Mad Brewer’s English IPA

MMMmmmm hops….

IPA’s are great beers and one of my favorite styles. American IPAs in particular are characterized by a strong American hop presence and just a little malt backbone to support the bitterness. Usually these beers are clean and neutral with very little esters (esters give a fruity smell and taste to beer). American style hops are typified by floral and citrusy aromas. For this batch I’ve decided to focus on the English IPA, which could be classified as a stronger version, both in hops and malts, of an ESB. I want to showcase English hops, which will give a strong earthy hop character.

3.5 gallon batch:

• 6.0 lbs Marris Otter
• 2.0 lbs Munich (5.0L)
• 0.5 lb Caramunich (40L)
• 1 oz First Gold at 60 minutes
• 1 oz First Gold at 15 minutes
• 1 oz First Gold at 0 minutes (flameout)
• 2 oz First Gold for dry hop
• 1 package of rehydrated Nottingham yeast

Protein rest at 124°F

Mashed at 155°F

Original gravity: 1.062

This was my first attempt and decoction mash. Everything went well up until I added the boiling mash to the protein rest to raise the temperature. I was 10°F short and had to add 4 qts of boiling water to reach my target mash temp. I also decided to whirlpool and leave behind the trub – the hops and protein that precipitated during the boil. I lost a couple of quarts which killed my efficiency.

More to follow in one week when I rack to a keg…

—————————

2/20/10

After a week, fermentation has ceased entirely. Racked to a sanitized keg, purged any residual O2 with CO2, but did not cool to carbonation temps. Actually, I decided to transfer a portion of the yeast cake to restart fermentation to drop the gravity a few more points. Its currently at 1.020.