Topaz IPA

[Brew_DD2]

Hi guys,

First post so please go easy! I brewed this beer around a week ago and was looking for some feedback on how it may turn out. This is my second brew after a successful first batch was bottled a few weeks ago. I appreciate any constructive feedback. I look forward to participating in this forum. Seems like there is a lot of good people on here with as much passion for beer as I have.


HOME BREW RECIPE:
Title: Next Brew
Author: BrewDD2

Brew Method: Extract
Style Name: American IPA
Boil Time: 60 min
Batch Size: 20 liters (fermentor volume)
Boil Size: 5 liters
Boil Gravity: 1.085
Efficiency: 35% (steeping grains only)

STATS:
Original Gravity: 1.061
Final Gravity: 1.012
ABV (standard): 6.46%
IBU (tinseth): 60.44
SRM (daniels): 10.33

FERMENTABLES:
0.2 kg - Corn Sugar - Dextrose (5.4%)
1.5 kg - Liquid Malt Extract - Amber - (late addition) (40.5%)
1 kg - Dry Malt Extract - Light - (late addition) (27%)
1 kg - Dry Malt Extract - Light (27%)

HOPS:
80 g - Challenger, Type: Leaf/Whole, AA: 5.77, Use: Boil for 60 min, IBU: 38.71
40 g - Topaz, Type: Leaf/Whole, AA: 15.7, Use: Aroma for 10 min, IBU: 19.1
10 g - Topaz, Type: Leaf/Whole, AA: 15.7, Use: Aroma for 5 min, IBU: 2.63
50 g - Topaz, Type: Leaf/Whole, AA: 15.7, Use: Dry Hop for 4 days

YEAST:
Fermentis / Safale - American Ale Yeast US-05
Starter: No
Form: Dry
Attenuation (avg): 81%
Flocculation: Medium
Optimum Temp: 12.22 - 25 C
Fermentation Temp: 18 C
Pitch Rate: 0.5 (M cells / ml / deg P)

[seymour]

It sure sounds like you know what you're doing. I bet that's gonna be a nice strong, tasty, modern IPA.

Looking forward to hearing how you like it. Post a picture if you can, I'm also curious how the colour comes out.

Cheers!

[Brew_DD2]

Thanks for the feedback! I tried my best to read a lot around the subject before starting. Looked darker than expected in the fermenter but took a gravity reading yesterday and the colour looked good. I'll be sure to post some pictures of the finished beer and some thoughts on the Topaz hops.

I'm not too happy with having to do 5 litre boils (due to small stock pot) but I guess it just means that I do the majority of my malt additions at the end of the boil and adjust hop additions accordingly.

What sort of boil gravity should I aim for to minimise Maillard reaction in my lighter brews?

[seymour]

...I'm not too happy with having to do 5 litre boils (due to small stock pot) but I guess it just means that I do the majority of my malt additions at the end of the boil and adjust hop additions accordingly. What sort of boil gravity should I aim for to minimise Maillard reaction in my lighter brews?

The short answer? Use the lightest possible extract to begin with, no amber or crystal whatsoever, and if you add sugar use only the whitest you can find. Keep your boil short, like 45 minutes is all you'd need.

To be honest, as an extract brewer, I think that'll be one of your biggest challenges and areas for experimentation. Further boiling of wort extract on a small scale like that will almost always lead to fairly noticeable kettle caramelization. In my opinion, that's what a lot of people mean when they say a beer tastes "homebrew-y". It's not necessarily a bad thing though, it's a desireable trait in many classic German beer styles. And for American "West Coast style IPAs" the idea is to build a strong caramelly malt backbone to support the over-the-top hoppiness, just like your recipe. Think: Stone, Green Flash, Ballast Point, Rogue, etc... The same thing happens to us all-grain brewers whenever we use extra dextriny base malts such as Mild malt, CaraPils, Dextine malt, Vienna malt, Joe White Traditional Pale malt, etc, especially if we then prolong the boil beyond 60 minutes. My recent Australian Sparkling Ale has intense kettle caramelization traits, too much I'm sure to be considered "true to style" but I think it works against my heavy doses of Stella/Ella hops.

...I'll be sure to post some pictures of the finished beer and some thoughts on the Topaz hops...

