Another IPA recipe to critique

1272 (White Labs 051) is a fruity, slightly less attenuative 1056 (001). I don't think you'll get the bready flavors you're looking for out of that. I love the yeast, mind you, but it's not English in any way, shape, or form. Of those you listed, I think you'd be happiest with 1335.

Whichever you choose, you'll want a bigger starter if at all possible. That high an OG, you'll want at least a liter, even for a 3 gallon batch. Anything less and you'll be increasing the esters that it sounds like you want to avoid.

 

Malt bill seems to go with what you want. I think you have plenty of flavor coming out of yours hops, but I do feel as though your a bit short on the aroma hop additions.

 

I would ditch the melanoidin malt (a little goes a long way in an ipa -and you already have good portion of munich malt and carahell), and if you want breadiness, change the base malt to maris otter. The hop profile should make for a malty, non-hoppy beer.

 

Based upon the previous posts it would appear that I will be a contrarian here. You have 4 ounces of American aroma hops that you are using for your late hopping (20 minutes or less in the boil). My personal experience with Centennial and Amarillo is that both of these hop varieties are very ‘expressive’: lots of flavor/aroma. Given that, I am at a loss how you will be able to perceive a subtle malt character of “bready”. Perhaps the other posters have more refined palates than mine, but if I were to brew this beer the hop flavors/aromas would dominate my perception of this beer.

I have never homebrewed an English style IPA but I have consumed a number of commercial versions. My personal favorite English style IPA is Meantime IPA:

“THE ORIGINAL BITTER BEER - A GLASS FULL OF HOPS

India Pale Ale is the beer that sustained the British Raj - it did not just survive the passage to India, it matured to perfection on the long voyage. Original IPA was heavily hopped - up to twice as much as domestic beers - and so Meantime use plenty of Kent Fuggles and Goldings to help re-create the flavours of the world's first great pale beer style. Magnificent with Indian cuisine or English cheese.”

While I am certain that a British yeast ‘contributes’ to the character of an English style IPA, I am of the opinion that the critical aspect is hop selection. I homebrew a Bitter Ale a lot which is solely hopped with East Kent Goldings (EKG) hops. EKG hops are very impotent from a flavor/aroma perspective when compared to American aroma hops. In my Bitter Ale I use 1 ounce of EKG at flameout and 2 ounces for dry hop (14 days of contact time) and I barely perceive the aroma of this hop.

My personal suggestion if you truly want to brew a ‘balanced’ IPA whereby you will be able to perceive the malt characteristics such as “bready” then don’t use potent American aroma hops for your late additions, use English hops which are less potent (e.g., EKG).

I have never personally brewed with Wyeast 1335 but the description that Wyeast provides makes this sound like an appropriate choice.

Cheers!

 

I agree with you in regards to the flavor that will be contributed by the hops, and there will be plenty of flavor coming out of those hop additions.. And will also say that the one ounce of aroma hops might be enough if used as a dry hop, but I am still not sure if it is enough for the aroma to "dominate".

 

You are correct that dry hopping with 1 ounce of Amarillo will provide more aroma than 1 ounce at flameout. Whether the OP’s recipe is a “bit short on the aroma hop additions.” is highly dependent on what he is trying to achieve with his beer. If he is truly trying to create a ‘balanced’ IPA where he will be able to perceive malt characteristics of “bready’ my argument is that he has too much flavor/aroma hops via his selection of American aroma hops.

The additions of Centennial and Amarillo hops at 20 minutes, 15 minutes and 10 minutes will add A LOT of flavor. The addition of 1 ounce of Amarillo will add a substantial amount of aroma. I cannot personally attest to BigAB’s palate but I can tell you that I would not perceive “bready” with all of that hop flavor/aroma going on.

Cheers!

 

I use 029 in my ipas.
As far as the hopping goes, I'd use the centennial for bittering or FWH with the simcoe for bittering. I also prefer a big flameout addition with a moderate (1 oz) 15 min addition.
My opinion is that hop character is either bitter or aromatic and that "flavor" additions are just a combination of bitter and aromatic qualities.

 

Often overlooked in these "recreations" of IPA that one of the main points about the export version was that they were very highly attenuated.Whether modern tastes would appreciate beers like this is another matter.

 

Wouldn't a highly attenuated IPA just end up like a west coast style, with a really dry body that accentuates the bitterness of the hops? Although it would be interesting to do this with English hops/malt bill like others have suggested.

 

I have kind of given up on the idea of "straddling" the IPA style. At this point, once I got past the bitterness aspect and embraced the hops that is, I've just decided to be blown away by the intensely (and sometimes even subtle) aspects of the magnificent hops plant.

Despite the great debates that are occurring on this thread, I question whether you'll ever truly be happy with the "before" product. I know for sure that you'll be very hoppy with the "after" product though. And that's probably what really matters.

 

I see no reason to do a 20, 15, and 10 minute addition. 15 and 0 should be fine. Maybe throw in some at 30 for a little glycoside formation to aid mouthfeel. And for christ sake, dry hop it! If you like bitter beer with subtle aroma, I guess that's fine, but if you went good hop aroma, you really have to go with the dry hop. I like your malt bill. And yeast choice, but you should at least double the starter size. 0.7L is pretty much useless for yeast growth.

 

In a previous post you stated: “Really it comes down to the choice of yeast - I honestly feel that the malt and hop expression will come from what the yeast exposes/hides.”

In my personal opinion, yeast selection will play a very minor role in your beer. You now have 3.5 ounces of potent American hops for your late hopping schedule (20 minutes to end of boil). I am not aware of any yeast that is ‘magical’ enough to compete with the amount of hop flavor/aroma that you have in your recipe. To put a finer point on this discussion: no matter what yeast you select it will not “expose/hide” the hop flavor/aroma that you will be getting from your hop schedule.

I recognize that you previously mentioned “I'm also trying to have my cake and eat it too” but the reality is that you need to make a decision here:

· Produce a beer very much like an American style IPA (i.e., your present late hopping schedule) in which case particular yeast selection is very much a secondary issue

· Produce a ‘balanced’ IPA whereby you can perceive malt influences like “bready”. In this case select 1335 and very much ‘tone down’ you late hopping schedule.

Cheers!

 

I use WLP007 for my English IPA's. This yeast is the maltiest English strain I have used. I also would bitter with the Centenial and move the Simcoe inside the 5 min. mark. Good brewing!