SMaSH-ed IPA

[YogiBearMead726]

In lieu of resources to do my planned Lalvin yeast test, I'm planning a series of beers to familiarize myself with the flavor and characteristics of base malts and hop varieties.

The idea came from an online search which yielded SMaSH brewing; that is, single malt and single hop brewing. I refined the plan with a new-found friend working for a local microbrew/my grain source. Basically, I plan to make an IPA/pale ale for each base malt they have; American 2-row, English pale, Belgian pale, organic 2-row, Marris Otter pale, Golden Promise (Scottish 2-row), American 6-row, and once I have a temperature controller, all the Pilsner malts using noble hops from the same regions.

Round one plan is as follows:

5.5 gallon batch
-16 lbs of American 2-row pale malt
-4 oz of Chinook hop pellets, 10% AA, to be used for bittering, aroma, flavor, and dry hopping, process to follow
-US-05 yeast, 11.5g, to minimize flavor impact from yeast

Target OG: 1.070
Mass efficiency: 68%

So my plan for the hops is 1 oz at the beginning of the boil (60 minutes), 1 oz with 20 minutes left, 1 oz in the last 5 minutes, and the last 1 oz added as dry hopping.

My question is, should I add the dry hop addition for the beginning of primary, or wait until conditioning (secondary) to add the hops? I assume adding in secondary helps to preserve aroma, which is what I'm really after, but I would love some input, both on this and on my brewing plan. ;D

 

[Fisher kel Tath]

Fairly high OG don't you think? for something like this wouldn't a more sessionable beer be better?

 

[akueck]

Super fun idea! I've had some single-hop beers side-by-side and they are very illuminating.

Dry hops should be added after the major bit of fermentation is done. The idea is to keep the aromatics, so any active fermentation will ruin that. You don't necessarily have to move the beer to secondary to dry hop, but don't add them right away.

 

[YogiBearMead726]

Fairly high OG don't you think? for something like this wouldn't a more sessionable beer be better?

Yes and no...I personally love big, hoppy beers, so 7-8% sounds like a wonderful IPA to me. I will agree that this gravity is much too high for all the grains I want to test, especially the German pils and others like it. I just want to make something that fits the style trends for the country of origin, so for this American malt and hop varietal, I wanted a big and hoppy American IPA. Though, I might not be able to taste test for awhile on this one.

Super fun idea! I've had some single-hop beers side-by-side and they are very illuminating.

Dry hops should be added after the major bit of fermentation is done. The idea is to keep the aromatics, so any active fermentation will ruin that. You don't necessarily have to move the beer to secondary to dry hop, but don't add them right away.

Thanks for the encouragement! Also, thanks for the pointer on dry hopping. Maybe I'll add after fermentation, condition, and just bottle from there.

 

[Mars Colonist]

My favorite SMaSH to make is Simcoe hops and Vienna malt. I use San Fran lager @ 63°F. It is designed to BJCP Blonde Ale guidelines.

 

[YogiBearMead726]

My favorite SMaSH to make is Simcoe hops and Vienna malt. I use San Fran lager @ 63°F. It is designed to BJCP Blonde Ale guidelines.

Mmmmmmmmmm...Simcoe and Vienna...*cue Homer Simpson open-mouth drool*

I'll give that a try once I get to the lager-type base malts. Thanks for the tip!

 

[YogiBearMead726]

Well, that's the last time I decide to start mashing later than 4pm.

Basically, I made this last night, used a bit too much sparge water, and ended up with 7 gallons of 1.050 wort after boiling. It's kind of funny, but I did hit my target gravity...I just forgot to keep checking SG during sparge. That's what happens when you try to make beer at 10pm.

So, instead of my calculated 385 GU from my base malt, I got 350 GU. Not too shabby, so I think my mash efficiency is getting better with each time I brew. Now I just need a false-bottom...

Edit: So, instead of an IPA, I'm thinking this will just be a nice, hoppy American pale ale. And since it's got a lower SG, it'll be ready for tasting sooner. I'm trying my hardest to not be disappointed with my air-head moment by looking on the bright side. It's pretty easy, I guess, knowing that I'll have 6-7 gallons to drink later on.