New England IPA "Northeast" style IPA

[Dgallo]

I used to brew commercially at a tiny farm brewery up until this past February, and at that time I was chatting with a close industry pal / brewery owner we collab with. He said word on the street is that Galaxy is "back". All the big-boys were cancelling contracts up until recently. Apparently Victoria grown Galaxy was decent for a bit, but the Tasmanian grown was awful (or vice versa?), and they were getting blended together in some cases. I think they've both finally been sorted to parity for whatever reason.

I have to say, I haven’t had any beer in the past 6 years that was 100% galaxy or heavy galaxy that was good. I have had a few beers from fidens this year that used galaxy and though better than typical still not boasting any solid galaxy.

I just recently had 2 treehouse all galaxy beers “galaxy many ways” the first was Tasmanian grown the second was Victoria grown, both beers were god awful. The Victoria grown was probably the worst beer I’ve had from a prominent brewery and def the worst TH beer I’ve ever had. Earthy, dirty, and outrageous hopburn. TH literally gets the best hops in the world. If they can’t get good galaxy their is no hope lol

I loved galaxy but I’ve thrown out too many lbs in the recent years to buy any until the pros can source better

 

[skleice]

I tried the latest galaxy batch from YVH and it was a serious let down. No different than the last few years. Bummer

 

[kurds_2408]

I just used latest YVH Galaxy for the Jabba Juice recipe on Big Brew Day. Haven't tasted it yet so fingers crossed. It's only a third Galaxy though so we'll see.

 

[Dgallo]

I never buy hops from morebeer anymore but I ended up grabbing simcoe and citra from them. Idk if you know this but they allow your to choose lots and give you small descriptors of said lot. Just open these and both are bonkers in aroma, especially the simcoe. The simcoe smells like mango/orange sherbet with definitive stone fruit character.

Simcoe is lot 1020
Citra is 2048

 

[skleice]

Simcoe has been great lately imo. Simcoe, Strata & HBC 1019 have been the standouts for me this year.

 

[wepeeler]

I never buy hops from morebeer anymore but I ended up grabbing simcoe and citra from them. Idk if you know this but they allow your to choose lots and give you small descriptors of said lot. Just open these and both are bonkers in aroma, especially the simcoe. The simcoe smells like mango/orange sherbet with definitive stone fruit character.

Simcoe is lot 1020
Citra is 2048 View attachment 848441

Yup! I found this out about 6 months ago, but I've been able to source my Citra/Simcoe/Tett/Mittelfruh through a local big boy. Been a God-send.

Here's the link on Morebeer for anyone interested on getting lot analysis on specific varieties. https://www.morebeer.com/category/hops-lot.html

 

[LumberZach]

I talked with Bryan over at Great Fermentations about Escarpment Lab Yeasts. My latest hazy was Foggy London and I love how it turned out. GF is one of the only places that sells Escarpment in the US. I asked when they would be getting their yeast back in stock and he said in a few weeks. Bryan told me that they've been having to toss 50% of their Escarpment yeast because nobody is buying it before it expires. I told him that I would try to put the word out so they are more inclined to keep it in stock. So if anyone here is interested in Escarpment Lab yeast keep an eye on their website and sign up for back in stock notifications. Or you can just email them to let them know you're interested in it. I had been using Wyeast 1318 since 2016 when I first started brewing hazies. Since then I've used Imperial Juice and S-04. I decided to give Escarpment a shot and I'm glad I did. I would like to make Foggy London my go to yeast going forward, but it's difficult to get.

Links:
Escarpment Labs Yeast @ Great Fermentations
Great Fermentations Contact Info

 

[Dgallo]

I talked with Bryan over at Great Fermentations about Escarpment Lab Yeasts. My latest hazy was Foggy London and I love how it turned out. GF is one of the only places that sells Escarpment in the US. I asked when they would be getting their yeast back in stock and he said in a few weeks. Bryan told me that they've been having to toss 50% of their Escarpment yeast because nobody is buying it before it expires. I told him that I would try to put the word out so they are more inclined to keep it in stock. So if anyone here is interested in Escarpment Lab yeast keep an eye on their website and sign up for back in stock notifications. Or you can just email them to let them know you're interested in it. I had been using Wyeast 1318 since 2016 when I first started brewing hazies. Since then I've used Imperial Juice and S-04. I decided to give Escarpment a shot and I'm glad I did. I would like to make Foggy London my go to yeast going forward, but it's difficult to get.

