Hoppy Amber Recipe Critique

[FreddyMar3]

Getting geared up to brew this tomorrow, any suggestions? Too much crystal at 9% of the grain bill? I want it to have a decent amount of body since estimated FG is 1.009.

Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Boil Size: 7.23 gal
Post Boil Volume: 5.98 gal
Batch Size (fermenter): 5.50 gal
Bottling Volume: 5.00 gal
Estimated OG: 1.057 SG
Estimated Color: 15.2 SRM
Estimated IBU: 55.4 IBUs
Brewhouse Efficiency: 78.00 %
Est Mash Efficiency: 81.5 %
Boil Time: 75 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amt Name Type # %/IBU
9 lbs Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 1 80.9 %
1 lbs Munich Malt (9.0 SRM) Grain 2 9.0 %
8.0 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt - 40L (40.0 SRM) Grain 3 4.5 %
8.0 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt -120L (120.0 SRM) Grain 4 4.5 %
2.0 oz Black Barley (Stout) (500.0 SRM) Grain 5 1.1 %
1.00 oz Citra [13.90 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 6 43.5 IBUs
0.50 oz Amarillo [8.80 %] - Boil 10.0 min Hop 7 5.5 IBUs
0.50 oz Cascade [7.10 %] - Boil 10.0 min Hop 8 4.4 IBUs
0.50 oz Amarillo [8.80 %] - Boil 2.0 min Hop 9 1.3 IBUs
0.50 oz Cascade [5.50 %] - Boil 2.0 min Hop 10 0.8 IBUs
0.50 oz Amarillo [0.00 %] - Steep/Whirlpool 30. Hop 11 0.0 IBUs
0.50 oz Amarillo [8.80 %] - Dry Hop 5.0 Days Hop 13 0.0 IBUs
0.50 oz Citra [13.90 %] - Dry Hop 5.0 Days Hop 14 0.0 IBUs
1.8 pkg GY054 (Conan) (GigaYeast #) Yeast 12 - a

 

[chickypad]

I like it, and IMO that is not too much crystal for this. I've been playing around with hoppy ambers lately using a blueprint of total crystal in the 8-13% range split between 2 different lovibonds, then munich or vienna in the 10-15% range, +/- a little victory or biscuit. So far I've been quite pleased with the results. I have also usually been including an oz or two of chocolate or dark roasted malt for color - sometimes a hint of roast comes through though, if you don't want that I'd go with midnight wheat or debittered.

 

[beeeeeerman]

Leaf hops ? Roll some up and smoke it... Better yet. Bong hits while drinking this.

OK seriously sounds good. Lots of layers of hop flavour plus nice color and body to boot. Sounds like a balance between a medium bodied beer w some stout attributes and the whole gamut of hop goodness.

 

[FreddyMar3]

Leaf hops ? Roll some up and smoke it... Better yet. Bong hits while drinking this.

OK seriously sounds good. Lots of layers of hop flavour plus nice color and body to boot. Sounds like a balance between a medium bodied beer w some stout attributes and the whole gamut of hop goodness.

Haha, every time I open the one pound bag of citra leaf that exact thought goes through my head. ipe:

Thanks for the input fellas. Just fired up the mash tun. might add the black barley in the dunk sparge (I'm doing BIAB for this one) so that I get less of the roastiness coming through. I think I heard that you could do that on the Brewing Network.