[hopshead]

So, I love IPAs. I was curious and wanted to tweak some IPA recipes. After reading Vinnie's article in Zymurgy about the Pliny, I was curious about Vinnie's "cube of oak" he used to add to some IPAs with the dry hops. I think I want to try this, dry hops along with with oak cubes/chips. Has anyone done this, what did you think? I also thought about bourbon infused IPAs with the cubes of oak. A smooth bourbon though, like Maker's Mark. Am I nuts, tell me someone has tried it and liked the results. I was also thinking of the base recipe being more like Jamil's West Coast Blaster.

[The Professor]

So, I love IPAs. I was curious and wanted to tweak some IPA recipes. After reading Vinnie's article in Zymurgy about the Pliny, I was curious about Vinnie's "cube of oak" he used to add to some IPAs with the dry hops. I think I want to try this, dry hops along with with oak cubes/chips. Has anyone done this, what did you think? I also thought about bourbon infused IPAs with the cubes of oak. A smooth bourbon though, like Maker's Mark. Am I nuts, tell me someone has tried it and liked the results. I was also thinking of the base recipe being more like Jamil's West Coast Blaster.

Sounds good to me, but what my tastebuds (or anyone else's) percieve is irrelevant to what you might like.
Why not just try it?

Seriously...It's the only way you'll really know for sure.

[deepsouth]

i've got an IPA in a 5.25 gallon american oak medium+ toast balcones blue corn whisky barrel as we speak.  i'll let you know how it turns out! 

i loved the oaked ipa i tried (commercial).

[bluesman]

i've got an IPA in a 5.25 gallon american oak medium+ toast balcones blue corn whisky barrel as we speak.  i'll let you know how it turns out!  

i loved the oaked ipa i tried (commercial).

Nice...I'm curious to know how it turned out. I've thought about doing exactly what you're doing but never got around to doing it.

[ficklefingeroffate]

I've used oak chips in secondary for an IPA before and all I can say is be careful. American oak tends to have a stronger flavor than French oak so take that into account when deciding on dosage. I put 8 oz. of American oak chips that I steamed for 10 minutes in an IPA I brewed and it turned it into an OPA (Oaken Pale Ale). The flavor wasn't undesireable and mellowed with age, but it overwhelmed the hops. I will definitely try this again, and I can't remember off the top of my head how long I had the chips in contact with the beer, but I think 4 oz. next time might get a better result.

[deepsouth]

i've got an IPA in a 5.25 gallon american oak medium+ toast balcones blue corn whisky barrel as we speak.  i'll let you know how it turns out! 

i loved the oaked ipa i tried (commercial).

Nice...I'm curious to know how it turned out. I've thought about doing exactly what you're doing but never got around to doing it.

we are kegging it in a couple days.  i'll be sure to let you know.  the ipa is actually closer to an imperial ipa at about 7.5 - 8.0%, 101 ibu.  hopped with chinook, centennial, amarillo & magnum.

[bluesman]

That sounds awesome. I am an all around IPA kind of guy. That's "hophead" for short. I like your hop selection.

[barefootbrewer]

we are kegging it in a couple days.  i'll be sure to let you know.  the ipa is actually closer to an imperial ipa at about 7.5 - 8.0%, 101 ibu.  hopped with chinook, centennial, amarillo & magnum.
[/quote]


I was with him when it was kegged. The aroma was great and I thought it reminded me a little of Southern Tier's Oak Aged Unearthly.

[deepsouth]

we are kegging it in a couple days.  i'll be sure to let you know.  the ipa is actually closer to an imperial ipa at about 7.5 - 8.0%, 101 ibu.  hopped with chinook, centennial, amarillo & magnum.

I was with him when it was kegged. The aroma was great and I thought it reminded me a little of Southern Tier's Oak Aged Unearthly.
[/quote]

i had to pull a small sample off last night to make sure it was carbing up ok and i think it's going to be winner winner chicken dinner.

hahahahaha

[redbeerman]

Sounds great!  I'll have to give that a try sometime as well.

[deepsouth]

this worked out quite nicely.   beer turned out very good!

[karlh]

The main flavor in bourbon is that of American Oak.  I have done a couple of IPAs in oak barrels (not used whiskey barrels), and can say that without bourbon you get a great deal of the flavor.  Judging sheets for barrel aged beers usually make reference to the bourbon (sometimes even suggesting I used too much) without having used any.  The key for me was tasting the beer as it sat in the oak (say every week or two) and pulling it when it reached the level I was looking for.  The first batch in a new barrel was "oaky" in two weeks... when it was the third batch in the barrel it took two months, and the hop character was somewhat diminished.  If I oak age a batch in a previously used barrel, I will likely use an infusion spiral, cubes, or chips.