Single Malt IPA Recipe Critique

[Brewskie]

I live in Montana, and one of the best IPA's you can get on tap here is a Single Malt IPA by Blackfoot River Brewing. With that in mind I'm putting together a Single Malt IPA recipe that is similar to theirs, but has my own mark on it. I believe they use Maris Otter, but there hops differ from what i will be using.

Here is what I have so far...

11.5 lbs Maris Otter

1 oz Warrior - 90 mins
.5 oz El Dorado - 60 mins
.5 oz El Dorado - 30 mins
.5 oz El Dorado - 20 mins
.5 oz El Dorado - 0 mins
1 oz El Dorado - 7 days

Wyeast 1728 - Scottish Ale

Mash @ 154 for 60 min
Batch Sparge at 170

This will be my second all grain brew, so any advice or suggestions are greatly appreciated. I also have some cascade hops that i could use if anyone thinks they would be a good addition to this recipe.

Thanks!

 

[Yooper]

Did you run this through any brewing software? There are several free online brewing calculators out there.

My gut feeling is that it's way too high in bittering hops (at 90/60/30) and high in IBUs, but lacking in late hops additions.

Scottish ale yeast is a weird choice for a beer that you want "clean" and without esters- is that just something you have on hand and want to use up, or is by design?

Mashing at 154 could be problematic if you have trouble with underattenuation (and you would compound that with Scottish ale yeast). I'd mash at 151-152 i you want an IPA.

 

[Brewskie]

Thanks for the reply Yooper.

I ran the recipe through ibrewmaster. It came out to 114.41 IBU. Ill look at moving the the el dorado hop additions to later in the boil.

The Scottish ale yeast is by design. It is what I have heard the beer i am basing this recipe off is fermented with.

Are you suggesting i mash at 151-152 so there are more fementables for the yeast?

 

[Yooper]

Thanks for the reply Yooper.

I ran the recipe through ibrewmaster. It came out to 114.41 IBU. Ill look at moving the the el dorado hop additions to later in the boil.

The Scottish ale yeast is by design. It is what I have heard the beer i am basing this recipe off is fermented with.

Are you suggesting i mash at 151-152 so there are more fementables for the yeast?

How about for hopping, go with something like:

Bittering hops 60 minutes- to 40 IBUs with this addition
1 oz hops 15 minutes
1 oz hops 5 minutes
1 oz hops 0 minutes
1-2 oz hops dryhopping

That'd give you enough IBUs to balance your OG but also give lots of hops flavor and aroma.

Yes, the lower mash temp would mean that beer would more fully attenuate, and finish at something like 1.010-1.012, better for an IPA than something higher that would happen using Scottish ale yeast and a higher mash temp.

 

[Brewskie]

Here's the updated Single Malt IPA recipe...

5 Gal Batch

11.5 lbs Maris Otter

1 oz Warrior - 60 mins
1 oz El Dorado - 15 mins
.5 oz El Dorado - 10 mins
.5 oz El Dorado - 0 mins
1 oz El Dorado - 7 days

Wyeast 1728 - Scottish Ale

Mash @ 151 for 60 min
Batch Sparge at 170

OG: 1.056
FG: 1.016
IBU's: 85.05
ABV: 5.24

I'm excited about this recipe! I am going to brew this (or something extremely similar) this weekend. Looking forward to tasting the combination of the fruity aroma/flavor of the El Dorado hops with the nutty character of the Maris Otter. If anyone has suggestions I would still love to hear them. Thanks for the help Yooper!

Cheers!

 

[CryoEng]

Here's the updated Single Malt IPA recipe...

5 Gal Batch

11.5 lbs Maris Otter

1 oz Warrior - 60 mins
1 oz El Dorado - 15 mins
.5 oz El Dorado - 10 mins
.5 oz El Dorado - 0 mins
1 oz El Dorado - 7 days

Wyeast 1728 - Scottish Ale

Mash @ 151 for 60 min
Batch Sparge at 170

OG: 1.056
FG: 1.016
IBU's: 85.05
ABV: 5.24

I'm excited about this recipe! I am going to brew this (or something extremely similar) this weekend. Looking forward to tasting the combination of the fruity aroma/flavor of the El Dorado hops with the nutty character of the Maris Otter. If anyone has suggestions I would still love to hear them. Thanks for the help Yooper!

Cheers!

I'd just brew it. Let us know how it comes out.

Have fun!

Cheers!

 

[seabass07]

You don't mention fermentation temp. With that yeast, temp will play a huge part. It will ferment clean in the low 60s. Even more so in the upper 50s. Go into the upper 60s and you're going to get a very fruity beer. Its a very good strain for a lot of different styles and will probably make a good IPA if used right.

 

[SeeMont]

Ski, good luck with the brew. I I will look for a report on hoow it turns out.

 

[Brewskie]

You don't mention fermentation temp. With that yeast, temp will play a huge part. It will ferment clean in the low 60s. Even more so in the upper 50s. Go into the upper 60s and you're going to get a very fruity beer. Its a very good strain for a lot of different styles and will probably make a good IPA if used right.

