Suggestions to hop up a blonde ale kit?

[hossfly]

I got a blonde ale kit free with my homebrew setup, and want to use it to try something a little different. I have 2 brews under my belt, an Irish Red which is getting quite tasty after 4 wks in bottle, and a DIPA which is dry-hopping and will be bottled this weekend.

My tastes are generally toward IPA, barleywine, Belgian ales, etc. with a real bent for the citrusy hops. I've never met an IBU I didn't like!

Contents of the kit are:

1/2 lb Crystal 15L steeping grain
7 lbs Ultralight LME
1 oz Willamette hops for 60 min.
Safale US-05 dry yeast

Just doesn't seem like it will offer the hearty flavor I like, so i was thinking about adding some Citra, Simcoe, Cascade, or something similar for flavor/aroma the last 15 min. then splitting into a couple of 3 gal carboys so I can dry hop each with a different variety.

What are some thoughts or suggestions on my proposed experiment?

TIA

 

[WI_Wino]

One thing to keep in mind is IPAs are typically >6% alcohol to help balance out the hops. So if you keep the 7lbs of LME and not add anymore extract, I would not go too crazy with additional hops. Brewing software can help determine balance, I personally don't do a ton of hoppy beers. I'm sure others will have more specific advice on amount of hops to add.

 

[Slainte-brew]

If you are in the experimenting mood then I say really go for it. If you already know what simcoe/cascade is going to give you try something else. How about tettanger or hallertuaer for a more german feel. or maybe just something different, just make sure it is good for dryhopping and isnt more of a bittering hop. I say pick 2 or 3 different tastes, something citrusy, something spicey or something piney. Then you can start to see what you like. I think with dryhopping you wont have to worry too much about your gravity to balance, but if you plan on adding a bunch more to the boil that will effect the IBUs, I would make sure you calculate out what is going to happen.

 

[buhay]

I did a blonde a couple months ago and made a hop Tea with 0.5oz fuggle hops and dry hopped with another 0.5oz for 5 days. I enjoy it

 

[JohnSand]

I liked my first batch of Centennial Blonde, but I wanted it hoppier. So I upped bittering hops 25%, flavoring hops 50%. It is quite hoppy, but nice. Friends have tried it and like it. I would try adding a flavor hop at 15 minutes. A moderate AAU hop won't bitter it much at that time, but will add plenty of flavor. You can use online calculators (try brewersfriend) for IBU's