Imperial IPA (first original recipe)

I decided to be a little more ambitious for this brew and go by my own recipe. It will be an imperial IPA with a little bit of amber character to it. For those who don't know, IPA stands for India Pale Ale. This is a beer style that is characterized by an intensely hoppy (bitter) flavor. The style was developed back in the times of colonial England. The word "India" in IPA refers not to the country, but to the East India Company, the premier importer/exporter of the 18th century. Beer was among the products that the company exported. Beer, while generally very resistant to bacterial infection can still act as a breeding ground for some bacteria. When it is holed up for months in the hull of a warm, damp ship it becomes especially susceptible. What the clever folks at the East India Company knew was that the isoprenes imparted to the beer by the hops act as an antibiotic agent. They were able to make a beer that would survive a long boat trip across the ocean by adding more hops to it. The result was the extremely bitter style of beer known as the IPA.

So that covers the IPA part of the name, but what about the "imperial." Adding the word "imperial" to the name of any beer style generally means that it is somehow bigger and bolder than its non-imperial counterpart. In general, imperial beers use large amounts of hops and malt. As a result, they are typically higher in ABV and with very in-your-face flavors. My imperial IPA should be no exception!

Here are some photos from brew day:

The wort just before pitching the yeast.

Here it is after sitting for a few minutes. That lighter layer on the bottom is called the hot break protein.

Steeping the specialty grains.

Wort just before hop additions.

What I am shooting for in this beer is a style with decent malt character to it and a nice punch of hops. The hops I used should give the beer fruity and piney flavors. I will review it when it is ready.

Here's the recipe:

Recipe Name:         La Mia's Imperial Amber IPA

Recipe Volume:      1 gallon

Yeast:                     White Labs WLP001 California Ale

Malts:	Amount	Gravity Points
1. Pale malt extract (DME)	1.75 lbs.	77
2. Crystal 120	1.75 oz.	3
3. Caramunich	1.75 oz.	3

Calculated Original Gravity            1.084
Caclulated Boil Gravity                   1.060
Measured Original Gravity             1.090

Hops:	Amount	Boil Time	IBUs
1. Nugget (13.3%)	0.2 oz.	90	45
2. Simcoe (13%)	0.15 oz.	30	24
3. Simcoe (13%)	0.15 oz.	1	24
4. Nugget (13.3%)	0.1 oz.	Dry Hop
5. Simcoe (13%)	0.2 oz.	Dry Hop

Calculated IBUs          70

Procedure
- Heat 1 gallon of water in a large pot.
- Heat 3 cups of water to 150-160 F in small pot, add Crystal 120 and Caramunich. Steep for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally (maintaining temperature is not vital). Remove grain bag and wash with water heated in large pot.
- Add 3 more cups of water, bring to boil, turn off heat and stir in 1.75 lbs. DME
- Return to boil and add 0.2 oz. Nugget hops
- Boil 60 minutes, and then add 0.15 oz. Simcoe hops
- Boil 15 minutes, and then add 1/4 tsp. yeast nutrient and 1/4 tsp. Irish moss
- Boil 14 minutes, and then add 0.15 oz. Simcoe hops
- Boil 1 more minute, then take off heat
- Top up to 1 gallon with chilled sterilized water
- Chill wort to 75 F in ice water bath
- Add wort to fermenter
- Aerate for a few mintues
- Pitch 3/4 of 1 vial of yeast