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First BIABacus Brew

Post #1 made 9 years ago
by Wadey82
I'm planning my second BIAB and first time using BIABacus, I going to brew the APA recipe from Brewing Classic Styles. I've uploaded this into the BIABacus, played around with the VIF to suit my kettle. I've added 3 liters before the boil as I'm being greedy and want to get the most beer out of my kettle.
The only thing I'm not sure about is the hop bill. The total IBUs in BIABacus are 34.6, the recipe lists 40 IBUs and I have read that BCS recipes can be a touch light on the hops, I also had to substitute Horizon Hops for Magnums which have slightly less AA%.
Also the recipe list hop additions at zero minutes, would this be at flame out or dry hopping?

If someone wouldn't mind reveiwing BIABacus and checking if it looks OK or if I have missed anything.

I listed the details not included in BIABacus below.

OG: 1.056
FG: 1.013
ADF: 77%
IBU: 40
Colour: 6 SRM (12 EBC)
Alcohol: 5.7% ABV
Boil: 60
Pre-boil Volume: 26.5L
Pre-Boil Gravity: 1.048

Thanks
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Post #2 made 9 years ago
by Rick
I'm away from my book at the moment, but if the AA% of your hops differ from what is in the original recipe ... you will need to enter it on the right side of the same section under "substitutions". The BIABacus will then recalculate.

Also, BCS IBU values are given in Rager ... while BIABAcus uses Tinseth. They are going to be different, and there are a few conversion calculators that will pop up in a google search if you feel the need to confirm.
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Post #3 made 9 years ago
by Wadey82
Thanks Rick, I adjusted the AA% for the horizon hops but forgot to change the name to magnum. I'll look up the conversation online for the IBU.
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Post #5 made 9 years ago
by Scott
Hello Wadey82,

This is a recipe I brew frequently. I really like pale ales, even pretty hoppy ones. IPAs are sometimes "over the top" in my opinion - both in ABV and IBU, so I incline down a little bit and have these APAs as my "hoppy beer". So I really do like this beer.

A couple mistake you made on your hops...
1) Leave the recipe on the Left Side - Original Hop Bill Design, and when you make adjustments to the recipe put it in the section on the Right Side - Substitutions. You inadvertently putting in a lower AA in the Original section will lower the resulting IBU. NOTE...looking at a BIABacus for this I show IBU of 35.9. Yours shows 34.6 because of you changing the Original Hop Bill, putting 11.9 in the original for Horizon, and should be 13.0. The BIABacus file will adjust and tell you the correct amount of lower AA hops to use in the Substitutions section.
2) What Rick said about Rager and Tinseth is correct. And IF - after brewing this beer you decide you want to increase the hoppiness next time, do it in Section D. The Hop Bill, second line where you can change the IBU. Just dial in a higher IBU. I would recommend going with the recipe for your first time through. See how you like it. It's quite good as is...
3) The 0 minute hop addition (or could consider it a 1 minute or 30 second addition) are not Dry Hopping. They are final boil additions, flavor or finishing hops.

One other thing I sometimes do to slightly lower the ABV is use the Adjustment to OG section (in C. The Fermentable Bill. But no problem if you want a tad higher alcohol, sometimes I do too.

A Couple Things I've Done to Tweak My APAs, From This Recipe:
1) Did a Fresh Hop version in late summer last year with Cascade hops I grow in my back yard. Yum...!!! Did a double batch. Two different yeasts. Turned out well...each yeast produced a slightly different beer. Really like Fresh Hop pale ales... Magical time of the year!
2) Last go around I actually did dry hop the beer. That was good too, in a different sort of way. But this recipe does not call for Dry Hopping the beer.

Anyhow, hope this helps. Good Luck! :luck:
Last edited by Scott on 12 May 2016, 11:58, edited 1 time in total.
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Post #6 made 9 years ago
by Wadey82
Thanks for the advice Scott, I'll fix the hop bill in BIABacus. Even thou I read that BCS can be a touch light on the hops it's very subjective so I think I'll leave them as is and brew per the recipe. I I'm planing on brewing this beer on Saturday so hopefully all goes well.

Cheers
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Post #7 made 9 years ago
by Wadey82
I brewed this on the weekend, things went much smoother this time. The only issue I had was my evaporation rate was much less than BIABacus predicted. I think because my immersion heater doesn't boil that vigorously. Based on my evaporation rate over 30mins I calculated that I need an additional 30 mins of boil which turned out to be correct as all my numbers were spot on and I achieved 80% efficiency . I know many people on here say not to worry about the number so much on your first brews but to hit all your SGs and achieve good efficiency is a real confidence booster. My beer is currently bubbling away so fingers crossed it taste good.
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Post #8 made 9 years ago
by Lumpy5oh
Good on you Wadey82. Definitely keep us posted on how it turns out.
Did you adjust your hop additions to account for the longer boil?
Some people are like slinkies. Not good for much, but bring a smile to your face when pushed down the stairs.

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