How to make a Session IPA clone... spring and summer are coming!

Yes, I know... alright.  You don't have to tell me... session beers have become all the rage. Every micro pub and brewery has them now.  But I was brewing sessions before they had a cool name.  Not because I was some trailblazer, I wasn't,  but rather because that is what we brewed in the dark ages.  In the early years of home brewing we didn't have all of the computer software, and technology we have now.   Most of the recipes we brewed were between 1.040 and 1.050 original gravity.   Because... well that's just how it was.   No one had thought of a double IPA in 1992.   So we made lots of American Pale Ales, and English IPAs.    Sure, when we made a Russian Imperial Stout, or an Imperial Porter we bumped that gravity up as high as we could but we only brewed  those maybe once a year.

Why?, you ask?   Well the main reason is that the beer culture in America was centered around light american lagers that were all 3.2% alcohol.  So making a 4-5% alcohol beer was comparatively strong.  But I think the quality of the yeast, and what we knew about yeast had a factor in our brewing too.

So we brewed a lot of lower alcohol beers.  Beers we now call Session Beers.   When you think about it, session beer makes a lot of sense.   With a session beer you can enjoy multiple beers with out becoming intoxicated.   Intoxication and alcoholism are real problems.  We often make lite of them in our hobby, but I believe that if we were being real and honest we would all admit that drinking too much is a problem among some home brewers.  (And if you do choose to get drunk, do it at home and never ever freaking drive drunk!)  But session beers offer more than the ability to have multiple beers . Session beers are fun.  It is fun to try to make a beer reminiscent of one of your favorite high alcohol beers. It requires thought, planning and creative experimentation.  And finally session beers cost less than high OG beers.  They just do, less grain, less extract, less yeast always equals less cost.

So with those things in mind I am going to give you some tips to cloning the big beers you love into reminiscent session beers.  These are not true clones.  They are homages to their bigger inspirations. Today I present to you Pliny the Petulant.  A less than 5% alcohol version of a great IPA.   I'm sure most of you have heard of Pliny the Elder and Pliny the Younger.   Some of you may have even heard of Pliny the Toddler.   For those of you who haven't,  "Pliny" is a beer by Russian River Brewing.  It is debatably the penultimate imperial India pale ale.  I'll let you research and try for your self.


I have a long love affair with this beer.  It is with out question one of my 2 favorite dIPAs (the other being Boulevard The Calling, which I don't think lends itself well to a session approach).  So when I set out to make a session IPA for spring and summer... I'm setting out to make a version of Pliny.   I'm setting out to capture the flavor profile of this beast.   Having said that I am not the first,  Drew Beechum's recipe for "Pliny the Toddler" is widely available online.  As is the recipe from The Maltose Falcons brew club.  I have made these recipes many, many times.  I have even blogged about them several times. They are great recipes.  But I have brewed them and made certain tweaks over time.  Tweaks that have gotten me exactly what I want.

In Planning a session, There are two approaches.   The first approach is to try to capture the flavor profiles of the original beer with out worrying about the balance of IBU to OG.  When you take this approach, and I certainly prefer this approach and have taken it many times,  you aren't as worried about the ratios and % of the hops, or the balance index?   Wait, you did it again, you used some term no one has ever heard...  You're right I did.   The balance index is merely the IBUs / OG.  In Pliny the real laboratory IBUs are insanely high... approaching 250.  But the perceived IBUs are around 95.    And this is the gist of the other approach.  Leave the % of hops the same,  and leave the balance index the same. make a smaller beer with exact percentages.  I have done this too and... I think the first approach is actually the better one.  But with either approach we still have to do some math and some planning and we have to look at the original recipe carefully.   So here is the American Home brewers Association published clone recipe for Pliny the Elder.  

6 Gallons (22.7 L) 5.5 to the second fermenter
75% efficiency
OG 1.072
FG  1.011
IBUs  90 -  95 (200)
Balance Index - 1.319
ABV is around 8%

13.25# of 2 Row Barley
.6 # of Crystal 40
.6 # of CaraPils
.75# of Corn Sugar (late boil)

