IIPA recipe critique

What is your mash temp? If high, mash at 148-149 for 60-75 minutes and if you need to dry it out more, replace another 5-8% of your base malt with sugar (10-15% corn sugar is fine; just make sure you pitch adequate yeast and get a good dose of oxygen).

If you want some extra color, you can add a touch of roast barley or dehusked carafa III at mash out to add color without impacting the flavor.

Might want to dry hop that bad boy as well...

 

Yes, a lower mash temperature converts more of the fermentables to simple sugars which the yeast can eat. The less residual sugar in your final beer the drier the beer. barfdiggs suggested the sugar as it is 100% fermentable, thus drying out the yeast. Similarly, many Saison's are mashed in the high 140s as well to get them bone dry via the yeast.

 

I actually think 152° might be ok in this. I typically will mash at lower temps on my IPA's, but taking into account 2# of sugar, 7% specialty malt and US-05 yeast I think this thing should get you a pretty good attenuation.

 

It is unlikely that US-05 will only ferment at 73% which your recipe states (that can be changed, BTW).

Also, 1.5 ounces DH might be a little on the weak side, maybe about 3 ounces would be good...IMO.

 

Give a yeast starter a try...not too hard at all. You don't need a stirplate or Erlenmeyer flasks or anything to do one. MrMalty site has some instructions I believe. Just make you some wort with DME on the stove top a day in advance, sanitize well, and shake the hell out of it every time you walk by. I do them in growlers.

 

I don't use dry yeast, so I could be wrong, but I think I've only seen US-05 in 11.5 gram packets, which would mean you'd need less packets.

 

No need for a yeast starter with dry yeast. Some will tell you it can even be detrimental when using dry yeast. I'm showing Mr. malty listing 1.3 packets of dry (assuming 11.5 grams per packet). Two packets, if they've been stored properly, will do just fine in this case. Also, as stated above, you'll likely get greater than 73% attenuation with US-05, so I wouldn't sweat the final gravity.