Sounds good. If you like those modern over-the-top Australian and New Zealand hop cultivars, I think you'll really like Topaz. And lucky for you, it's much cheaper and more obtainable than Galaxy. For now at least, until brewers catch-on to their close similarity. In case you're interested, here are a couple of my published ratings of all-Topaz brews:

Schlafly Imperial Topaz Anniversary Ale
Tasted at Bottleworks in a sampler glass. It poured a mostly clear golden colour with thin but persistent white foam, some lace. Fairly nondescript malt bill, hint of residual caramel sweetness. The emphasis obviously placed on intense Topaz hoppy traits: citrus rind, tropical fruit, hint of melon and tomato plant. Bitterness was a little coarse, flavour was better, aroma was best of all, much like Galaxy and Enigma hops. I notice another Schlafly brew "Tasmanian IPA" used to be all Galaxy, now a blend of Galaxy and Topaz, which makes perfect sense as a cost-savings. Medium body and carbonation, smooth alcoholic warmth, lingering fruity aftertaste. Overall 3.3 out of 5.

Alpha Topaz Pale
Tasted on tap at the brewery tasting room. It poured a nice light golden amber colour with a little chill haze, weak off-white foam and a little lace. The brewer told me due to extremely high demand, there is a shortage of Cascades hops, so his hop supplier is recommending Topaz as a substitute. Huh? That’s crazy talk, Topaz is NOTHING like Cascade. Even so, Topaz makes for a pleasant APA in its own right: grassy, fruity, hints of melons and juicyfruit gum, shares some characteristics with Mosaic and Simcoe. An easy-drinking pint, with a little more complexity than typical grapefruity APAs. Overall 3.4 out of 5.

[Brew_DD2]

Wow! Thanks for such great feedback and advice. I've not got a problem with my beers being slightly darker than expected. I'll keep it in mind to maybe keep amber malts to a minimum if I'm trying to brew to style.

Regarding Topaz, I'd decided to go for it because I'd read it can provide a lychee aroma/flavour and that really appealed to me. The smell coming out the airlock is more like blackberries/strawberries. Smells great. Was very cheap as well!

[seymour]

Interesting about the lychee comparison. I've never tasted actual lychee fruit, and I've only tasted it in one beer: New Belgium Lips of Faith - Tart Lychee. It was absolutely delicious, but it had way too much going on (high alcohol, oak aging, cinnamon sticks, maybe brett or lactobacillus, etc) for me to learn much about lychee. I've had at least 4 beers with Topaz, none of which I recall tasting anything like that lychee beer, but again that really doesn't mean much.

I look forward to hearing if you think the finished beer tastes anything like lychee fruit.

[Brew_DD2]

BrewDog did a prototype beer called hop fiction had the lychee aroma and finish and it was excellent. They used Chinook, Amarillo and Mosaic. As this was only my second brew I wanted to keep it relatively simple so I seemed out a hop variety that had the lychee aroma and came up with Topaz.

Lychees are very floral smelling. Very comparable with roses or rose-water but subtle and not overpowering. If the Topaz doesn't lend this I won't be too upset. What I'm smelling quite now is pretty exciting. I don't think I've come across red fruit aromas in an IPA before.

That Tart Lychee beer you mentioned sounds amazing.

Edit:

I'm going to post the recipe for my next brew either this evening or tomorrow. I've been exploring steeping grains but I'm pretty sure some of my percentages will be off, so any advice you could give would be greatly appreciated. Your advice here has been brilliant!

[Brew_DD2]

Update!

Took a gravity reading today whilst taking out the hops. 1.014 so I'm happy with that. Into the fridge for a cold crash.

Aroma of red berries and slightly peppery. It has a really familiar taste and I couldn't figure it out at first but then it hit me. Blood oranges with maybe a hint of pink grapefruit. Very pleased with how this is turning out so far. It's almost like a beery breakfast juice.

The only thing I will say is that it seems like quite a dry finish, not a lot of residual sweetness that one might expect from the style.

Any tips?

[Wonkydonkey]

@1.014 I'd thought it would be sweet-ish, and as you did and extract, I cant say mash at a higher temp, I can only think of using a different yeast,

Well that's my thoughts, hopfully someone else will pop along and give you there' thoughts.

[Brew_DD2]

Perhaps once it's carbed the flavours will balance out and I'll get a better impression?

[Brew_DD2]

Realisde I never updated this. Beer came out great, very blood orangey/marmalade flavour with a bit of peppery spice. Had one of the bottles I saved a few days ago and it has developed beautifully. Still a nice hoppy aroma but the bitterness has mellowed and has taken on some floral notes. I think Topaz would work very nicely in a saison.

[seymour]

Realisde I never updated this. Beer came out great, very blood orangey/marmalade flavour with a bit of peppery spice. Had one of the bottles I saved a few days ago and it has developed beautifully. Still a nice hoppy aroma but the bitterness has mellowed and has taken on some floral notes. I think Topaz would work very nicely in a saison.

Nice descriptions, and I'm sure you're right about a Topaz saison. I think you're very well suited to this whole brewing obsession. Which brew is up next?