Simple AG IPA recipe for a newbie - 10 Litres

[chriffle88]

Hello all - very new here and looking for some advice.

I want to do my first all grain brew. Out of preference I would like to make it as close to an IPA as possible and not too weak. There are some awesome looking recipes out there but as it is my first AG I wanted to keep it simple and if possible just use one hop so I can truly understand what it tastes like. I would also like to do a 10 litre batch if possible (my larger vessels are in use already).

On an old thread I found the following recipe but it didn't say what volumes it would do so wasn't sure how to make it work for 10 litres.

5500g Pale Malt
220g Crystal Malt
73g Cascade 60 mins
27g Cascade 15 mins
25g Cascade Dry Hopped


All and any suggestions, advice and recipes welcome.

 

[terrym]

That looks like a recipe for 23 litres to me.
If you pro rate everything by 10/23 and then punch it into a calculator like below you will be able to see what it wll turn out like. But make sure you use the %AA of your own hops, which may be different from the recipe you found, and therefore may need adjusting.
https://www.brewersfriend.com/homebrew/recipe/calculator

 

[chriffle88]

That looks like a recipe for 23 litres to me.
If you pro rate everything by 10/23 and then punch it into a calculator like below you will be able to see what it wll turn out like. But make sure you use the %AA of your own hops, which may be different from the recipe you found, and therefore may need adjusting.
https://www.brewersfriend.com/homebrew/recipe/calculator

Thanks terrym - that is helpful - I'll head over there and have a look. I'll probably be back with more questions once I've got myself totally confused!

 

[matt76]

Hi there @chriffle88

I do 10L-ish batches, and I recently made a strongish IPA that might fit the bill.

As @terrym says, use a recipe builder like Brewer's Friend to find tune your recipe (and ask questions!), but roughly speaking for a 5.5-6.0%ish IPA I'd do something like this...

I start with 15 or 16L water - after boil off and other losses I usually end up with 20 X 500ml bottles (N.B. I only boil for 30 mins though - if you plan to do a more standard 60 min boil you might need an extra 1-2L water)

Start with a 3kg bag of base malt (seems to be a standard size bag)...

You could then add a 500g bag of Munich malt for extra depth...

(I advise against adding any crystal malt as I've found it suppresses the hop character)

You'll add your hops for bittering, plus some more near the end of the boil for flavour and aroma, then also dry hop at the end of fermentation for extra hoppy goodness.

In my example above I used Chinook and Simcoe but there are tons of suitable hops to choose from. Let us know if you have any hops in particular in mind.

Likewise there are myriad liquid and dry yeasts to choose from that'll do a cracking job for IPAs.

Let me know if you want more specific guidance, happy to give you some pointers

 

[chriffle88]

thanks @matt76 - very helpful

The more specific the better so far as I'm concerned - still got my stabilisers on!

Would you be able to tell me how much of each of the hops to add and what timings you recommend for the additions?

Also what yeast to use - HB Online have this one that looks suitable to me, Mangrove Jack's Craft Series Yeast US West Coast M44 - would that be ok?

 

[matt76]

thanks @matt76 - very helpful

The more specific the better so far as I'm concerned - still got my stabilisers on!

Would you be able to tell me how much of each of the hops to add and what timings you recommend for the additions?

Also what yeast to use - HB Online have this one that looks suitable to me, Mangrove Jack's Craft Series Yeast US West Coast M44 - would that be ok?

Let me come back to you with some suggested hops & timings, I might need to bung an example recipe together in Brewer's Friend.

It would be useful to know a bit about your equipment, e.g. big pot on the kitchen hob, fancy electric all in one brewing system etc.

One big tip I'll give you if you're ordering ingredients is to also get a grain bag, a thermometer and a hydrometer of you don't have these already.

Also, take a look at this have a go at Simple AG post which gives a good idea of what you need to do (many of us started here, myself included).

Regarding yeast, yep M44 will be perfect

 

[matt76]

I created an example recipe using Simcoe, Citra & Amarillo.

This is a slightly tweaked version of my 5th AG brew - so I haven't made it exactly like this before but it's how I would do it today. In fact I'm tempted to go brew it now!

The bitterness shouldn't be too over the top, it should be quite fruity and the Amarillo hops give a real citrus orangey flavour.

It's a little unusual in that I don't add any hops until 20mins left in the boil ("Late Hopping") for a more saturated hop flavour.

