IPA Yeast Trial #1 (3/8/13)

Since I'm going to be brewing a lot of IPAs, I thought it would be worth taking the time to run some split-batch trials to decide what yeast I like best for this style. For the first trial, I'm matching up the ever-popular US05 (a dry California ale yeast) with White Labs WLP007 (Dry English Ale). US05 is very neutral, while WLP007 should produce some characteristic fruity esters and fusel alcohols. We'll see whether these yeast flavors complement or detract from the hop character. The two yeasts should reach about the same level of attenuation.

This IPA is designed to be a classic grapefruit-pine hop bomb. Centennial, Amarillo, and Chinook are all hops I'm quite fond of, and I hope the combination will live up to my expectations. I'm incorporating the results of my hop stand experiment by adding a bunch of hops at 175F for 30 minutes, but I'm really focusing my hop charge on the dry hop. This will be my first time doing a double dry hop (5 oz dry hops in total). The malt character of this beer should be quite subdued, despite its 8% ABV. Besides 2-row, there's just a bit of flaked barley for body and a pound of cane sugar (added after 48 hours) to dry it out.

I got some information on my tap water and was able to do more extensive water building for this beer. The water profile is as follows:

Calcium: 84ppm
Magnesium: 0.6ppm
Sodium: 4.0ppm
Chloride: 53ppm
Sulfate: 138ppm

Vitals:

ABV: 8%
OG: 1.066
FG: 1.006/1.007
IBUs (Tinseth): 80

Mash temp: 149F
Mash time: 90 minutes
Efficiency: 71%

Yeast: US05 (4.75 grams) & WLP007 (1 vial)
Pitching temp: 65F
Max temp: 71F

Malts Mashed		Amount	%	Max Pts.
2 Row		10	83%	36.00
Barley (flaked)		1	8%	32.00

Other Fermentables		Amount	%	Max Pts.
Cane Sugar		1	8%	46.00

Hops/Additions		Amount	Time	AA%
Magnum		1	60	14.7%
Chinook		0.25	60	11.1%
Chinook		0.5	30	11.1%
Centennial		1	Hop stand	8.7%
Amarillo		1	Hop stand	9.3%
Chinook		0.25	Hop stand	11.1%

3/10/13: Added sugar
3/12/13: Added 1 oz Centennial, Amarillo
3/15/13: Added 1 oz Centennial, Amarillo, Chinook

Bottled 3/19/13:
#5 = WLP007
#6 = US05

US05 at 1.006; WLP007 at 1.007. WLP007 is noticeably maltier and more full-bodied. Next time I won't add any sugar, since I've been getting crazy levels of attenuation.

The IPAs were also affected by the cap fiasco and had to be re-capped (4/5/13).