I think I just invented a new method, and the term 'BitterBomb'!

[mscroggi]

Oh boy... I have found an IPA recipe I really like. I brewed it a couple of months ago.. and it is really great..

I thought I would brew it again but substitute one of the hops and increase the citra..
So after a trip to the Homebrew store and $48 later, I started the brewing process..

My recipe calls for :
1.00 oz Warrior Boil 60.0 min
1.00 oz Citra Boil 20.0 min
1.00 oz Centennial Boil 10.0 min
1.00 oz Cascade Boil 5.0 min

I got distracted with football.. and 5 minutes into the boil I realized I had put all 4 hop additions in the boil at once. Ouch..

Not knowing what to do... I yanked the hop bag out of the boil, and kept it out until the 30 minute mark and put it back in.. I probably should have kept it out longer.. I plugged the 30 minute boil numbers into Beersmith and it calculated a whopping 113 IBU's !!!

So either in 5 weeks time, I will be the proud creator of a new 'Hop Dip Method' or the term 'BitterBomb' hahaaa

I have a feeling the latter is more likely..



I just thought I would share..

 

[IslandLizard]

When it's done fermenting (a good week or so) taste some and decide if it's worth going forward with it. You may surprise yourself.
If so, dry hop that with those 3 hops, or with just the Citra and Centennial, 4-8 oz total.

If you really like IPAs, buy hops in larger amounts, online, to make the price tag more palatable. E.g., YakimaValleyHops, HopsDirect, etc. and store in freezer.

Boiling those "good" hops for 30 minutes really kills their flavor and aroma. I'd use those good flavor/aroma hops much later like @5 minutes or @flameout or even better, as whirlpool/hopstand hops at lower temps (180-150F) after the boil, and let steep for 30' or longer, before chilling all the way down to fermentation temps.
Then dry hop 3-7 days before cold crashing and packaging.

 

[mscroggi]

When it's done fermenting (a good week or so) taste some and decide if it's worth going forward with it. You may surprise yourself.
If so, dry hop that with those 3 hops, or with just the Citra and Centennial, 4-8 oz total.

If you really like IPAs, buy hops in larger amounts, online, to make the price tag more palatable. E.g., YakimaValleyHops, HopsDirect, etc. and store in freezer.

Boiling those "good" hops for 30 minutes really kills their flavor and aroma. I'd use those good flavor/aroma hops much later like @5 minutes or @flameout or even better, as whirlpool/hopstand hops at lower temps (180-150F) after the boil, and let steep for 30' or longer, before chilling all the way down to fermentation temps.
Then dry hop 3-7 days before cold crashing and packaging.

@IslandLizard thank you for that tip on dry hopping it heavily afterwards!.. (4-8 oz? Thats a ton!) I was interested in obtaining some larger volumes of hops and storing.. I wasn't sure how long they would last, so I havent done it yet.. If I had had any extra hops on hand I probably could have dealt with the problem a whole lot better.

 

[IslandLizard]

You could try with 2 oz first, then after 3 days do a taste sample and add more if you want for another 3-5 days, then package. For most hoppy IPAs 3-4 oz of dry hop in a 5 gallon batch is a good start, IMO. Now I like em very hoppy! It also depends on your OG, larger beers can sustain more hops and also more bitterness. Yours won't be short on the last.

 

[couchsending]

What ABV is the beer? Doubt it’ll be that bitter. Keep in mind those are theoretical IBUs. You won’t end up with that many in the final beer. Also High dry hopping amounts can actually reduce IBUs so sounds like as good a time as any to give it a whirl. 6-8oz dry hop is the general target for my hoppy beers depending on the hop variety.

 

[mscroggi]

What ABV is the beer? Doubt it’ll be that bitter. Keep in mind those are theoretical IBUs. You won’t end up with that many in the final beer. Also High dry hopping amounts can actually reduce IBUs so sounds like as good a time as any to give it a whirl. 6-8oz dry hop is the general target for my hoppy beers depending on the hop variety.

Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 8.0 % according to BS (15.5 lb grain bill). I am anxious to sample it.. but its still bubbling away.. Sunday the week is up and I can hopefully get a feel for it.. I am so invested in the batch already, unless it is really awful, I will do the extra dry hopping.. I acquired a cache of hops in case I do it. Fingers crossed..

 

[Calder]

Pellet hops keep pretty well. I just bought 6 lbs and tossed then straight into the freezer.

They will last a couple of years from opening if you vacuum seal after opening.

Unopened, they will last several years with little degradation, if they have been packaged properly. If you go check out the hop sale on Yakima Valley Hops, they are selling 2014 and 2015 hops ..... not sure I would buy them, but would probably go for 2016 harvest if available.

Pellets store better than leaf. Use leaf up within a year of purchase.

 

[mscroggi]

Update on my Hop Dip Method creation..

