Is this IPA too dark?

[smata67]

Beersmith has color at 17.5 srm. This is the predicted color, which looks fairly close to how it came out.

 

[deeve007]

Yep, looks like it was a red IPA rather than a more standard IPA, so all good (aside from me double checking next time I buy a recipe kit!).

Though I may start to put together my own recipes now, pretty sure I can find a "simply, classic IPA" recipe somewhere to brew next time... well, next next time, my actual next time will be a sour, simple recipe posted elsewhere...

 

[smata67]

Beersmith is a great tool for putting together your own recipes. You can get it (the older version 2) right now for $18 from Atlantic Brew Supply (link provided) or spring for the latest version (3) from the Beersmith website which is on sale right now for $28. I'm using some old DOS version, but it still gives great results.

https://www.atlanticbrewsupply.com/BeerSmith-2-Activation-Key-LEGACY_p_532.html

Oooops! Out of Stock on version 2. Definitely worth the $28 for version 3, though.

 

[deeve007]

Gonna go with some other peep's recipes first until I get a little more experience under my belt, a few good ones on this site I've found.

I also have a mate who runs this business: https://smallbatchbrew.com.au
All the recipes are his so I can ask for a few from him too...

 

[deeve007]

So tasting my first bottle (decent carbonation after a week), I would actually describe it more as an Amber Ale than an IPA, red or otherwise (though dry & a little hoppy, which I guess is the IPA aspect coming through), which from a little googling seems common for this style: "Previously might have been a sub-genre of American Amber Ales or Double Red Ales..."
http://www.bjcp.org/style/2015/21/21B/specialty-ipa-red-ipa/

So it's definitely not the recipe I thought I had purchased, but that seems an error either I made or the people who sold me the recipe, but for an "amber ale" type beer it's extremely drinkable. Seems I'm getting the basics of brewing down, just gotta learn more about the recipes, grains & hops combos now...

Will post a photo when it's daytime/daylight... [ edit: actually in a week now, drank the only two bottles I had last night so now need to wait to dry-hopped batch is redy to drink ]

This was just one of the two bottles I bottled from the standard recipe, before dry hopping the rest, and then bottling half the batch and secondary racking the other half onto pineapple, so I have two more versions of this beer to try over the next couple of weeks... should be interesting.

I'm enjoying this home brewing lark...

 

[kh54s10]

I think you are stuck too much on names of styles. I have had IPAs that were really bitter to not very bitter. I have had IPAs that went from just barely yellow colored water to almost strong black coffee looking. Maybe the term IPA should not be associated with the darker ones, but it is still beer.

Someone could come up with a recipe and call it whatever they want. The important thing is not color, name, malty, hoppy, bitter etc. It is only whether I like it or not.

I have tried and brewed most styles. I like most of them. My exceptions so far (I have not tried many examples of each) are NEIPAs and Sours. I have not bought one of either style that I have liked so I don't have any urge to brew either style.

 

[deeve007]

I think it was more that I thought I was buying a more standard/classic IPA recipe, which seems to not be the case going on further info I've learned about the grains used, so all good, and all part of the learning process!

 

[Miraculix]

So tasting my first bottle (decent carbonation after a week), I would actually describe it more as an Amber Ale than an IPA, red or otherwise (though dry & a little hoppy, which I guess is the IPA aspect coming through), which from a little googling seems common for this style: "Previously might have been a sub-genre of American Amber Ales or Double Red Ales..."
http://www.bjcp.org/style/2015/21/21B/specialty-ipa-red-ipa/

So it's definitely not the recipe I thought I had purchased, but that seems an error either I made or the people who sold me the recipe, but for an "amber ale" type beer it's extremely drinkable. Seems I'm getting the basics of brewing down, just gotta learn more about the recipes, grains & hops combos now...

Will post a photo when it's daytime/daylight... [ edit: actually in a week now, drank the only two bottles I had last night so now need to wait to dry-hopped batch is redy to drink ]

This was just one of the two bottles I bottled from the standard recipe, before dry hopping the rest, and then bottling half the batch and secondary racking the other half onto pineapple, so I have two more versions of this beer to try over the next couple of weeks... should be interesting.

I'm enjoying this home brewing lark...

Building your own recipes is really a very simple process, just keep it fairly easy at the beginning, just add ingredients that really have a purpose.
For example, for an IPA, it could be as simple as pale ale malt plus 0-10% crystal malt, the lighter crystals up to 60l, better a bit lower. If you want to increase head retention a bit, add 10% percent wheat flour or flaked wheat or wheat malt, but you don't have to.

Next thing, choose a dual purpose hop, something classic, cascade, Simcoe etc.

Choose your desired og something between 1.04 and 1.06, and then calculate your hop additions based on this to get the desired ibus.

After mashing, measure the gravity and adjust the results for temperature difference. If you missed your desired og much, you'll have to recalculate your hop additions again with the actual og.

Go with two additions only to keep things simple, 15 minutes and 5 minutes.

Do a single infusion mash @65C and use us05 as the yeast of your choice.

This is basically bulletproof and will result in a very nice beer and you start to get a feeling about the whole process.

Edit: you don't really need additional software. Brewer's friend has all the tools online for free. I exclusively use those.

 

[deeve007]

Yep, am doing that now with a sour, and will be doing for either an IPA or NEIPA next brew. The 3 recipes I purchased got me started on the basics, so step by step...

 

[kh54s10]

I would pick simpler recipes until you get all your processes down pat. Your sour might take many months to a year or more until it is ready to bottle or keg. This from what I read. I haven't had one I liked yet so I haven't brewed one and have no direct experience. NEIPAs are supposed to be very oxygen sensitive, and take huge amounts of hops - research carefully so that you don't waste $20 - $40 of hops.

 

[deeve007]

Your sour might take many months to a year or more until it is ready to bottle or keg. This from what I read. I haven't had one I liked yet so I haven't brewed one and have no direct experience.

From advice in this group, the co-pitching method means I can bottle in around a month or so [this thread has more info], and a VERY simple recipe hence why I'm trying it.

I also brewed previous simple recipes, including this one really once I recognised it wasn't a standard IPA, and this one from tasting I think I got it pretty right with regards to the grains used. But in the end, I want to brew beers I want to drink, so as with a couple of other [previous] newbie brewers, I think I'm gonna be trying things & experimenting from the get go, trying stuff I don't fully know enough about yet, and if things go a bit wrong research & ask the f*** out of it to identify why, and fix that next time. I think we all have our own way of learning best...

 

[deeve007]

So just to update (and draw a line through it for this brew), the half a batch I secondary fermented on top of 1kg of tinned pineapple pieces didn't really pick up any pineapple flavour I can discern. Ddefinitely a little lighter in colour, with a VERY slight additional fruitiness to the flavour, but nothing you would notice particularly. I chose pineapple as I was still grasping onto the "IPA" part, when as per the previous chat this grain mix is more a red ale of some kind, which probably isn't a good match for pineapple. Well, that and I probably needed a lot more to add a lot of flavout.

Anyway, another learning step...

 

[Jag75]

India Pineapple Ale