"Young" IPA?

[thisgoestoeleven]

I keep seeing references to "young" IPAs, and I'm not entirely sure what that means. I know it refers to a shorter conditioning time, but how much shorter? Primary finished after about 8 days, and it's been in secondary for about 4. How long should it sit in secondary, and from there how long to bottle condition without letting it go too long?

 

[storunner13]

"Young" IPAs might be preferred because the hop flavor and aroma hasn't faded as it does with older beers. While big beers (as some IPAs might be) tend to need more conditioning, IPAs might err on the younger side of the conditioning process. If your IPA started at around 1.060-70 I would keep it in the secondary for at least 2 weeks. Not much of the hop aroma and flavor will leave in that time.

 

[Yooper]

I dryhop one week before bottling IPAs, and then drink as soon as they are carbed up. I don't do a secondary very often, though.

Typically, I'll leave an IPA in the fermenter for about two weeks, dryhop, and then bottle a week later.

 

[Nagorg]

Yes, another post dug up from the past!

What made me find this is searching for info about IPA's being "too young". That may sound odd since IPA's *should* generally be enjoyed sooner than later before the hop character fades.

But I've found personally that my IPA's need about 3-4 weeks post packaging to really taste great. Any sooner and I get strong OJ flavor. But, wait a bit longer and man.... DELICIOUSNESS!!

Timing:
Brew Day
- Wait 2 weeks then:
Dry Hop
- Wait ~4-7 days then:
Keg
- Wait ~3-4 weeks then:
ENJOY DELICIOUSNESS!

Any sooner is OJ!