I have signed up for a case swap in February with the local brew club. I figured with 3 BIAB efforts behind me it would be good to have a specific challenge and much more importantly to be able to taste the variety of beers that this will bring.
The only rule for the case swap is that the estimated IBU needs to be above 70! This is a serious challenge and I am worried about my ability to balance the IBUs in a way that will produce a beer that is drinkable, obviously something that was interesting and appealing would be a bonus.
I have done a bit of reading on the topic and so far the challenges that I envisage are as follows:
1. Calculating efficiency for a high gravity beer which I am assuming will be necessary in balancing the hops.
2. Choosing a style that is capable of producing a decent beer within these parameters.
3. Calculating the pitching rate for yeast for a high gravity beer.
4. Designing a recipe that is likely to produce a decent beer given the above.
I am currently intrigued by red ales and have found a few recipes for imperial red ales that look like they would fit the bill and I have most of the grain required to brew this style.
So what I am asking is are there any glaring omissions in what I am considering and does anyone have any advice about brewing high gravity, high IBU BIAB brews that would be useful in taking on this challenge. I will probably give this a go over the next couple of months so if it is a complete disaster I will be able to rebrew but more informaiton will hopefully lead to a decent result first go!
Cheers
Post #2 made 13 years ago
This was interesting.
BobBrews wrote:April 12, 2012 - Hop Bursting IBU Test
http://www.basicbrewing.com/index.php?p ... radio-2012
Home Brewer Kim Odland from Norway brewed a beer with an enormous amount of hops added at the end of the boil. Brad Sturgeon from Monmouth College puts it through his lab to look at its IBUs.
iTunes | Streaming mp3
http://ec.libsyn.com/p/c/b/6/cb6cb5bd39 ... id=4441781
Very enlightening show!
Last edited by Mad_Scientist on 11 Sep 2013, 08:47, edited 2 times in total.
-
- SVA Brewer With Over 100 Brews From United States of America
-
Post #3 made 13 years ago
Search for BobBrew's "Black IPA". 
---Todd
---Todd
WWBBD?
-
- SVA Brewer With Over 100 Brews From United States of America
-
Post #4 made 13 years ago
Thanks Todd have had a read through that thread and it certainly looks like a crowd pleaser. Would have to get a lot of the malts for that recipe though so might try to formulate something closer to my current inventory.
MS, had a listen to that podcast and it is very interesting indeed. My summation would be that it seems like it is impossible to get more than 50 IBU into the finished product from a 60 minute addition but it might be possible to add IBU with a 5 minute or flame out addition, this would be more true as I no chill. I say it might be possible because the IBU tests on late hop additions had no 60 minute addition so it is impossible to unequivocally say that this wouldn't impact on the final IBUs.
That said, if aiming for a high IBU beer 60 minute additions up to 50 IBU and late additions up to 25-30ish IBU sounds like a reasonable jumping off point. It would also be possible to get the full IBUs from late additions but it may require more hops than I am willing to throw into one experimental brew.
MS, had a listen to that podcast and it is very interesting indeed. My summation would be that it seems like it is impossible to get more than 50 IBU into the finished product from a 60 minute addition but it might be possible to add IBU with a 5 minute or flame out addition, this would be more true as I no chill. I say it might be possible because the IBU tests on late hop additions had no 60 minute addition so it is impossible to unequivocally say that this wouldn't impact on the final IBUs.
That said, if aiming for a high IBU beer 60 minute additions up to 50 IBU and late additions up to 25-30ish IBU sounds like a reasonable jumping off point. It would also be possible to get the full IBUs from late additions but it may require more hops than I am willing to throw into one experimental brew.
1st case swap challenge 70+ IBU
Post #5 made 13 years ago
As a bit of a follow up to this I brewed last weekend as a dry run for February, just in case it was a disaster. Malts were Maris otter 50%, pilsner 35%, Vienna 12%and about 3% crystal. The variety was mainly because I balked at using half a sack of Maris otter in an experiment!
Used cascade and calypso with a 60 minute and 10 minute additions to 70IBU. Don't have the exact quantities handy at the moment.
Target OG was 1.070 and I got 1.066. Target VAW was 40L and was pretty close to the mark! Was very happy to have a few spare pairs of hands around to lift the bag! Would never attempt a double batch at this gravity alone and probably not in general due to the drop in efficiency.
Have an American amber fermenting on us-05 at the moment and when it is done will use the yeast cake for this lot. Will probably dry hop with whatever I have around, possibly some Amarillo.
Also mashed at 63C for 60 minutes so hoping for some good attenuation and a low finish.
Will also need to get some more sessionable beers brewed before the festive season!
Thanks or the tips and advice!
Used cascade and calypso with a 60 minute and 10 minute additions to 70IBU. Don't have the exact quantities handy at the moment.
Target OG was 1.070 and I got 1.066. Target VAW was 40L and was pretty close to the mark! Was very happy to have a few spare pairs of hands around to lift the bag! Would never attempt a double batch at this gravity alone and probably not in general due to the drop in efficiency.
Have an American amber fermenting on us-05 at the moment and when it is done will use the yeast cake for this lot. Will probably dry hop with whatever I have around, possibly some Amarillo.
Also mashed at 63C for 60 minutes so hoping for some good attenuation and a low finish.
Will also need to get some more sessionable beers brewed before the festive season!
Thanks or the tips and advice!