I was thinking about fermenting at 68. chickypad mentioned that my bu:gu ratio is high, so maybe it good that more fruit flavors come out to offset the bitterness?

SeeMont - I will definitely post the results.

Thanks for the responses everyone!

 

[aStoutObserver]

http://blackfootriverbrewing.com/2013/03/el-dorado-ipa/
If this is the beer you are referring to then they give you a good amount of information to aim for.
I'm very interested to hear how this turns out. I have 4 oz. of El Dorado myself.

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[Brewskie]

http://blackfootriverbrewing.com/2013/03/el-dorado-ipa/
If this is the beer you are referring to then they give you a good amount of information to aim for.
I'm very interested to hear how this turns out. I have 4 oz. of El Dorado myself.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I727 using Home Brew mobile app

Sweet find! I was referring to the year round Single Malt IPA they produce, but this is much closer to what I am doing. Now to decide if i want to change my recipe to get closer to this or not... Guess that's what makes this fun. Thanks!

 

[Brewskie]

OK, after all the great advice, this is the final recipe...


5 Gal Batch

12.5 lbs Maris Otter

1 oz Warrior - 60 mins
.5 oz El Dorado - 15 mins
.5 oz El Dorado - 10 mins
.5 oz El Dorado - 5 mins
.5 oz El Dorado - 0 mins
1 oz El Dorado - 7 days

Wyeast 1728 - Scottish Ale

Mash @ 151 for 60 min
Batch Sparge at 170

Fermented at 68

OG: 1.060
FG: 1.017
IBU's: 74.41
ABV: 5.63

I'll post the results.

Cheers!

 

[seabass07]

Don't count on fruity flavors offsetting the bitterness. You won't really get sweetness from the yeast, just fruitiness. It might clash with the hop fruitiness. IMO, ferment low and add the hops late. It sounds to me like you want a malty IPA, not a fruity IPA.

 

[Brewskie]

Ok, I understand now. Thanks seabass.

 

[aStoutObserver]

I'd gladly drink the recipe that you ended up with. Let us know for sure.

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[LoloMT7]

OP I also live in MT and love blackfoot's SingleMalt it's a great beer. I attempted to brew something similar to it this weekend as well. How did your version turn out?

From their website on the SingleMalt:

Single Malt IPA

Just like Single Malt Scotch, our Singlemalt I.P.A. is brewed from 100% Crisp Maris Otter floor-malted barley - no specialty malts, no blending. This is our interpretation of the American/Northwest India Pale Ale style. Singlemalt I.P.A. is generously hopped with Northwest-grown Simcoe and Cascade hops. This is our best-selling and most-beloved beer and is golden in color, with a medium-bodied malty backbone and full of hop flavor. Gold Medal Winner, 2007 North American Beer Awards, American Strong Pale Ale Category.

IBU’s: 55
Original Gravity: 1.065
Terminal Gravity: 1.012
Alcohol by Volume: 6.9%
Calories per 12oz: 214

Picture attached was my attempt. Used WLP002 because I had some maybe should have used a chico strain also used Amarillo not Cascade cause I had them. Let you know in a couple of weeks if it is any good.

Cheers

 

[copyright1997]

I may be blind, but I don't see on their web page where they mention using Scottish Ale yeast? They mention using MO as the base malt and Simecoe & Cascade as the hops. I've made plenty of ales/ipa's with MO and Simcoe/Cascade combo's, this looks quite nice.

 

[LoloMT7]

I may be blind, but I don't see on their web page where they mention using Scottish Ale yeast? They mention using MO as the base malt and Simecoe & Cascade as the hops. I've made plenty of ales/ipa's with MO and Simcoe/Cascade combo's, this looks quite nice.

Agreed on the Scottish ale yeast i doubt they use that. From a few google searches I did find people claiming that they use that but i find it highly unlikely myself.

 

[LoloMT7]

for what it is worth check out this post... https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f36/all-grain-single-malt-ipa-223769/

 

[LoloMT7]

And here it is from the zymurgy nov/dec 2010 issue.

 

[Brewskie]

@loloMT7 - I brewed something similar to the last recipe post I had. I ended up using 13lb of MO as well. Next time I open one I'll post a picture and the recipe. I also added cinnamon and nutmeg to half my batch and thought it paired really well with the bread characteristic of the malt. I think it's one of the best beers I've brewed. Looking forward to hearing how yours turns out!


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[Brewskie]

5 Gal Batch

13 lbs Maris Otter

1 oz Warrior - 60 mins
.5 oz El Dorado - 15 mins
.5 oz El Dorado - 10 mins
.5 oz El Dorado - 5 mins
.5 oz El Dorado - 0 mins
1 oz El Dorado - 7 days (secondary)
equal parts cinnamon & nutmeg to taste - 7 days (secondary)

Wyeast 1728 - Scottish Ale

Mash @ 151 for 60 min
Batch Sparge at 170

Primary fermentation 7 days @ 62 degrees
Secondary fermentation 14 days @ 65 degrees

OG: 1.062
FG: 1.012
IBU's: 73
ABV: 6.5%

 

[LoloMT7]

Mine is dry hopping now. Will let you know!