of it to add some perceived bitterness and aroma to cover up some of the sweetness.

 

[TimBrewz]

Give it another week. Warming is good. American Ale yeast can be slow in low 60s.

 

[jwolf99]

So after 3 weeks of bottle conditioning, I'd like to report that this came out great. Started at 1.060 and got it down to 1.014 within 10 days using Wyeast 1056 at a constant temperature of 68 degrees. A little bit on the darker side in comparison to pics others posted, but definitely my best tasting brew yet. Thanks to Tim for the great recipe and others who provided input and advice.

 

[BOYDBrew]

Tim,

Does this brew ferment out fairly quick?
My batch fermented out to 1.010 today(3rd day of fermentation.
OG was 1.056

 

[TimBrewz]

Tim,

Does this brew ferment out fairly quick?
My batch fermented out to 1.010 today(3rd day of fermentation.
OG was 1.056

Hey BOYD, I do not think there is anything about this recipe that would ferment out any quicker than other moderate gravity ales. Your 1.056 OG, is significantly lower than the 1.064 range for the original recipe. Did you do the original recipe? Miss your gravity a bit?

If you pitch an adequate quantity of healthy yeast, aerated/oxygentated well and kept in optimal temp range, then a 3 day ferment seems quick, but not that uncommon. I have had beers, especially ones I pitched a lot of active yeast on be done in 3 days.

If it tastes a bit estery (Belgian-like) then the fermentation temp may have gotten a bit high. Higher temps lead to quicker fermentations. Though, again it is totally plausible that you just created the perfect conditions for a healthy, fast fermentation. Just be sure to let the yeast have a few more days to drop out and clean up.

Sounds like you have a light bodied, hoppy red ale for summer

Let us know how it turns out.

Tim

 

[TimBrewz]

So after 3 weeks of bottle conditioning, I'd like to report that this came out great. Started at 1.060 and got it down to 1.014 within 10 days using Wyeast 1056 at a constant temperature of 68 degrees. A little bit on the darker side in comparison to pics others posted, but definitely my best tasting brew yet. Thanks to Tim for the great recipe and others who provided input and advice.

Awesome! Thanks for sharing

 

[BOYDBrew]

Hey BOYD, I do not think there is anything about this recipe that would ferment out any quicker than other moderate gravity ales. Your 1.056 OG, is significantly lower than the 1.064 range for the original recipe. Did you do the original recipe? Miss your gravity a bit?

If you pitch an adequate quantity of healthy yeast, aerated/oxygentated well and kept in optimal temp range, then a 3 day ferment seems quick, but not that uncommon. I have had beers, especially ones I pitched a lot of active yeast on be done in 3 days.

If it tastes a bit estery (Belgian-like) then the fermentation temp may have gotten a bit high. Higher temps lead to quicker fermentations. Though, again it is totally plausible that you just created the perfect conditions for a healthy, fast fermentation. Just be sure to let the yeast have a few more days to drop out and clean up.

Sounds like you have a light bodied, hoppy red ale for summer

Let us know how it turns out.

Tim

I did alter it slightly... But all I did was add some carapils!!! I'm surprised I didn't hit my OG numbers... Cause I hit all of my temps etc etc...
However when I brewed this recipe last year it was around same OG and FG and came out good... Just wasn't hoppy enough for me ( I had to use centennial and Amarillo)...
This is by far my favorite recipe I've brewed thus far and I hope it comes out a nice hoppy red
P.s. I did get a wiff of it yesterday and it smells delicious!!!!

 

[D_Nyholm]

Mine only dropped to 1.018 when I heated it to 70. Started the dry hop on Sunday with the full recipe amounts and had a small taste. Wow it was good! Almost like a lagunitas sucks brown shugga. It just doesn't have the spicy taste. I can't
imagine how much better this will get with some carbonation and maybe some fresh dry hopping in the keg! This is going to be one awesome beer!

 

[doublehaul]

I brewed this today and I am baffled.

I scaled the recipe (I thought) for 70% efficiency and here's what I had -

7 lb 2 row
5.35 lb munich
.75 lb c-40
.5 lb c-75 with a touch of c-120 (didn't have c-90)
1 oz black malt.

my calculations:

1.048 pre-boil (with 7 gallons)
1.060 og at 5.5 gallons.

Actual:
1.076 pre-boil - 7 gallons
1.084 og (still racking to fermenter)

I checked that my sample was 70F with 2 thermometers, ran to the brew store and bought another hydrometer because it couldn't be right, but both hyrdrometers give the same readings. Even took a second sample.

I don't even see how this is possible??! Would appreciate some input.

Here's my hop bill by the way:

.5oz apollo @ 60
.75oz Columbus @ 15
1 oz Citra @ 5
1 oz Columbus @ 0
1 oz Citra @ 0
.25 oz Apollo @ 0

Still planning dry hops.

 

[TimBrewz]

Wow, either you got crazy efficiency or you have more grain than you thought. Sounds like you have an imperial amber ale I would make sure you aerate well to get it some what dry and dryhop it heavily.

p.s. I had a beer hit 92% efficiency once after I dialed my grain mill too tight, let it mash for 90 minutes and had a stuck mash, when I finally get the wort running my 1.062 IPA was at 1.075

best luck!
Tim

 

[doublehaul]

I must have gotten more grain, I'm pretty consistent at 70% efficiency. I think I've got 75% a few times but this would be like 97%! I did have a really slow sparge, almost stuck and mashed for 70 minutes. Hopefully 2 packs s05 will dry it out enough.

 

[DustBow]

always better too high than too low

 

[doublehaul]

Yep - unless you're talking Final gravity! Any advice on copious dry-hopping given my above post? Obviously I'l be using Citra and Columbus, and I was thinking 2 additions. Just not sure if I should do 1 oz of each twice, or something like that. (I actually threw in .25oz apollo at flameout too).