Experiment: How to build a clone/recipe

Discussion in 'Homebrewing' started by bostonwolf, Jun 9, 2015.

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  1. bostonwolf

    bostonwolf Zealot (656) Jan 20, 2015 Massachusetts

    Hey all,

    I'm fairly new to homebrewing but am quite enjoying it so far. For my fourth beer I'd like to try something a little different.

    My wife and I attended Cambridge Brewing Company's 26th anniversary party. She said she's never had a beer from them she liked until we tried their Topaz IPA that night. Unfortunately it looks like it was a one off but we'd like to try to duplicate it. It had a nice golden color and great aroma.

    This is the description on their site:

    Topaz is a relatively new hop varietal from Australia. Originally produced for its high bitterness, it has proven to offer excellent flavor and aroma to beer when added late in the boil and in dry-hopping.
    A base of Pale and Vienna malts and a substantial amount of flaked oats were chosen to offer a full, round malt and cereal palate to this beer. This allows the Topaz to show off its earthy and grassy notes, reminiscent of English cultivars like Goldings and Fuggles, as well as its subtle hints of lychee and bright fruity characteristics. Cascade, Centennial, and Chinook hops all play a supporting role and allow the Topaz to take the lead. While not a blockbuster hop like Mosaic or Amarillo, Topaz brings its own finesse to this I.P.A. and the deeper ones gets into their glass, the more brightly it expresses.

    Original Gravity
    1.062
    Final Gravity
    1.010
    Alcohol by Volume
    7%
    We hope you enjoy it!
    so clearly there is a good amount of information, I'm just not too experienced on how I build a recipe out of that.

    Clearly the malts are going to be Pale and Vienna with some flaked oats.

    Sounds like I'd use Topaz as the main hop in the boil then maybe dry hop with Cascade, Centennial and Chinook?

    Any advice/ideas would be great. Thanks!
     
    #1 bostonwolf, Jun 9, 2015
  2. Brew_Betty

    Brew_Betty Initiate (0) Jan 5, 2015 Wisconsin

    10 lbs Pale Malt - Great Western (3.0 SRM) 71.0 %
    2 lbs 8.0 oz Vienna Malt (3.5 SRM) 17.8 %
    12.0 oz Oats, Flaked (1.0 SRM) 5.3 %
    5.3 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt - 40L (40.0 SRM) 2.3 %
    8.0 oz Sugar (2.0 SRM) 3.6 %

    0.50 oz Topaz [17.00 %] - Boil 60.0 min 25.4 IBUs
    1.00 oz Cascade [8.20 %] - Boil 15.0 min 12.2 IBUs
    2.00 oz Topaz [17.00 %] - Boil 10.0 min 36.8 IBUs
    2.00 oz Topaz [17.00 %] - Steep/Whirlpool 20.0 min @ 160F 12.3 IBUs

    1.0 pkg Safale American (DCL/Fermentis #US-05)

    1.00 oz Cascade [6.90 %] - Dry Hop 5.0 Days
    1.00 oz Centennial [9.01 %] - Dry Hop 5.0 Days
    1.00 oz Chinook [13.00 %] - Dry Hop 5.0 Days
    1.00 oz Topaz [17.00 %] - Dry Hop 5.0 Days

    Est Original Gravity: 1.062 SG
    Est Final Gravity: 1.010 SG
    Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 6.8 %
    Bitterness: 86.6 IBUs
    Est Color: 6.4 SRM

    Total water: 10.14 gal
    Batch Size: 5.50 gal
    Boil Size: 8.51 gal
    Boil Time: 75 min
    End of Boil Vol: 6.76 gal
    Mash efficiency: 77%
    Mash at 150F
     
    #2 Brew_Betty, Jun 9, 2015
    Last edited: Jun 9, 2015
    dmtaylor, ChrisMyhre, bostonwolf and 1 other person like this.
  3. GreenKrusty101

    GreenKrusty101 Initiate (0) Dec 4, 2008 Nevada

    I've tenatively decided Topaz is just a little "brassy" for me in a starring role...I've made a couple IPAs with it and still have ~ 4 oz left to play with.