3.5	28.00%	oz (99 g) Columbus* hops, 13.9% a.a. (90 min)
0.75	6.00%	oz (21 g) Columbus* hops, 13.9% a.a. (45 min)
1	8.00%	oz (28 g) Simcoe hops, 12.3% a.a. (30 min)
1	8.00%	oz (28 g) Centennial hops, 8% a.a. (0 min)
2.5	20.00%	oz (71 g) Simcoe hops, 12.3% a.a. (0 min)
1	8.00%	oz (28 g) Columbus* hops, 13.9% a.a. (dry hop, 12-14 days total)
1	8.00%	oz (28 g) Centennial hops, 9.1% a.a. (dry hop, 12-14 days total)
1	8.00%	oz (28 g) Simcoe hops, 12.3% a.a. (dry hop, 12-14 days total)
0.25	2.00%	oz (7 g) Columbus* hops, 13.9% a.a. (dry hop, 5 days to go in dry hop)
0.25	2.00%	oz (7 g) Centennial hops, 9.1% a.a. (dry hop, 5 days to go in dry hop)
0.25	2.00%	oz (7 g) Simcoe hops, 12.3% a.a. (dry hop, 5 days to go in dry hop)

West coast ale yeast (WLP 001, Wyeast 1056, Safale US05)  appropriate starter.
1 tsp Whirlflock at 15 M
1 tsp Yeast Nutrient at 12 M
Aerate
Ferment at 67 F till fermentation subsides.
Rack to secondary.   Yes actually rack it, there are loads of dry hops in this beast.
Dry Hop in secondary, again you'll thank me... you'll lose way less beer with secondary in this particular recipe.
Let it finish, and package it!


So A little math and planning tells us that we want a recipe that looks something like this...

6 Gallons (22.7 L) 5.25 to the fermenter
75% efficiency
OG 1.045
FG  1.007
IBUs  50 to 55
Balance Index - 1.319

The goal is creating a beer that captures the beer being cloned.   It's that easy to "sessionize" your favorite big beers.   Of course you'll have to brew it, drink it all, and tweak it a couple of times.   I've done that bit for you... you're welcome!   But if you do you'll end up with something that looks like this...

Pliny the Petulant

Method: All Grain 
Style: American IPA
Boil Time: 60 min 
Batch Size: 5.5 gallons (fermentor volume)
Boil Size: 7.5 gallons 
Boil Gravity: 1.033 (recipe based estimate) 
Efficiency: 75% (brew house)
Source: Counterbrew 
Rating:

5

 of 

5

Original Gravity:

1.045

Final Gravity:

1.008

ABV (standard):

4.91%

IBU (tinseth):

57.31

SRM (morey):

2.99

Fermentables

Amount	Fermentable	PPG	°L	Bill %
7.6 lb	American - Pale 2-Row	37	1.8	88.4%
0.5 lb	German - Caramel Pils	35	2.4	5.8%
0.5 lb	Corn Sugar - Dextrose	46	0.5	5.8%
8.6 lb	Total

Hops

Amount	Variety	Type	AA	Use	Time	IBU
0.3 oz	Warrior	Pellet	16	First Wort		11.71
0.5 oz	Columbus	Pellet	15	Boil	45 min	27.73
0.5 oz	Simcoe	Leaf/Whole	12.7	Boil	30 min	17.87
0.25 oz	Centennial	Leaf/Whole	10	Whirlpool at 180 °F	0 min
0.5 oz	Simcoe	Leaf/Whole	12.7	Whirlpool at 180 °F	0 min
0.25 oz	Cascade	Leaf/Whole	7	Dry Hop	4 days
0.25 oz	Centennial	Leaf/Whole	10	Dry Hop	4 days
0.25 oz	Simcoe	Leaf/Whole	12.7	Dry Hop	4 days

Hops Summary

Amount	Variety	Type	AA
0.25 oz	Cascade	Leaf/Whole	7
0.5 oz	Centennial	Leaf/Whole	10
0.5 oz	Columbus	Pellet	15
1.25 oz	Simcoe	Leaf/Whole	12.7
0.3 oz	Warrior	Pellet	16

Mash Guidelines

Amount	Description	Type	Temp	Time
8.72 gal	No sparge brew in a bag	Temperature	150 F	60 min
Starting Mash Thickness: 4.36 qt/lb

Yeast

Fermentis / Safale - American Ale Yeast US-05

Attenuation (avg): 81% Flocculation: Medium Optimum Temp: 54 - 77 °F Starter: No Fermentation Temp: 67 °F Pitch Rate: 0.75 (M cells / ml / ° P) 175 B cells required