Links:
Escarpment Labs Yeast @ Great Fermentations
Great Fermentations Contact Info

I only like escarpment for their funk and Brett stuff but gf doesn’t carry it unfortunately.

I believe escarpment is the only carrier of an isolated Brett d pitch. Pure white pineapple with some funk

 

[couchsending]

I never buy hops from morebeer anymore but I ended up grabbing simcoe and citra from them. Idk if you know this but they allow your to choose lots and give you small descriptors of said lot. Just open these and both are bonkers in aroma, especially the simcoe. The simcoe smells like mango/orange sherbet with definitive stone fruit character.

Simcoe is lot 1020
Citra is 2048 View attachment 848441

YCH puts lot info on their packages so you can look up the exact info on those hops using their lot lookup tool if you want. The Simcoe is from 2021, which even though it’s a bit old, was actually a great year for Simcoe. I’d shy away from anything picked after Simcoe in 21 though as that year (along with 2020) were really bad years for smoke.

 

[MMP126]

@MMP126 I’ll be honest the color on that bad boy is pretty off putting. But certainly doesn’t mean it’s oxidized, I attribute it to your base malt. When I’ve used golden promise in the past I’ve been surprised at how dark it is too.

Yeah, not a fan either. I just wanted a base malt that had some dimension to it, so I tried it. 1st time using it. Wouldn't use it again in this style of beer.

 

[DevilsCups]

I'm doing these in a keg fermenter. Trying to figure out the best way to get full extraction without agitation, as it's just not practical for me, as it would kick up all the yeast/trub.

Everything else about this fermenting setup is excellent.

 

[wepeeler]

I'm doing these in a keg fermenter. Trying to figure out the best way to get full extraction without agitation, as it's just not practical for me, as it would kick up all the yeast/trub.

Everything else about this fermenting setup is excellent.

Pressure transfer to purged serving keg?

 

[DevilsCups]

Pressure transfer to purged serving keg?

I could, but I'd like to avoid dry-hopping in my serving keg if possible.

 

[wepeeler]

I could, but I'd like to avoid dry-hopping in my serving keg if possible.

It'll waste CO2, but you could transfer to purged keg with DH in, then transfer to serving keg a few days later.

 

[DevilsCups]

It'll waste CO2, but you could transfer to purged keg with DH in, then transfer to serving keg a few days later.

I certainly could! With my brewing situation / space, the least amount of vessels to clean and prep, the better haha.

I guess I should ask - is anyone getting fantastic results in one vessel without agitation? I're really enjoyed switching to using this megamouth Torpedo keg fermenter setup that I cobbled together.

 

[CascadesBrewer]

I'm doing these in a keg fermenter. Trying to figure out the best way to get full extraction without agitation, as it's just not practical for me, as it would kick up all the yeast/trub.

How are you currently adding hops to the fermenter?

I mostly ferment in Fermonster fermenters and dry hop in the primary. The process I have moved to for the last several batches is to soft crash to around 40F, raise the temp back up to 60F, add my dry hops for 2 days at 60F, cold crash, then transfer to a keg. An 8 oz dry hop addition for a 5 gallon batch has gotten me to the hop level I like. It might not be up to the saturation level of something like Fiddens, but it gets me to the level that I like.

I found when I dry hopped colder (say 40F) I did not get as much hop character as I expected. I am not 100% sure of the impact of the soft crash, but I think dropping out most of the yeast before dry hopping leads to more hop character staying suspended in the beer (rather than getting pulled out as the yeast settles). Dry hopping at 60F seems to produce less astringency and hop burn, vs dry hopping at 72F. In the past, I have had batches that took 2-3 weeks in the keg before that astringency settled out.

I have thought about trying a dry hop vessel with agitation, but I am pretty happy with the level of hop character I am getting with my current process.

 

[DevilsCups]

How are you currently adding hops to the fermenter?

With this setup I'm using a hop-bong. I had a ferrule welded to the keg-lid. Works great.

I'll swap out the top piece for a hop-bong for dry-hopping.

I've considered putting another dip-tube onto the gas-in side of the keg post, for agitation, as I have the top post to pressurize when needed. However, it doesn't seem worth it as I can't dump trub/yeast, so I'll just keep at it with no rousing.

