Need help with first attempt at American IPA

[Jaxford]

Just planning my next extract and was thinking about an American IPA. I'm researching recipe and hop schedules and there is a lot of good data to review.

One thing I'm having a problem with is that if you start with a 1.070 or 80 gravity don't you have to bottle age for the best quality? How long before it's ready to drink? And if so do the hops dissipate?

 

[s3n8]

The hops will tend to mellow with age, so for this reason, I always step up the BU's on bigger IPAs. A 1.07 or .08 beer will take 3 - 4 months to be really "ready". It might be carbonated before then, but it wont be great until then .

If I were going for 1.08, I would go for at least 80 - 90 IBUs. There will still be plenty of hop pop when its ready.

 

[Jaxford]

The hops will tend to mellow with age, so for this reason, I always step up the BU's on bigger IPAs. A 1.07 or .08 beer will take 3 - 4 months to be really "ready". It might be carbonated before then, but it wont be great until then .

If I were going for 1.08, I would go for at least 80 - 90 IBUs. There will still be plenty of hop pop when its ready.

My brother ended up picking up the "Vinnie's Blind Pig IPA-Extract" since this will be our first big IPA going with a kit sounded smart. Once we have a reference point we can jack with the recipe.

Can't get the Blind Pig here so no idea what the real thing taste like but the kit sounds good.

Anyone have the real thing or brewed this kit from MoreBeer.

 

[nutcase]

My brother ended up picking up the "Vinnie's Blind Pig IPA-Extract" since this will be our first big IPA going with a kit sounded smart. Once we have a reference point we can jack with the recipe.

Can't get the Blind Pig here so no idea what the real thing taste like but the kit sounds good.

Anyone have the real thing or brewed this kit from MoreBeer.

I've only had the real thing- but it's fantastic!

 

[samc]

My brother ended up picking up the "Vinnie's Blind Pig IPA-Extract" since this will be our first big IPA going with a kit sounded smart. Once we have a reference point we can jack with the recipe.

Can't get the Blind Pig here so no idea what the real thing taste like but the kit sounds good.

Anyone have the real thing or brewed this kit from MoreBeer.

Blind Pig is a great beer - I prefer Pliny although last I checked they did not have it available. Can you tell us what is in the kit they provided. MoreBeer has been doing some major hop subbing on the kits and I am curious to see what they have done to the Pig!

 

[s3n8]

my brother did that kit from b3. It turned out well, never had the original.

 

[Donthoseme]

Personally with IPAs and IIPAs i enjoy drinking them early when i get the most hop pop. After i keg most of my beers are best after 3 weeks depending on style (i'm a hop head). If you want a really hoppy beer make sure you boil as much wort as you can to get the most hop utitizaion. I've heard people say you can't do a REAL IIPA ulness you brew all grain or at least boil all your wort at once. I don't know i've made decent IPAs with extract but never a IIPA. Good luck!

 

[Jaxford]

Blind Pig is a great beer - I prefer Pliny although last I checked they did not have it available. Can you tell us what is in the kit they provided. MoreBeer has been doing some major hop subbing on the kits and I am curious to see what they have done to the Pig!

It didn't have the ingredients listed in detail but does state the hops. See below description...

This original homebrew recipe was the basis for Blind Pig IPA which won Silver Medals at the World Cup of Beer and the Great American Beer Festival in 1996, the last year Vinnie brewed it. The recipe list is extremely long with four different types of malt and six different additions of Chinook, Cascade and Centennial hops. Two 'dry hop' additions along with 2 oz of American Oak are added directly to the fermenter after the first week of fermentation. To say it is a very unique, extremely flavorful IPA is an understatement. Vinnie recommends using White Labs California yeast, WLP001