This recipe will be showcasing the differences, if any, of using a different high alpha hop combined with a lot of late addition Cascades. I'm thinking there are some tasty IPAs on the horizon regardless of the hop combo...as I purchased 2 grain sacks and 4 pounds of hops with the hopes of nailing down a solid, and repeatable, IPA recipe. the grain bill is as follows:
Dueling India Pale Ales - 3.5 gallons
Canadian Malting Pale Malt - 6 pounds Best Malz Hell Munich (light) - 2 pounds C-40: 4 ounces
hop schedule: Columbus (or Apollo) - 1/2 oz @ 60 " - 1/4 oz @ 15 " - 1/2 oz @ dry
Cascade - 1/2 oz @ 20 " - 1/4 oz @ 10 " - 1/2 oz @ dry
ferment using US-05
primary fermentation until gravity is steady (about 12-ish days), then add the dry hops for 4-5 days
the projected stats: OG @ 75% 1.066 - ABV 6.5% - IBU TBD
~update~ I've got some better notes, but I wanted to get an update out there! I did the Apollo/Cascade combo first, and that was brewed on 2/2/13. Had some issues mashing out (kept getting heat pockets and varied temperature readings), so I didn't really do one. Also, the pale malt is PLUMP, so I ran out of room in a hurry inside my pot. I need to add some more water somewhere in the process, as I ended up with about 3.1 gallons after the boil. the OG was like 1.072 (need to double check), and the SG after 12 days was down to 1.014, so this beast is about 7.5% ABV! I decided to up the dry hop to a half ounce of each variety, and they were put in a sack and left for 4 days. this batch was then kegged on 2/18/13, and the aroma was fantastic at that time...so the outlook seems quite promising!
~update 2/25/13~ this beer is evolving quickly! I've tasted it several times, and it started out (2/20) as a warm, dank, sweet citrus...and tonight it was predominantly piney/grapefruity. The body is on the low end of medium (considering the size of this IPA, and I'm not sure if I would want it "bigger" and "chewy") and the hops are quite smooth, regardless of their flavor output of the day, and they are definitely prominent throughout. A slight bready malt sweetness rounds out the drink...and I am really digging the way this beer turned out. Considering that it is barely 3 weeks old, I am on the verge of being amazed with this beer. seriously!
~update 3/13/13~ hmmm...the dank citrus is all but gone, and the remaining hop character is pretty much grapefruit rind. there is also very little malt complexity/depth to speak of. so, ummm...hmmm. that's a bit odd how this was SO good, but so average after such a short time. maybe a bump in Apollo hops next time, and a tad more crystal malt would help. OR, maybe I just need to plan around have this beer drunk quickly, as time is not proving to be its friend ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- V2 Cascade/Columbus brewed on 3/29/2013
75% eff = OG 1.065 - 53 IBU - 6.4% ABV
This fermented hard and fast for 2 full days at about 67-68°, and now it will finish up until around 4/8, when it will be dry hopped for 4 days. There should be a free tap (from the Apollo/Cascade version), so it will immediately be hooked up to the CO2