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Author Topic: Anyone here adjust NB's Chinook IPA kit?  (Read 1376 times)

Offline Joe_Beer

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Anyone here adjust NB's Chinook IPA kit?
« on: July 26, 2020, 04:48:45 am »
Hi,
I picked up Northern Brewer's all-grain Chinook IP kit (https://www.northernbrewer.com/products/chinook-ipa-all-grain-kit) and noticed a few of the reviews mentioned the hop profile just wasn't there for an IPA. One reviewer mentioned adding an additional 1/2 - 1 oz of Chinook to the boil and additional Chinook for dry hopping. I ordered 2 extra oz of Chinook and probably work them in some how. Thinking about using something Kveik for this one since I'm curious about it and my ambient basement temp seems to be around 73F. Wondering if anyone has experimented with this kit and what you liked/didn't like about it?
« Last Edit: July 26, 2020, 05:02:05 am by Joe_Beer »

Offline Bob357

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Re: Anyone here adjust NB's Chinook IPA kit?
« Reply #1 on: July 26, 2020, 10:06:01 am »
What happens with most kits is the AA% of the hops changes from crop to crop and the kit calls for the same amount of hops regardless of the AA%.  This means that the IBUs will vary depending on the hops. You may or may not need more hops to brew the kit to your taste. You won't know what bitterness level to expect until you receive the kit and see the AA% on the hop packaging.

If you have brewing software, you can enter the kit ingredients and your process to get an idea of what to expect. If not, it's a shot in the dark.
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Offline rburrelli

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Re: Anyone here adjust NB's Chinook IPA kit?
« Reply #2 on: July 26, 2020, 10:10:15 am »
I am in the camp of brewing the kit to the instructions the first time to make your own determination if it needs to be tweaked going forward. You can’t always go by others reviews. Their tastes and methods of brewing are likely different than yours.
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Offline BrewBama

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Anyone here adjust NB's Chinook IPA kit?
« Reply #3 on: July 26, 2020, 11:54:46 am »
I agree with both of the previous comments. Even when I create my own recipe I have to adjust it when I get the hops delivered.  ...but you can’t go by what others say. Some folks wouldn’t be happy with what I’d consider a fairly hoppy beer.


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Offline Joe_Beer

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Re: Anyone here adjust NB's Chinook IPA kit?
« Reply #4 on: July 26, 2020, 06:53:36 pm »
You may or may not need more hops to brew the kit to your taste. You won't know what bitterness level to expect until you receive the kit and see the AA% on the hop packaging.

A quick search suggests you're referring to "Alpha Acid" level.  This must be the "Alpha 10.3%" on my hop package. I had no idea there was a metric for hops, but that figures. There is so much science behind brewing beer that it amazes me that it can be done without fully understanding all those processes.

Offline Joe_Beer

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Re: Anyone here adjust NB's Chinook IPA kit?
« Reply #5 on: July 26, 2020, 06:58:43 pm »
...but you can’t go by what others say. Some folks wouldn’t be happy with what I’d consider a fairly hoppy beer.

First time I offered a friend a New Belgium Ranger IPA he winced when he sipped it and said "It's a little bitter, but not bad". I had no idea what he was talking about but then again, Citra hops smell like jesus to me.... I should probably go with the extra ounce in the boil and dry hop. I'll have to see what the Chinook smell like when I open them.

Offline tommymorris

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Re: Anyone here adjust NB's Chinook IPA kit?
« Reply #6 on: July 28, 2020, 06:16:05 am »
I have brewed the Chinook IPA kit from NB. I brewed it 10+ years ago. Frankly, I think IPA’s have moved on to have much more hop flavor and aroma but that kit has stayed the same. By today’s standards it is more of an American Pale Ale. I liked it though. I really like Chinook hops.  They have a nice flavor mix of citrus and pine.

I am afraid to offer specific changes without seeing the recipe. If you do add extra hops add them late in the boil (5 minutes or less remaining) or you will make the beer more bitter than you wanted. Another place to add hops without adding bitterness is after fermentation as dry hops.

Offline Joe_Beer

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Re: Anyone here adjust NB's Chinook IPA kit?
« Reply #7 on: July 28, 2020, 06:31:24 pm »
I am afraid to offer specific changes without seeing the recipe. If you do add extra hops add them late in the boil (5 minutes or less remaining) or you will make the beer more bitter than you wanted. Another place to add hops without adding bitterness is after fermentation as dry hops.

