Inspiration
Iteration is my continued goal of brewing that illusively light coloured, yet hoppy, full flavoured and mid-low ABV American Pale Ale. This version was based off of Hill Farmstead's Edward Pale Ale. I used a similar hop profile to Edward, a water profile outlined by the Mad Fermentationist based on Hill Farmstead beers (a fairly standard water profile for light coloured and hoppy Pale Ales and IPAs now) and the well-balanced yeast strain that Haydts Brewing used in their experiment attempting to emulate those esteemed IPAs of Vermont.
The name for the beer came from the town of Celista B.C., where I worked at a local community centre's fundraising benefit serving samples of Crannog Ale's bold and dark beers. The event was a great time and the drive there was an amazing and memorable way to spend a Saturday night. Giving away free beer samples is also probably the easiest and greatest job of all time - so this is to remember that event.
I wanted to work from a particularly simple base malt profile on this one, aimed at accentuating and showcasing the hops. This is the first time that I've brewed with such a simple malt bill, so I'm hoping that I can learn from this level of simplicity and build off of it with the next iteration. Now to the hops. The hop schedule in this beer is definitely the centre piece:
Chinook: First, I wanted to feature the crisp bitterness from the Chinook hop, though with restraint and with a degree of subtlety. The main focus was more in bringing out the strong and distinctively pine forest-like aromas and flavours in these hops. The additions are set at FW and whirlpool for those reasons, and also since I like the idea of having a symmetry to my hop additions.
Warrior: I love Warrior as a bittering hop, though I was hoping to depart (at least slowly) from my typical IPA/ Pale Ale hop schedule of 60-20-10-0, and move the majority of the flavour and bitterness to the whirlpool. I still kept them at the 60 mark though, since their bitterness is one that I really enjoy in all of my IPAs and Pale Ales. Again, the addition is meant to be subtle and to cut through the beer's flavour.
Centennial and Simcoe: The stars, so to speak, in this recipe are definitely the Centennial and Simcoe additions staggered throughout. The additions purposefully increase slowly towards the end of the boil to push the aromatics and flavour compounds over total alpha acids. I'm hoping to have a lightly bitter and full flavoured grapefruit and pine character throughout the beer. Also, the aroma on these hops once I threw them into the kettle was outstanding.
Tasting notes below..
The name for the beer came from the town of Celista B.C., where I worked at a local community centre's fundraising benefit serving samples of Crannog Ale's bold and dark beers. The event was a great time and the drive there was an amazing and memorable way to spend a Saturday night. Giving away free beer samples is also probably the easiest and greatest job of all time - so this is to remember that event.
I wanted to work from a particularly simple base malt profile on this one, aimed at accentuating and showcasing the hops. This is the first time that I've brewed with such a simple malt bill, so I'm hoping that I can learn from this level of simplicity and build off of it with the next iteration. Now to the hops. The hop schedule in this beer is definitely the centre piece:
Chinook: First, I wanted to feature the crisp bitterness from the Chinook hop, though with restraint and with a degree of subtlety. The main focus was more in bringing out the strong and distinctively pine forest-like aromas and flavours in these hops. The additions are set at FW and whirlpool for those reasons, and also since I like the idea of having a symmetry to my hop additions.
Warrior: I love Warrior as a bittering hop, though I was hoping to depart (at least slowly) from my typical IPA/ Pale Ale hop schedule of 60-20-10-0, and move the majority of the flavour and bitterness to the whirlpool. I still kept them at the 60 mark though, since their bitterness is one that I really enjoy in all of my IPAs and Pale Ales. Again, the addition is meant to be subtle and to cut through the beer's flavour.
Centennial and Simcoe: The stars, so to speak, in this recipe are definitely the Centennial and Simcoe additions staggered throughout. The additions purposefully increase slowly towards the end of the boil to push the aromatics and flavour compounds over total alpha acids. I'm hoping to have a lightly bitter and full flavoured grapefruit and pine character throughout the beer. Also, the aroma on these hops once I threw them into the kettle was outstanding.
Tasting notes below..