 

[ihavenonickname]

This is my "brujos style" which is just a little more extreme than I would usually do. But I'm of the mind, if you make a hazy its gotta be cranked up to 11.

1.074->1.023. 35% barley the rest wheat oats and 4% maltodextrin.
Chloride 300, Ca 130.
Hot side: Citra t90 and icognito, a touch of galaxy that smelled decent. (equiv to 1oz/gal and 40ibus calc)
Cold: Citra, motueka, riwaka (8:5:2)
CS Hazy yeast, three packs, made a great beer. Can't knock this yeast.

The mouthfeel is incredible. Very big and fluffy highly recommend if you havn't. Not sweet, just super hoppy.

I'm a proponent of the second dry hop keg. Cold crash, transfer off yeast, agitate the heck out of it over 24 hrs. The agitation is a key for me to get the biggest aroma, really pops. DH at 2.5oz/gal and lots of agitation and Southern Hemi hops means it needs an extra week or two for the bite to settle out but I think that's more than worth it for these beers. My DH kegmenter looks like @DevilsCups pic

My next one I'm gonna try out spectrum which I think I should use mid fermentation for best effect. Without the pellets I think it would not dry the beer out like a mid ferm t90 does, also It would help avoid oxidation. But curious what other have figured out for best practices with spectrum, its been a few months since we discussed it.

Also, I've come back to making these beers as it seems more and more the commercial versions are dissapointing. Breweries I use to love have trended toward the juicy, sweet and not all that hoppy versions of them. In my area Humble Sea, Alvarado St use to be bangers but now its hard to find a hazy I like (their west coasts I still love and can still get good ones from Green Cheek and Monkish.) Mine is right there with the best, and way better than most!

 

[HolyGrail]

But curious what other have figured out for best practices with spectrum, its been a few months since we discussed it.

I have tried using Spectrum twice and have made some mistakes. The first time I added it to my keg first and then transfered my beer, hoping it would mix. It did not mix. Ended up with most of the spectrum at the bottom of the keg, even after trying to shake the keg. The first few pours were very dark and unpleasant, so I pretty much wasted the spectrum and some otherwise decent beer.

The second time I added the Spectrum to a small PET bottle and closed transfered some beer to it. This was after soft crash + dry hop and right before kegging. Made sure to purge it with CO2 and used a little antioxidants. I then placed the bottom of the bottle in warm water and shook the bottle to mix it until no Spectrum was left stuck to the sides. I then transfered it to a keg along with the rest of the beer. Unfortunetly this beer turned out with high hop burn and diesely, but I think that's unrelated to the Spectrum. I will likely try this again soon, after I brew a pilsner for the summer. I can return with some pictures of the process with results if anyone is interested. Otherwise I'm very interested in figuring out if Spectrum is best used mid-ferm.

Edit: Neither beers had problems with oxidation

 

[beervoid]

I have tried using Spectrum twice and have made some mistakes. The first time I added it to my keg first and then transfered my beer, hoping it would mix. It did not mix. Ended up with most of the spectrum at the bottom of the keg, even after trying to shake the keg. The first few pours were very dark and unpleasant, so I pretty much wasted the spectrum and some otherwise decent beer.

The second time I added the Spectrum to a small PET bottle and closed transfered some beer to it. This was after soft crash + dry hop and right before kegging. Made sure to purge it with CO2 and used a little antioxidants. I then placed the bottom of the bottle in warm water and shook the bottle to mix it until no Spectrum was left stuck to the sides. I then transfered it to a keg along with the rest of the beer. Unfortunetly this beer turned out with high hop burn and diesely, but I think that's unrelated to the Spectrum. I will likely try this again soon, after I brew a pilsner for the summer. I can return with some pictures of the process with results if anyone is interested. Otherwise I'm very interested in figuring out if Spectrum is best used mid-ferm.

Edit: Neither beers had problems with oxidation

I had success adding day 4 or 5 or so.
Pro's can dose it inline or mix it with recirculation, but aside from that using it after fermentation you get alot of undesireables imho, think of it like a super concentrated cryo flavor.
I think it's actually the biggest advantage of this product that you can use it during fermentation without extracting polyphenols.

 

[bailey mountain brewer]

I'm brewing this weekend and my last neipa was citra and nectaron with a touch of mosaic. I have some nelson on hand I want to use it for this batch. I'm curious about pairing it with nectaron. Maybe just in the dry hop, or a small amount in the whirlpool. Any thoughts or experiences using them together?