It looks complicated but if you measure your hops out beforehand there are only 3 additions during the boil, at 20, 10 & 5 mins left in the boil (followed by a dry hop after fermentation).

(And if it looks too scary let me know and we can help you figure out something a bit more pared down)

https://www.brewersfriend.com/homebrew/recipe/view/1022345/ag-55-podium-ipa

 

[chriffle88]

I created an example recipe using Simcoe, Citra & Amarillo.

This is a slightly tweaked version of my 5th AG brew - so I haven't made it exactly like this before but it's how I would do it today. In fact I'm tempted to go brew it now!

The bitterness shouldn't be too over the top, it should be quite fruity and the Amarillo hops give a real citrus orangey flavour.

It's a little unusual in that I don't add any hops until 20mins left in the boil ("Late Hopping") for a more saturated hop flavour.

It looks complicated but if you measure your hops out beforehand there are only 3 additions during the boil, at 20, 10 & 5 mins left in the boil (followed by a dry hop after fermentation).

(And if it looks too scary let me know and we can help you figure out something a bit more pared down)

https://www.brewersfriend.com/homebrew/recipe/view/1022345/ag-55-podium-ipa

This is excellent - thank you!

I have a 32L home made boiler, 2x 30L pails for FV and bottling and 2x 15L pails for smaller batches like this one. All the usual thermometers, hydrometer, trial jar etc plus a fermentation fridge (also home made). I'll grab a grain bag to keep things tidy. I plan to use one of my pails for the mash and just wrap it up and put in the fermentation fridge with the temp turned up.

Just three questions at this stage:

1. If my local HB shop only has whole leaf hops rather than the pellets you suggest, do I need to tweak the recipe?
2. for the dry hopping at 3 days, I presume you just lift the lid on the FV, chuck them in and get it sealed back up quickly?
3. Are the Gypsum and AMS essential or is that just your preference? - are they just lowering pH?

Thanks for your help.

 

[matt76]

1. Hmm... technically yes you should adjust for leaf vs. pellets, but also because the hops you but will likely have a different alpha acid content (%AAU). But you will more then likely be closer enough so you could probably ignore this. Just be aware when you dry hop I find leaf hops tend to soak up more beer.

I can thoroughly recommend you order your hops from Crossmyloof via eBay - fast, good value and almost all their hops are pellets. While you're there you could also grab a pack of their Pia yeast, a good and popular alternative to the M44 we discussed. I'll find a link...

2. Yep. Try to minimise oxygen exposure of you can. I sometimes add pellet hops through the airlock bung hole to aid this, but if there's a lot (or in using leaf hops) then I just lift the lid.

3. You can ignore these water treatments for now - I didn't bother with water treatment until I had a number of brews under my belt. Besides which, I have very hard water so these treatments work for me, but it might be different for you. If you're using tap water then what you will need to do is add half a Campden tablet to your water to remove the chlorine.

 

[matt76]

CML links on eBay:

Hops (make sure you select the right ones from the drop down!)
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/263182583449
Pia yeast (again, check the drop down to select the right one):
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/264273232119

 

[chriffle88]

Thanks @matt76 - all extremely helpful.

Order placed with Crossmyloof - thank you!

Will speak to my local shop re the Malt - unless you have any cost effective recommendations online?

Just one question now I think and largely out of curiosity - why do you just do a 30min boil?

 

[Galena]

I did a 10 litre batch yesterday, for reference my total water was 17L, after the mash and sparge I had 15L pre boil. I got 10L in the FV so was bang on target. That was with a 60 minute mash and 60 minute boil

 

[chriffle88]

I did a 10 litre batch yesterday, for reference my total water was 17L, after the mash and sparge I had 15L pre boil. I got 10L in the FV so was bang on target. That was with a 60 minute mash and 60 minute boil

Thanks @Galena - good to know

 

[matt76]

I did a 10 litre batch yesterday, for reference my total water was 17L, after the mash and sparge I had 15L pre boil. I got 10L in the FV so was bang on target. That was with a 60 minute mash and 60 minute boil

Yep, that makes sense - I normally start with 15L (occasionally 16L) and end up with 10-11L in the FV. Boil off is typically around 4L/hr - so in my 30min boil I only lose about 2L, but since you're doing 60mins it makes sense you'd need to start with a couple of extra litres.

Just one question now I think and largely out of curiosity - why do you just do a 30min boil?