The Recipe
Brew Method: All Grain
Style Name: American Pale Ale
Boil Time: 60 min
Batch Size: 3.1 gallons (ending kettle volume)
Boil Size: 5 gallons
Boil Gravity: 1.045
Efficiency: 75% (ending kettle)
Statistics
Original Gravity: 1.055
Final Gravity: 1.012
ABV (standard): 5.6%
IBU (tinseth): 87
SRM (morey): 4.82
Fermentables
6 lb - American - Pale 2-Row (93.8%)
0.3 lb - American - Caramel / Crystal 20L (4.7%)
1.5 oz - German - Acidulated Malt (1.5%)
Hops
4 g - Chinook, Type: Pellet, AA: 13, Use: First Wort, IBU: 7.77
0.1 oz - Warrior, Type: Pellet, AA: 16, Use: Boil for 60 min, IBU: 11.2
0.2 oz - Centennial, Type: Pellet, AA: 10, Use: Boil for 20 min, IBU: 8.48
0.2 oz - Simcoe, Type: Leaf/Whole, AA: 12.7, Use: Boil for 20 min, IBU: 9.79
0.4 oz - Centennial, Type: Pellet, AA: 10, Use: Boil for 10 min, IBU: 10.15
0.4 oz - Simcoe, Type: Leaf/Whole, AA: 12.7, Use: Boil for 10 min, IBU: 11.72
0.4 oz - Centennial, Type: Pellet, AA: 10, Use: Whirlpool for 20 min at 170 °F, IBU: 7.73
0.4 oz - Chinook, Type: Pellet, AA: 13, Use: Whirlpool for 20 min at 170°F, IBU: 10.05
0.4 oz - Simcoe, Type: Leaf/Whole, AA: 12.7, Use: Whirlpool for 20 min at 170 °F, IBU: 9.82
1 oz - Centennial, Type: Leaf/Whole, AA: 10, Use: Dry Hop for 4 days
1 oz - Simcoe, Type: Leaf/Whole, AA: 12.7, Use: Dry Hop for 4 days
Mash Guidelines
1) Temp: 153 F, Time: 60 min
2) Sparge, Temp: 170 F, Time: 20 min
Yeast
Wyeast - London Ale III 1318 x 1.5
Attenuation (custom): 77%
Flocculation: High
Pitch Rate: 0.75 (M cells / ml / deg P)
Water Profile
Ca2: 75
Mg2: 0
Na: 0
Cl: 35
SO4: 140
HCO3: 0
Notes
Brewed on June 1st, 2015
Fermentation started at 62-63f for 1.5 days
Fermentation let rise to 66f over 0.5 days
Fermentation let rise to 68-69f over/for 8 days
Cold conditioned/ crashed @ 8 degrees C on June 11th
Transferred to secondary and dry hopped on June 14th (held at ambient temperature for 3 days)
Cold crashed @ 8 degrees C for 2 days
Bottled on June 18th
Tasted on July 1st, see below.
Style Name: American Pale Ale
Boil Time: 60 min
Batch Size: 3.1 gallons (ending kettle volume)
Boil Size: 5 gallons
Boil Gravity: 1.045
Efficiency: 75% (ending kettle)
Statistics
Original Gravity: 1.055
Final Gravity: 1.012
ABV (standard): 5.6%
IBU (tinseth): 87
SRM (morey): 4.82
Fermentables
6 lb - American - Pale 2-Row (93.8%)
0.3 lb - American - Caramel / Crystal 20L (4.7%)
1.5 oz - German - Acidulated Malt (1.5%)
Hops
4 g - Chinook, Type: Pellet, AA: 13, Use: First Wort, IBU: 7.77
0.1 oz - Warrior, Type: Pellet, AA: 16, Use: Boil for 60 min, IBU: 11.2
0.2 oz - Centennial, Type: Pellet, AA: 10, Use: Boil for 20 min, IBU: 8.48
0.2 oz - Simcoe, Type: Leaf/Whole, AA: 12.7, Use: Boil for 20 min, IBU: 9.79
0.4 oz - Centennial, Type: Pellet, AA: 10, Use: Boil for 10 min, IBU: 10.15
0.4 oz - Simcoe, Type: Leaf/Whole, AA: 12.7, Use: Boil for 10 min, IBU: 11.72
0.4 oz - Centennial, Type: Pellet, AA: 10, Use: Whirlpool for 20 min at 170 °F, IBU: 7.73
0.4 oz - Chinook, Type: Pellet, AA: 13, Use: Whirlpool for 20 min at 170°F, IBU: 10.05
0.4 oz - Simcoe, Type: Leaf/Whole, AA: 12.7, Use: Whirlpool for 20 min at 170 °F, IBU: 9.82
1 oz - Centennial, Type: Leaf/Whole, AA: 10, Use: Dry Hop for 4 days
1 oz - Simcoe, Type: Leaf/Whole, AA: 12.7, Use: Dry Hop for 4 days
Mash Guidelines
1) Temp: 153 F, Time: 60 min
2) Sparge, Temp: 170 F, Time: 20 min
Yeast
Wyeast - London Ale III 1318 x 1.5
Attenuation (custom): 77%
Flocculation: High
Pitch Rate: 0.75 (M cells / ml / deg P)
Water Profile
Ca2: 75
Mg2: 0
Na: 0
Cl: 35
SO4: 140
HCO3: 0
Notes
Brewed on June 1st, 2015
Fermentation started at 62-63f for 1.5 days
Fermentation let rise to 66f over 0.5 days
Fermentation let rise to 68-69f over/for 8 days
Cold conditioned/ crashed @ 8 degrees C on June 11th
Transferred to secondary and dry hopped on June 14th (held at ambient temperature for 3 days)
Cold crashed @ 8 degrees C for 2 days
Bottled on June 18th
Tasted on July 1st, see below.
Tasting Notes
Aroma
Quite subtly, there is a biscuit and bready nose to this beer; with the more prominent characters being citrus, pine, grapefruit and melon. The distinction between yeast esters and hop aroma is minimal and complimentary. The nose had initially had a rather grassy (think fresh cut grass) edge to it that has now dissipated with time.