Fermentation finished and I gave it a taste. It was not close to the IPA I was aiming for obviously.. Interestingly it tastes like a really robust pale. I pretty well liked it. I liked it so much in fact that I decided not to do another round of dry hopping. (I had dry hopped with 1 oz Simcoe and 1 oz Amarillo Gold). I wish I had more experience to better gauge how it will be different after a month of aging. When I brewed the original IPA, I liked the taste pretty well green, but after the aging process it blew my socks off..

I wanted to try to brew something similar to Sierra Nevada's Celebration Ale next anyway.. hehee. Serendipitous moment...

 

[GrimBeaver]

I wish I had more experience to better gauge how it will be different after a month of aging.

Why would you have any left after a month? Drink up!

I will be curious to hear how this turns out. If it's good share the whole recipe as I have been craving a strong bitter IPA.

 

[mscroggi]

Why would you have any left after a month? Drink up!

I will be curious to hear how this turns out. If it's good share the whole recipe as I have been craving a strong bitter IPA.

This is the original IPA recipe that I loved. It is based off a West Coast IPA recipe in BS from @FirstStateBrewer I think.. This is the recipe I was following when I messed up the hop additions.


Recipe Specifications
--------------------------
Boil Size: 6.43 gal
Post Boil Volume: 5.73 gal
Batch Size (fermenter): 5.25 gal
Bottling Volume: 5.00 gal
Estimated OG: 1.077 SG
Estimated Color: 8.4 SRM
Estimated IBU: 59.9 IBUs
Brewhouse Efficiency: 72.00 %
Est Mash Efficiency: 75.4 %
Boil Time: 60 Minutes

Ingredients:
------------
Amt Name Type # %/IBU Volume
8.29 gal Distilled Water Water 1 - -
20.20 ml Lactic Acid (Mash) Water Agent 2 - -
11.22 g Gypsum (Calcium Sulfate) (Mash) Water Agent 3 - -
3.62 g Baking Soda (Mash) Water Agent 4 - -
3.22 g Epsom Salt (MgSO4) (Mash) Water Agent 5 - -
2.94 g Calcium Chloride (Mash) Water Agent 6 - -
14 lbs Pale Ale Malt (2 Row) US (2.5 SRM) Grain 7 90.3 % 1.09 gal
8.0 oz Caramel Malt - 20L (Cargill) (20.0 SRM) Grain 8 3.2 % 0.04 gal
8.0 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt - 40L (40.0 SRM) Grain 9 3.2 % 0.04 gal
8.0 oz Munich Malt - Light (6.0 SRM) Grain 10 3.2 % 0.04 gal
1.00 oz Warrior [15.00 %] - Boil 60.0 min Hop 11 44.8 IBUs -
2.90 g Gypsum (Calcium Sulfate) (Boil) Water Agent 12 - -
0.94 g Baking Soda (Boil) Water Agent 13 - -
0.83 g Epsom Salt (MgSO4) (Boil) Water Agent 14 - -
0.76 g Calcium Chloride (Boil) Water Agent 15 - -
2.00 tsp Irish Moss (Boil 10.0 mins) Fining 16 - -
1.00 oz Centennial [10.90 %] - Boil 10.0 min Hop 17 11.8 IBUs -
1.00 oz Cascade [5.50 %] - Boil 5.0 min Hop 18 3.3 IBUs -
2.0 pkg Safale American (DCL/Fermentis #US-05) [50.28 m Yeast 19 - -
1.00 oz Amarillo Gold [8.50 %] - Dry Hop 0.0 Days Hop 20 0.0 IBUs -
1.00 oz Citra [13.70 %] - Dry Hop 0.0 Days Hop 21 0.0 IBUs -
1.00 oz Simcoe [13.00 %] - Dry Hop 0.0 Days Hop 22 0.0 IBUs -
0.50 oz Cascade [5.50 %] - Dry Hop 0.0 Days Hop 23 0.0 IBUs -


Mash Schedule: Robobrew Mash and Sparge Med Body
Total Grain Weight: 15 lbs 8.0 oz
----------------------------
Name Description Step Temperature Step Time
Mash In Add 5.50 gal of water at 164.6 F 152.0 F 75 min
Ramp up for mash out Heat to 168.0 F over 10 min 168.0 F 10 min

Sparge: Fly sparge with 2.79 gal water at 168.0 F
Notes:
------

 

[mscroggi]

Why would you have any left after a month? Drink up!

I will be curious to hear how this turns out. If it's good share the whole recipe as I have been craving a strong bitter IPA.

I have been tasting this for a while.. It's hard to stay out of it.. It's two weeks in the keg about now.. This is a surprising brew.. It doesn't have the super strong hop kick initially but it is very rich and lingers for a long time - something I love about IPA's. The alcohol is a bit more pronounced than the original recipe.

Its amazing how you can mess up a recipe and still have something to enjoy.