Why does everyone else do 60mins (or 90 or whatever)? Why is 5 US Gal/20L/40pints "standard"?

OK, one reason for a longer boil is supposedly to drive off DMS. However, I believe it's the case that this is not such an issue with modern malts - certainly I've not experienced any issues since moving from 60 to 30mins.

A longer boil will also concentrate the wort more and extract more bitterness from the hops - but the extra grain and hops required to compensate is peanuts at the homebrew scale, even more so with 10L batches.

The change was inspired by "Simple Homebrewing" by Drew Beechum and Denny Conn. The same book also made me switch from doing a dunk sparge to full-volume no-sparge mashes.

Put simply I do a 30min boil because it makes my brew day 30mins shorter - in fact this combined with full-volume no-sparge mashing has cut 90-120mins off my brew day. It's less stressful and I enjoy my brewing more as a result

 

[Galena]

Yep, that makes sense - I normally start with 15L (occasionally 16L) and end up with 10-11L in the FV. Boil off is typically around 4L/hr - so in my 30min boil I only lose about 2L, but since you're doing 60mins it makes sense you'd need to start with a couple of extra litres.


Why does everyone else do 60mins (or 90 or whatever)? Why is 5 US Gal/20L/40pints "standard"?

Don't forget the US Gallon is only 6.6 pints or thereabouts so that a 5 gallon batch is only 19 litres approx

 

[matt76]

Will speak to my local shop re the Malt - unless you have any cost effective recommendations online?

Sorry, just realised I never answered this. No, no specific recommendations - if you have somewhere local then for sure support local. Otherwise there are three usual suspects mentioned on the forum, plus forum sponsors

 

[chriffle88]

@matt76 - I am doing your AG#55 Podium IPA recipe on Sat and had just two questions:

1. The mash guidelines say amount is 16L but when you print it, the water guidelines say total mash water needed is 20L. When I am heating my water up to the required 65 degrees - how much do I need?

2. I'm not totally clear on what I need to do for the whirlpool additions - do I just let the wort cool to 90 degrees, give is a good stir, add the hops and leave it for 10 mins before chilling down to 20 degrees for pitching the yeast?

Sorry for the thick questions but just anxious to get this right and not done it before.

 

[matt76]

@matt76 - I am doing your AG#55 Podium IPA recipe on Sat and had just two questions:

1. The mash guidelines say amount is 16L but when you print it, the water guidelines say total mash water needed is 20L. When I am heating my water up to the required 65 degrees - how much do I need?

2. I'm not totally clear on what I need to do for the whirlpool additions - do I just let the wort cool to 90 degrees, give is a good stir, add the hops and leave it for 10 mins before chilling down to 20 degrees for pitching the yeast?

Sorry for the thick questions but just anxious to get this right and not done it before.

No problem.

1. I'm not sure where the 20L is coming from. I do a 30min boil and lose 2L in the boil. If you want to do a 60 boil you may need to add a couple more litres, but your boil off will vary a bit to mine. Also you'll need to hear the water up to more like 68-70degC as the grain will cool it a little.

2. Whirlpool - yep, that's pretty much it. But if you stir be very gentle. Avoid splashing hot wort as this can cause oxidation. And because it's hot and burns are painful!

Good luck

 

[Jordang]

Yep, that makes sense - I normally start with 15L (occasionally 16L) and end up with 10-11L in the FV. Boil off is typically around 4L/hr - so in my 30min boil I only lose about 2L, but since you're doing 60mins it makes sense you'd need to start with a couple of extra litres.


Why does everyone else do 60mins (or 90 or whatever)? Why is 5 US Gal/20L/40pints "standard"?

OK, one reason for a longer boil is supposedly to drive off DMS. However, I believe it's the case that this is not such an issue with modern malts - certainly I've not experienced any issues since moving from 60 to 30mins.

A longer boil will also concentrate the wort more and extract more bitterness from the hops - but the extra grain and hops required to compensate is peanuts at the homebrew scale, even more so with 10L batches.

The change was inspired by "Simple Homebrewing" by Drew Beechum and Denny Conn. The same book also made me switch from doing a dunk sparge to full-volume no-sparge mashes.

Put simply I do a 30min boil because it makes my brew day 30mins shorter - in fact this combined with full-volume no-sparge mashing has cut 90-120mins off my brew day. It's less stressful and I enjoy my brewing more as a result

Thanks for that, book ordered!!