Appearance
A stunningly light coloured beer with a medium level of haze most likely from the higher level of dry-hopping in this beer. Head on this beer is pale white, suspended by very small carbonation bubbles that continue to surface as I drink the beer. Head retention on the beer is average, though the lacing appears to be quite minimal. This is most likely due to the absence of any malts (in addition to pale 2 row) that would aid in head retention and body.
Flavor
The malt is clearly simple, with faint notes of bread. The hops are pronounced and experienced in many levels throughout the beer - from the front of the palate to the back. However, the bitterness cuts straight through the beer and is somewhat overwhelming and unbalanced. This leaves a lingering bitterness that has little to no sweetness to support it. In addition to this, an unfortunate flavour lingers towards the back of the beer that I am finding hard to define. I find it to resemble something similar to what you would imagine a grassy beer to taste like towards the back of the palate, though without any preceding grass in the flavour or in the nose, it comes as quite an unforeseen surprise. I will say, as this beer warms up, this flavour becomes increasingly undetectable. I'll write more about this in the future, but perhaps English yeast strains taste best when warm? I'll need to do more research, but that's the way it seems while drinking this beer.
Mouthfeel
The body is light and appropriate for a pale ale. Little to no adjunct is detectable, and truly tastes like a simple grain bill. The carbonation is perfect and really brings out a perceived sharpness to the beer. With that being said, while this could be ideal for a future beer of mine, it brings out a greater level of perceived bitterness that I find unwelcoming in such a light beer. Conversely, the aromatics of this beer are simultaneously stronger due to this constant suspension of carbonation.
Overall Impression
Overall, this is a solid starting place for this series. I knew that brewing this beer would come with its challenges, and I have now learnt from the mistakes I made while designing this beer. The balance of this beer clearly favours the bitterness. In the future, I would restructure the hop bill to reflect this lingering bitterness by using little to no hops at the beginning of the boil, concentrating instead on the mid-late hop additions to contribute a smoother hop flavour throughout. Moving forward, I plan to use a more developed grain bill, push the hops towards the end of the boil and spend more time finding out where the grassiness that I tasted in this beer came from. Use less hops, the beer becomes less flavourful. Use more hops, and the beer becomes overly bitter and green. Recipe design really does seem to become more of an art when you begin to experiment with brewing these beers at home.
Quite subtly, there is a biscuit and bready nose to this beer; with the more prominent characters being citrus, pine, grapefruit and melon. The distinction between yeast esters and hop aroma is minimal and complimentary. The nose had initially had a rather grassy (think fresh cut grass) edge to it that has now dissipated with time.
Appearance
A stunningly light coloured beer with a medium level of haze most likely from the higher level of dry-hopping in this beer. Head on this beer is pale white, suspended by very small carbonation bubbles that continue to surface as I drink the beer. Head retention on the beer is average, though the lacing appears to be quite minimal. This is most likely due to the absence of any malts (in addition to pale 2 row) that would aid in head retention and body.
Flavor
The malt is clearly simple, with faint notes of bread. The hops are pronounced and experienced in many levels throughout the beer - from the front of the palate to the back. However, the bitterness cuts straight through the beer and is somewhat overwhelming and unbalanced. This leaves a lingering bitterness that has little to no sweetness to support it. In addition to this, an unfortunate flavour lingers towards the back of the beer that I am finding hard to define. I find it to resemble something similar to what you would imagine a grassy beer to taste like towards the back of the palate, though without any preceding grass in the flavour or in the nose, it comes as quite an unforeseen surprise. I will say, as this beer warms up, this flavour becomes increasingly undetectable. I'll write more about this in the future, but perhaps English yeast strains taste best when warm? I'll need to do more research, but that's the way it seems while drinking this beer.
Mouthfeel
The body is light and appropriate for a pale ale. Little to no adjunct is detectable, and truly tastes like a simple grain bill. The carbonation is perfect and really brings out a perceived sharpness to the beer. With that being said, while this could be ideal for a future beer of mine, it brings out a greater level of perceived bitterness that I find unwelcoming in such a light beer. Conversely, the aromatics of this beer are simultaneously stronger due to this constant suspension of carbonation.
Overall Impression
Overall, this is a solid starting place for this series. I knew that brewing this beer would come with its challenges, and I have now learnt from the mistakes I made while designing this beer. The balance of this beer clearly favours the bitterness. In the future, I would restructure the hop bill to reflect this lingering bitterness by using little to no hops at the beginning of the boil, concentrating instead on the mid-late hop additions to contribute a smoother hop flavour throughout. Moving forward, I plan to use a more developed grain bill, push the hops towards the end of the boil and spend more time finding out where the grassiness that I tasted in this beer came from. Use less hops, the beer becomes less flavourful. Use more hops, and the beer becomes overly bitter and green. Recipe design really does seem to become more of an art when you begin to experiment with brewing these beers at home.