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Author Topic: Ask the Experts: Mitch Steele on IPA  (Read 83664 times)

Offline denny

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Ask the Experts: Mitch Steele on IPA
« on: October 02, 2012, 01:41:41 pm »
The next guest in the Ask the Experts series will be Mitch Steele, author of the new book "IPA: Brewing Techniques, Recipes and the Evolution of India Pale Ale".  Mitch will be taking questions about IPA (believe it or not!) the week of Oct. 22-29.  Answers will be posted on Nov. 12.  Unlike previous Ask the Experts sessions, this one will be conducted here on the forum and open to everyone, not just AHA members.  Please do not post questions before Oct. 22.  I wanted to give everyone a heads up to start thinking about what you might like to ask.  I'll post more as we get closer to 10/22 to remind everyone and let you know when the question period is open.  Please keep questions related to IPA, but any aspect of IPA or anything you read in the book is fair game.



This looks like it will be a really interesting and informative experience, so start thinking up those questions!
« Last Edit: March 15, 2013, 04:29:13 pm by duncan »
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Offline bluesman

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Re: Ask the Experts: Mitch Steele on IPA
« Reply #1 on: October 18, 2012, 10:35:40 am »
I just got the AHA "What's Brewing" email promoting Mitch Steele's visit to the forum next week.  Looking forward to the Q&A session for sure. Should be a great session.

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Offline redbeerman

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Re: Ask the Experts: Mitch Steele on IPA
« Reply #2 on: October 18, 2012, 11:21:08 am »
A couple of questions.  Do we have to read the book first, and will there be a test? ;)
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Offline denny

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Ask the Experts: Mitch Steele on IPA
« Reply #3 on: October 18, 2012, 11:29:55 am »
A couple of questions.  Do we have to read the book first, and will there be a test? ;)

No and no.  ;)


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Offline beersk

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Re: Ask the Experts: Mitch Steele on IPA
« Reply #4 on: October 18, 2012, 11:45:49 am »
Good. Although I am in the process of reading it.  Just got to the IPA's of the United States part.  It's a really good book.  I can't read it without having some kind of hoppy beer to accompany it.
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Offline saintpierre

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Re: Ask the Experts: Mitch Steele on IPA
« Reply #5 on: October 18, 2012, 11:50:27 am »
I can't read it without having some kind of hoppy beer to accompany it.
I think that is a requirement... :D
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Offline jmd71

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Re: Ask the Experts: Mitch Steele on IPA
« Reply #6 on: October 18, 2012, 06:13:09 pm »
I have been homebrewing for 10+ years - bottling & kegging.  I never have gotten good results from dry hopping.  Currently, I put whole leaf hops in a hop bag, drop in keg & rack on top.  I then remove after 5-10 days & add another charge the same way (hop bag) if called for.

However, every time I've gotten just vegetal, grassy flavors regardless of the varietal used.  Because of this, I have cut out dry hopping in all my beers 100% & just add those same hops at flameout which provides exactly what I am looking for.

Do you have any clue what could be cause the unpleasant flavors in dry hopping using the procedures above?  Is late hopping just as effective & dry hopping unnecessary?

Thanks,
Jonathan

Offline gandelf

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Re: Ask the Experts: Mitch Steele on IPA
« Reply #7 on: October 19, 2012, 07:45:13 am »
I have been homebrewing for 10+ years - bottling & kegging.  I never have gotten good results from dry hopping.  Currently, I put whole leaf hops in a hop bag, drop in keg & rack on top.  I then remove after 5-10 days & add another charge the same way (hop bag) if called for.

However, every time I've gotten just vegetal, grassy flavors regardless of the varietal used.  Because of this, I have cut out dry hopping in all my beers 100% & just add those same hops at flameout which provides exactly what I am looking for.

Do you have any clue what could be cause the unpleasant flavors in dry hopping using the procedures above?  Is late hopping just as effective & dry hopping unnecessary?