    The oats mentioned above might help...next time : )
     
    #3 GreenKrusty101, Jun 9, 2015
    Last edited: Jun 9, 2015
  4. dmtaylor

    dmtaylor Savant (1,149) Dec 30, 2003 Wisconsin

    Betty's recipe above looks pretty solid, except personally I would eliminate the 10-minute addition (not doing anything for you), then double the Topaz dry hop and cut back the other dry hops to 0.25-0.5 oz each, just to make sure you get the right balance in there. By my calculations his recipe is way way over 100 IBUs, which is impossible but also means there's a little too many hops in there to the point of wasting.
     
    #4 dmtaylor, Jun 9, 2015
    bushycook likes this.
  5. GreenKrusty101

    GreenKrusty101 Initiate (0) Dec 4, 2008 Nevada

    I don't think he'll get 12.5 IBUs out of that
     
    #5 GreenKrusty101, Jun 9, 2015
  6. bostonwolf

    bostonwolf Zealot (656) Jan 20, 2015 Massachusetts

    Thanks, I copied the recipe and edited as you directed. Will give it a try in the next few weeks.
     
    #6 bostonwolf, Jun 9, 2015
    dmtaylor likes this.
  7. dmtaylor

    dmtaylor Savant (1,149) Dec 30, 2003 Wisconsin

    No, he'll get more like 20. At 17% alpha, man... you'll get a buttload of IBUs from a whirlpool.
     
    #7 dmtaylor, Jun 9, 2015
  8. Brew_Betty

    Brew_Betty Initiate (0) Jan 5, 2015 Wisconsin

    Are the armchair IBU counters accounting for 1 gallon of trub?
     
    #8 Brew_Betty, Jun 10, 2015
  9. GreenKrusty101

    GreenKrusty101 Initiate (0) Dec 4, 2008 Nevada

    I don't think so : )
     
    #9 GreenKrusty101, Jun 10, 2015
  10. GreenKrusty101

    GreenKrusty101 Initiate (0) Dec 4, 2008 Nevada


    Not @ 160*F for 20 min
     
    #10 GreenKrusty101, Jun 10, 2015
  11. koopa

    koopa Initiate (0) Apr 20, 2008 New Jersey

    Looks like a great recipe "as is" but based on the breweries description of Topaz taking "center stage" I'd probably alter the dry hopping a bit to make it more "Topaz Centric" if it were up to me. I too would also move the 10 minute Topaz addition to the WP addition (combining the two) with hopes of both increasing the topaz aromatics and decreasing the ibu's.
     
    #11 koopa, Jun 10, 2015
    dmtaylor likes this.
  12. bushycook

    bushycook Zealot (681) Jan 31, 2011 Virginia

    Moar Topaz!
     
    #12 bushycook, Jun 10, 2015
  13. dmtaylor

    dmtaylor Savant (1,149) Dec 30, 2003 Wisconsin

    Anybody have a photospectrometer laying around?
     
    #13 dmtaylor, Jun 10, 2015
  14. GreenKrusty101

    GreenKrusty101 Initiate (0) Dec 4, 2008 Nevada

    No, just my taste buds : )
     
    #14 GreenKrusty101, Jun 10, 2015
  15. HerbMeowing

    HerbMeowing Maven (1,295) Nov 10, 2010 Virginia
    Trader

    Could this recipe's Topaz hop bill with "... its subtle hints of lychee and bright fruity characteristics ..." qualify for your already-in-progress exotic fruit beer festival?
     
    #15 HerbMeowing, Jun 10, 2015
    CurtFromHershey likes this.
  16. Brew_Betty

    Brew_Betty Initiate (0) Jan 5, 2015 Wisconsin

    No. Hops don't qualify as an exotic fruit. And the Exotic Fruit Beer Festival was cancelled due to lack of participation, but that won't prevent me from making a Guava Lulo Sour soon.
     
    #16 Brew_Betty, Jun 10, 2015
    bostonwolf likes this.
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