Beware the Yellow Cat!

On Halloween I didn't go to work. I stayed home and brewed a beer instead. The original plan was for a British Pale Ale, but I drank one of our Wiccan Wheats (which I hope to write about here soon) while waiting for the wort to reach a boil, and inspiration struck! Instead of shooting for a run of the mill Pale Ale, why not go all in for an insane IPA!

In my mind, the most basic differences between a Pale Ale and an IPA are the original gravity and the amount of hops used--the IPA having more of both. To raise the gravity, I figured I'd just boil the wort down for a longer period, reduce its volume for a greater concentration of sugars. And extra boil time works with the hopping process too.

So as soon as the wort reached a boil, I threw in three ounces of Cluster Hops. After twenty minutes I threw in another ounce. Twenty minutes later, another ounce. And twenty minutes after that, another ounce. Each time I added another dose of hops, the wort took on a radioactive, pollen-yellow glow.

(I think Cluster hops are pretty interesting. I stumbled onto them because of my interest in domestic ingredients--they're an American strain, born and bred in the U.S.A. They've got a unique kick to them--some people think it's sort of harsh, and it's often referred to as 'cattiness'--that doesn't fit in with traditional views of what a hop should be. But I like that catty kick.)

I rinsed the grains an extra time, to strip out every possible bit of sugar, and threw that in with the boil too. I threw an ounce of Cascade hops in the mix, too, and kept things boiling.

After 100 minutes of boiling and hop additions, I killed the flame and started the chiller. Then I threw it in a carboy and pitched a vial of White Labs British Ale yeast (probably not the most suitable ale yeast, but it's what I had on hand).

After seven days in primary, I transferred the beer to a new carboy, and dry hopped it with two more ounces of cluster, and an ounce of Mt. Hood (another unorthodox hop for IPAs, but hey--this is an unorthodox beer!). Total hops for a five gallon batch: 10 ounces. I let it sit on those hops for three weeks, and then I bottled it.

OG clocked in at 1.070; FG was 1.016 (not as dry as it could have been, but that gives it a hearty mouthfeel--again, unorthodox for an IPA--which I like). The aroma at bottling time was pretty awesome. I'm definitely looking forward to cracking a bottle open once it's conditioned!