This is what we'll be brewing this coming weekend.  And to make things even easier, we will be doing a no sparge batch.   We put all but 1 gallon of the water into the mash tun and all of the grains. If our temp is spot on we add the withheld 1 gallon when it is at the mash temp.  if we are too high we add up to 1 gallon of cold water until we are at temp.  Were almost never too low, but if we were we could add up to 1 gallon of 170 F. water to get to temp.  This is the easiest way to brew by far.   We use a bag as a filter medium, but you don't have to if you prefer a false bottom or stainless supply screen. After 60 minutes we stir, check our gravity, and usually we are ready to drain into the kettle.   Yes I know some of you are  freaking out right now  what about pH, what about ideal mash thickness, what about, what about... Kai says... John Palmer says.... Just adjust your water, use good buffers, and give it a try it works just fine. (OK clearly I've touched a nerve with a disciple of the BrauKaiser who has chosen to PM me rather than post publicly,  Listen, I am a huge fan, nearly a devotee of Braukaiser... but no sparge works every stinkin time, so just try it!)

From there on it is just like any other batch... It is really that straight forward.    With No sparge brewing you can reduce your brew day to under 3.5 hours if you are organized and plan in advance.  

That's all for now sports fans.  Prost!

Pliny the Toddler ... One of my favorites... and I overshot... again!

Started, like always by making sure the brew
house, (ie kitchen) was clean and ready.

I love small batch brewing.   Most of my batches now are 2.25 gallons.   I can make them on the stovetop, I can easily control temperatures.   I'm not outside brewing in the cold, or the hot.   And lets be realistic.   Small batch gives you more variety, more chances to brew, and makes you a better brewer.

So Saturday, I brewed up one of my all time favorite recipes.   Drew Beechum's Pliny the Toddler.   My recipe is not exactly the same,  Drew uses Maris Otter for half of his grain bill.  I just use 2 row, and a tiny bit of carapils.  Drew's Recipe is for 5.5 gallons, mine is for 2.5.  This recipe is all about that magical combination of hops.   It isn't overly hoppy, it isn't a hop monster.   It simply features that combination of hops that you get when you drink a Pliny.  But the alcohol is low, so you can have several.   Yum.

Mash in went perfectly.   Hit my numbers exactly.  But here is where i think I goofed up.  I decided to mash for 90 minutes.   No one was home, I was watching Dr. Who and Football.   An extra 30 Minutes? Sure, why not?  Because you overshot by 12 points that's why...  Unfortunately I overshot this beer gravity by 12 points.  Trying for 1.040, ended up at 1.052.   I guess I have to accept that the 82% - 88% I keep getting is not a fluke, and just plan on it from now on.   The gravity was higher than expected, so i changed from US05 to Nottingham for this batch.  I've used both with this beer, and both come out just fine. The Nottingham won't attenuate out as much as the US05, so the alcohol content will still be where I want it.  But it will also leave a little more sweetness.  Think the hops in this can handle that no problem.   As you can see with small batch, I do brew in a bag, and I do it right on my stove top.  So simple; a couple of paint strainer bags (1.97 each) a 5 gallon pot, and a brewing thermometer.  That is all you need. To make great beer.  

So here is a cool trick that I learned.   Write your hop additions and times on the counter with a dry erase pen.   Perfect way to keep organized,   just make sure it is a dry erase pen.  Cause... well it takes a long time to scrub off permanent marker if you goof.   ONLY USE DRY ERASE.  DON'T DO THIS ON WOODEN COUNTERTOPS.

Another reason to love small batch.   It chills in record time.   With my 25' stainless chiller, and a sink of ice water, I had this batch down to pitching temps in under 10 minutes.   Now granted the ground water here is getting colder every day.   And this day was Halloween, probably mid 50s outside.  But still 10 minutes is pretty darn fast.  

Aerated the batch like crazy and pitched 1/2 of a pack of Nottingham into it.     As of monday morning a slight Krausen has formed on the beer.  Should be rocking by the time I get home.  Sounds like I'm brewing with some friends this coming weekend. Gotta figure out what to brew with them. I'm pretty sure I should teach them all grain small batch.  I'm also pretty sure they will want to make a hop monster.   That should be a great time.   Got some serious bottling to do tonight.   The Scottish Ale will bottle up tonight, and the Centennial Blonde will be bottled.   Need to dry hop the Miller the Muggle Wednesday Night. Think Ill try Saaz and Hallertauer for the dry hop. Trying to give it just a little more character. I'm letting the old school lager, lager for a while longer.   There was a slight hint of butter, more in texture than flavor.   That is Diacetyl.   Rested for 48 hours, now back into the fridge for 2 weeks of lagering.  