Even with the recipe, things are subjective so it's hard to say what one might like over the other. My goto IPA is New Belgian Ranger. When people try it, they comment on it's bitterness. I either don't taste the bitterness anymore or have never considered it bitter. I do like it though. Others find it undrinkable (way she goes). As someone else mentioned, I should really make the kit according to the recipe first and then adjust from there with a second batch to have a more accurate comparison. I do like hoppy beers though, so I'm thinking I'll just go for it. Here's the link to the recipe anyway in case you're interested https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2785/6868/t/3/assets/AG-ChinookIPA-1526674361277.pdf?1752062162113781261. I think I'll dry hop an additional ounce of the Chinook. I like your idea of the -5 addition too. I know late additions attribute to more hop flavor and early ones to hop bittering but does the bittering happen gradually over the course of the boil or is kind of an instant thing? Like, is a -45 addition still bittering the wort at flame out or has it run it's course by then?

Offline tommymorris

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Anyone here adjust NB's Chinook IPA kit?
« Reply #8 on: July 28, 2020, 09:20:36 pm »
I am afraid to offer specific changes without seeing the recipe. If you do add extra hops add them late in the boil (5 minutes or less remaining) or you will make the beer more bitter than you wanted. Another place to add hops without adding bitterness is after fermentation as dry hops.

Even with the recipe, things are subjective so it's hard to say what one might like over the other. My goto IPA is New Belgian Ranger. When people try it, they comment on it's bitterness. I either don't taste the bitterness anymore or have never considered it bitter. I do like it though. Others find it undrinkable (way she goes). As someone else mentioned, I should really make the kit according to the recipe first and then adjust from there with a second batch to have a more accurate comparison. I do like hoppy beers though, so I'm thinking I'll just go for it. Here's the link to the recipe anyway in case you're interested https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2785/6868/t/3/assets/AG-ChinookIPA-1526674361277.pdf?1752062162113781261. I think I'll dry hop an additional ounce of the Chinook. I like your idea of the -5 addition too. I know late additions attribute to more hop flavor and early ones to hop bittering but does the bittering happen gradually over the course of the boil or is kind of an instant thing? Like, is a -45 addition still bittering the wort at flame out or has it run it's course by then?
I am afraid to offer specific changes without seeing the recipe. If you do add extra hops add them late in the boil (5 minutes or less remaining) or you will make the beer more bitter than you wanted. Another place to add hops without adding bitterness is after fermentation as dry hops.

Even with the recipe, things are subjective so it's hard to say what one might like over the other. My goto IPA is New Belgian Ranger. When people try it, they comment on it's bitterness. I either don't taste the bitterness anymore or have never considered it bitter. I do like it though. Others find it undrinkable (way she goes). As someone else mentioned, I should really make the kit according to the recipe first and then adjust from there with a second batch to have a more accurate comparison. I do like hoppy beers though, so I'm thinking I'll just go for it. Here's the link to the recipe anyway in case you're interested https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2785/6868/t/3/assets/AG-ChinookIPA-1526674361277.pdf?1752062162113781261. I think I'll dry hop an additional ounce of the Chinook. I like your idea of the -5 addition too. I know late additions attribute to more hop flavor and early ones to hop bittering but does the bittering happen gradually over the course of the boil or is kind of an instant thing? Like, is a -45 addition still bittering the wort at flame out or has it run it's course by then?
I am afraid to offer specific changes without seeing the recipe. If you do add extra hops add them late in the boil (5 minutes or less remaining) or you will make the beer more bitter than you wanted. Another place to add hops without adding bitterness is after fermentation as dry hops.

Even with the recipe, things are subjective so it's hard to say what one might like over the other. My goto IPA is New Belgian Ranger. When people try it, they comment on it's bitterness. I either don't taste the bitterness anymore or have never considered it bitter. I do like it though. Others find it undrinkable (way she goes). As someone else mentioned, I should really make the kit according to the recipe first and then adjust from there with a second batch to have a more accurate comparison. I do like hoppy beers though, so I'm thinking I'll just go for it. Here's the link to the recipe anyway in case you're interested https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/2785/6868/t/3/assets/AG-ChinookIPA-1526674361277.pdf?1752062162113781261. I think I'll dry hop an additional ounce of the Chinook. I like your idea of the -5 addition too. I know late additions attribute to more hop flavor and early ones to hop bittering but does the bittering happen gradually over the course of the boil or is kind of an instant thing? Like, is a -45 addition still bittering the wort at flame out or has it run it's course by then?
You can predict the bitterness of hop additions with programs like BeerSmith and Brewers Friend. They use the Tinseth equation to predict bitterness as measured in International Bitterness Units (IBU).

I would not arbitrarily add hops early in the boil. You could make very bitter beer. Beer even more bitter than you like to drink. I too think it may be best to brew the beer with Northern Brewer’s recipe once and then brew again with tweaks. This will help you understand the impact of your changes.