I have been homebrewing for just over 12 years and finally, finally found a solution for great hop flavor and aroma. I should state this works great FOR ME. I use a water filter housing as a torpedo (Sierra Nevada) and recirculate the freshly kegged wort for 2 days at cellar temp (60-65 F). I use 2 to 6 ounces of hops in a bag. The flavor and aroma does start to diminish after 2 to 3 weeks.

So, I would like to hear what Mitch would have to say concerning extending/preserving hop characteristics  in packaging. My process is pretty tight. I don't filter and would like to know how much hop character is removed by the residual yeast flocculating/settling in the keg?

I have thought about re-torpedoing, but have been too lazy to try that yet.
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Offline morticaixavier

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Re: Ask the Experts: Mitch Steele on IPA
« Reply #8 on: October 19, 2012, 09:08:13 am »
Wait, you recirc WORT at cellar temps for 2 DAYS through the hops?
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Offline beersk

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Re: Ask the Experts: Mitch Steele on IPA
« Reply #9 on: October 19, 2012, 09:47:48 am »
Wait, you recirc WORT at cellar temps for 2 DAYS through the hops?
Seems kinda crazy...before pitching the yeast?
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Offline gandelf

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Re: Ask the Experts: Mitch Steele on IPA
« Reply #10 on: October 19, 2012, 02:41:56 pm »
Wait, you recirc WORT at cellar temps for 2 DAYS through the hops?
Seems kinda crazy...before pitching the yeast?
Sorry, beer not wort. But then you had to know that, right?
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Offline beersk

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Re: Ask the Experts: Mitch Steele on IPA
« Reply #11 on: October 19, 2012, 02:42:54 pm »
Maaaaaaaaaaaaybe.
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Offline maxieboy

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Re: Ask the Experts: Mitch Steele on IPA
« Reply #12 on: October 19, 2012, 05:27:52 pm »
Ahem.  ;)

  Please do not post questions before Oct. 22.  I wanted to give everyone a heads up to start thinking about what you might like to ask.  I'll post more as we get closer to 10/22 to remind everyone and let you know when the question period is open.
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Offline hopfenundmalz

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Re: Ask the Experts: Mitch Steele on IPA
« Reply #13 on: October 22, 2012, 09:38:51 am »
It is the 22nd. Here is my question.

The Ballantine IPA recipe in the IPA book looks pretty good. I have seen on the internet that a beer was brewed in a collaboration with Portsmith that looks similar to the recipe in the book, well, except for the CTZ at the end. http://blogs.seacoastonline.com/seacoast-beverage-lab/2012/01/18/clusters-last-stand-thursday-at-portsmouth-brewery/

How did this one turn out?

I do remember Ballantine IPA from when I was young, though it was brewed in RI then. Have plenty of Cluster and Bullion and a little Brewer's Gold to give this, or Jeff Renner's recipe from the HBD a try. Jeff's recipe used 6-row as the base malt, and Sazz late in the boil. The recipe by Fred Scheer was interesting, as was his statement that there were a 100 recipes for that beer over the years.
 

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Offline jwhancher

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Re: Ask the Experts: Mitch Steele on IPA
« Reply #14 on: October 22, 2012, 10:41:04 am »
My question for Mitch: What is the suggested length to leave a beer on dry hops?  What is also the maximum length of time (days, weeks, month, etc.) one could dry hop for?  I've heard varying preferences from brewers from anywhere between 4 days to 2 weeks.  Will leaving a beer on dry hops for 3 weeks really make a difference?  Obviously, tasting the beer is one way to tell when to rack off hops, but I wanted to know if there was any set standard to abide by.  (For the record, I haven't bought or read the new IPA book yet - in case this is covered within the book.) 

In addition, what are the deciding factors besides "time" for when to rack off hops: %AA, total hop mass, leaf/pellet/plug form, temperature, etc.?

I wonder if dry hopping is sort of like the old idea of racking your beer off yeast to prevent autolysis and off-flavors from developing.  Similar in vein, will leaving a beer too long on dry hops really give you harsh hop qualities, or is this just a perceived threat that's been passed on from homebrewers over the years?