UPDATE: A Beautiful Krausen has formed.  creamy and thick 

The satisfied feeling

many of you don't know this but... I am an actor.   (well a community theater actor, which is like a guy on a beer league softball team claiming to be a ball player.)  We recently wrapped a show at a local theater.  I played a big bald guy for the 4th time.  It was a big success, thousands came to see it. And it was a great experience.   A great experience made better by the fact that so many people got to try my home brew... and they seemed to love it.  A couple of those guys are probably reading this now.  And I got to help some of them rekindle their interest in homebrewing.   Several of them are coming to Ranchero de Dave to brew with me.

For the first couple of servings I kept it pretty tame. Cool Gales Cream Ale,  Everyday Pale Ale, Belgian Common, ESB... but as my beer muggle cast mates and spouses pallets adjusted I hit them with the big guns.   Pliny the Toddler (a 3.5 gallon batch dry hopped with 1 ounce each of simcoe, cascade, and centennial), a cascade smash, a blueberry cream ale, and a 20% lacto soured Strawberry Blonde.   All of the beers were consumed in short order (nearly record time).

So this morning I am humbled and appreciative of the empty bottles in my cooler.   By the way heres a cool trick.   After a party leave the 48 bottles in the cooler, drain the water.   Add your pbw or oxiclean to the cooler, fill it with water... boom clean bottles.

Next weekend I'll be back in the kitchen brewing, and I'll shoot a detailed explanation of chilling with ice.

Pliny the Toddler... Brewday

OK, Im obsessed.  I admit it.  (isn't that the first step?)  I enjoy beer,  I really enjoy brewing beer,  I even enjoy bottling beer.  So, yes... I brewed again this weekend.  This time a beer that I have been wanting to try for years.   Pliny the Toddler.  The original recipe is by Drew Beechum.   If you don't know who Drew is, he wrote (along with Denny Conn) Experimental Homebrewing a great book.  He also wrote the best book on home made hard cider, The Everything Home Cider Making Book.   Several years ago he developed a recipe inspired by Russian River's Pliny the Elder.   (look it up).  The idea was to make a recipe that was similar in flavor to Pliny, but far lower in alcohol.  I love Pliny the Elder.  It is probably the best beer I have ever tasted.  So I have been wanting to make this for years.  So... here you go.

Orgainized my stuff.   This is an all grain batch.  3.5 gallons (5 gallon boil).  A great thing about smaller batches is the cost is way less.   This whole batch cost me less than $20.00.   It uses the same hops that Pliny uses.  The basic recipe is

• 4.3# of 2 row
• 1 # of Corn Sugar
• .5# of Biscuit Malt
• .3# of Carapils
• .4 oz of Warrior at 60
• .4 oz of Centennial at 10
• .4 oz of Columbus at 5
• .4 oz of Cascade at 0
• 1 tsp of Irish Moss
• 1 tsp of yeast nutrient
• 6-8 grams of Lallemand Nottingham Ale Yeast
• Dry Hop .2 oz of Cascade, Centennial, & Simcoe at 4 days to bottling.

As I have stated here before, I often dough in low, and slow rise to strike temperature.   This approach yielded an 84% efficiency on this batch. The low dough in temperature creates a quasi protein rest.  It allows the enzymes that break down proteins to do their thing.  Protein rests are not necessary with fully modified barley malts, and they can create a thin bodied beer, so you have to think your way through on this topic.   Here is my general guideline, for light bodied beers I dough in at about 135 and let it slow rise to strike temp.   With full bodied beers I generally dough in right at strike temp (which is generally higher for full body beers) and bring it back up to rest temp.  It works for me.  

Here is the mash resting comfortably at 150.  It stayed there with almost no fiddling around for the entire 60 minutes.  It is all about knowing your system.   What works on my ghetto electric turkey fryer, may not work on your system.  Babysit your brew!

Before the sugar addition (always late in the boil) I was at 1.030.  That is spot on.  The sugar will add roughly 1.006.  So after boil we get a gravity of about 1.045.  Which is what we want.  You always gain gravity in the boil.  Water evaporates, sugars do not. By the way I need to get a new hydrometer tube, that one is just too big, it takes way too much wort to determine the gravity. 

The boil.  Nothing fancy here just 5 gallons of boiling wort.  No boil overs this week, I was diligent.

I force chilled it with my wort chiller.  It was raining out side, so I had to use the sink.  Chilling it took 45 minutes.  Gotta figure something out to chill the wort faster and use less water.  Still thinking the jaded brewing chillers, or a prechiller system is probably the way to go.

 My final gravity was a little higher than expected. (.002 higher) Just means I did a good job with my mash and boil.  And here is Nottingham pitched into well aerated yeast.  I shook the heck out of this one.