Best ipa kit

[GhostShip]

Sorry to ask a daft question but I am considering the Young's AIPA kit, how many litres (gallons) does this kit make?

23 litres.

 

[Graz]

This might be a really silly question (it wouldn't be the first time), but Youngs say the hops should only be in for 2/3 days. If they're in for 3 days and I then drop the temperature of the beer to 1ºC (or as low as I can get it) and leave it for another couple of days, is there a danger the oil from the hops could spoil the beer or does the reduction in temperature nulify the effect of the hops?

No not a silly question at all! It was kind of guesswork for me too but it seemed to come out okay. I don't think I left it more than 24 hours for the cold crash, I'm really never that bothered about the clarity of the end product but what I did really want to avoid was the trauma I'd been through in the past trying to siphon brews with lots of hop debris in them. Cold crashing really seems to help with this. If I remember correctly I chucked the pellets in, left it 2 days, then set the fridge to cold and bottled it 24 hours after that. This was long enough to get the hop crud to drop out.

I'd guess chilling it would slow down the release of whatever is coming out of the hops, much like trying to make a cup of tea with cold water.

 

[GhostShip]

No not a silly question at all! It was kind of guesswork for me too but it seemed to come out okay. I don't think I left it more than 24 hours for the cold crash, I'm really never that bothered about the clarity of the end product but what I did really want to avoid was the trauma I'd been through in the past trying to siphon brews with lots of hop debris in them. Cold crashing really seems to help with this. If I remember correctly I chucked the pellets in, left it 2 days, then set the fridge to cold and bottled it 24 hours after that. This was long enough to get the hop crud to drop out.

I'd guess chilling it would slow down the release of whatever is coming out of the hops, much like trying to make a cup of tea with cold water.

That's really helpful - thank you!

 

[halfhorse]

I'm planning Young's AIPA to be my next kit. Can I put it in a pressure barrel or should I bottle it?

 

[Oneflewover]

I'm planning Young's AIPA to be my next kit. Can I put it in a pressure barrel or should I bottle it?

You can do what you want with it! However, the priming sugar you get with the kit will result in a reasonably high level of carbonation best suited to bottling rather than pressure barrelling

 

[halfhorse]

You can do what you want with it! However, the priming sugar you get with the kit will result in a reasonably high level of carbonation best suited to bottling rather than pressure barrelling

Thanks for the reply. Why is a bottle better suited to a beer with a high carbonation? Does a barrel lose pressure over time and if so can I rectify this by regularly injecting CO2 into the barrel?

 

[Roger Wilko]

From experience I’ve found no matter how well my pressure barrel is sealed it just won’t hold the higher pressure of more gassy beers like ipa. So I bought some bottles and use them for my ipa brews and my pressure barrel for stout and porter which doesn’t require the high carbonation.

 

[GhostShip]

I want to get another brew on soon. As much as I love the AIPA, it is strong and I could do with more of a session beer for when friends come round.

Can anyone recommend an IPA (or something similar) in kit form that gives a good result without the strength? I like lighter, hoppy beers, so maybe something I could dry hop as an addition in order to give it a bit more of a hit?

 

[Roger Wilko]

Festival razorback gets the thumbs up from me. It was the first ipa kit I brewed and to date the best. It may change when my aipa is ready though

 

[RichK]

I want to get another brew on soon. As much as I love the AIPA, it is strong and I could do with more of a session beer for when friends come round.

Can anyone recommend an IPA (or something similar) in kit form that gives a good result without the strength? I like lighter, hoppy beers, so maybe something I could dry hop as an addition in order to give it a bit more of a hit?

The Festival Razorback that several have mentioned does include a fair quantity of sugar in the box that could be reduced/omitted if desired (though I've never tried it).

 

[Kevsan1]

well I thought I’d gauge your thoughts on your favourite ipa kit. I’ve brewed festival razorback which is so far my favourite and also mangrove jack grapefruit ipa which Didn’t hit the spot with me. I quite fancy the Young’s aipa but at over 6% I find a little too strong

I’ve done 2 lots of of evil dog double ipa, it’s very strong but lacks hops flavour, the issue is that they give you the hops in a teabag, and don’t supply the priming sugar. So when I bought the Young’s AIPA it was nice to see the hops were loose and sugar provided. Turns out to be a great pint, it’s only been in bottle 2 weeks but tastes great !!! Will definitely do that one again !!!

 

[Pablosaurus]

I have the AIPA on the go too. Fermentation went off like a rocket after only 6hrs in the FV, and then after 24hrs it had stopped completely, like stone dead, for a whole day. I think the issue was the foaming head had lifted the yeast out of the wort (holding it away from the sugars) before it had time to replicate. A scrape off the sides and lid of the FV with a sterilised spatular saw it rocket off again within 15mins! This brew is like a Chrstopher Nolan movie - loads of excitement and action but you never fully understand what's going on.

 

[kelper]

St Peter's IPA is wonderful.