 

[Dgallo]

I'm brewing this weekend and my last neipa was citra and nectaron with a touch of mosaic. I have some nelson on hand I want to use it for this batch. I'm curious about pairing it with nectaron. Maybe just in the dry hop, or a small amount in the whirlpool. Any thoughts or experiences using them together?

The collab I did with the warbler brewery was Nelson, nectaron and citra. Works well together but if your nectaron is Diesel forward it will pull it out of the Nelson

 

[ihavenonickname]

I had success adding day 4 or 5 or so.
Pro's can dose it inline or mix it with recirculation, but aside from that using it after fermentation you get alot of undesireables imho, think of it like a super concentrated cryo flavor.
I think it's actually the biggest advantage of this product that you can use it during fermentation without extracting polyphenols.

Thanks - if I add it into the fermenter at peak ferm is it supposed to get mixed in and dissolved just by yeast activity? Or do I still need to swirl/shake it in with wort in a separate flask?

 

[beervoid]

Thanks - if I add it into the fermenter at peak ferm is it supposed to get mixed in and dissolved just by yeast activity? Or do I still need to swirl/shake it in with wort in a separate flask?

yeast activity should be enough

 

[Dwaynehaze]

Anybody scope these yet?

https://yakimavalleyhops.com/products/euphorics?variant=40726193209477

 

[aaronm13]

like you said though, you were in the mix. The mini bos def is based on preference. If you haven’t tried this before you shou; send the same beer to 3 comps that are close in date to each other. I think you’ll be amazed on how different the beers will be judge. It def eye opening and you see how regional expectations for styles are in play.

I’ve done this a few times and I’ll have a beer medal in one comp with a high 38/39+ score and then In an other comp the same weekend get a low 30.

having had your beers before, I can only imagine it was great and you were just on the unfortunate side this time

I fell victim to this over the weekend at the Irish Nationals. My beer hopped with Superdelic, Citra and Nectaron scored 39. Both judges loved it. Two other beers scored 39 also so went to a mini best of show. I came out the worst with only a bronze. I knew I was in trouble as I know one of the BOS judges and he hates soft bitterness so he went with the one with a lot of bitterness. Best of show is a total beauty contest, bjcp goes out the window. I should be happy with my medal but still a bit annoyed.

Either way this beer is hands down my best to date. Used Imperial dry hop and love how it lets the hops shine. Also Superdelic is an incredible hop. Have to brew with it again.

Scored my best overall in a competition with a 43 for my Barrel Aged English Barleywine. Another year or two in the bottle and it'll be a fine beer. Would love to enter one of my hazys into a competition over in the US but don't think it would hold up well over that long journey.

 

[x22n]

I fell victim to this over the weekend at the Irish Nationals. My beer hopped with Superdelic, Citra and Nectaron scored 39. Both judges loved it. Two other beers scored 39 also so went to a mini best of show. I came out the worst with only a bronze. I knew I was in trouble as I know one of the BOS judges and he hates soft bitterness so he went with the one with a lot of bitterness. Best of show is a total beauty contest, bjcp goes out the window. I should be happy with my medal but still a bit annoyed.

Either way this beer is hands down my best to date. Used Imperial dry hop and love how it lets the hops shine. Also Superdelic is an incredible hop. Have to brew with it again.

Scored my best overall in a competition with a 43 for my Barrel Aged English Barleywine. Another year or two in the bottle and it'll be a fine beer. Would love to enter one of my hazys into a competition over in the US but don't think it would hold up well over that long journey.

Do you mind sharing your recipe?

 

[Dgallo]

Do you mind sharing your recipe?

He has. If you use the search feature you will easily find it. Search>Member:aaron13>This Thread>scroll until you find it

 

[aaronm13]

Do you mind sharing your recipe?

Here it is in case you can't find it.

Crisp extra pale malt 45%
Spelt 16%
Naked Oat malt 12%
Golden Promise 10%
Chit malt 8%
Flaked oats 8%

OG 1.080
FG 1.016
Imperial Dry Hop 1st Gen

6g CTZ first wort
20g Citra 10 mins

Whirlpool @ 162F for 30 minutes
Citra 4oz
Superdelic 2oz
Nectaron 2oz

Dry Hop
Citra 6oz
Superdelic 5oz
Nectaron 3oz

 

[ihavenonickname]

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