Backward History IPA Project: East Coast - West Coast - Hazy - Brut
This year at Sapwood Cellars I'm brewing a homebrew-scale IPA each month on my old gear! Each batch follows the evolution of the style a little further back in time. Last month marked the half-way point. So here are the recipes and my notes on the first six! Our Instagram page also have short Reels on me talking about each one!
I should say, while many of them are inspired by certain commercial beers, most of them are my own best guess at the recipe and what works on my equipment. They certainly could be good jumping-off points for a clone, but will need tweaking based on your tastes, ingredients, equipment and goals! I've left out process aids (BioFine, Clarex/ClarityFerm, Anti-Foam, Yeast Nutrient, Whirlfloc, MashLife etc.) if you use these products, please add them at your standard rates!
Backwards History Vol.1: 2074
Concept: Backwards History 2074 was brewed with distilled and extracted Citra hops liberated from the NHSR (National Hop Strategic Reserve). Starting with refined alpha acids to hit the target 40 IBUs of bitterness. Followed by Citra Incognito (Supercritical CO2 Extract) in a chilled whirlpool for saturated hop flavor. For the "mid-ferm" addition he added Citra Spectrum (Debittered CO2 Extract), for aromatic depth and texture. Finishing with Citra Quantum oil for that bright orange and melon aroma (not that anyone remembers what fresh fruit smells like).
Recipe:Water: Ca: 62.4 ppm, Mg:6.0 ppm, Na: 19.0 ppm, SO4: 13.0 ppm, Cl: 115.2 ppm, HCO3: 98.0 ppm
50 lbs Pilsner Malt
4 lbs Maltodextrin
Mash @ 160F
OG 20.7P
Yeast - American Ale II (WY1272 or similar)
20 mL 20% Alpha Acid @ 60 min
60 mL Citra Incognito @ 180F Whirlpool
50 IBUs
60 mL Citra Spectrum - Mid Fermentation (diluted in water)
1 oz Citra Quantum Brite @ kegging
Notes: A good, if not remarkably exciting hazy IPA. I was honestly surprised that it would pass as a beer brewed with "traditional" pellet hops.
Backwards History Vol.2: 2018
Concept: The second installment of the project is a Brut IPA! It's a stand-in for the huge diversification of hoppy beers in the 2010's (White IPA, Black IPA, Belgian IPA, Session IPA etc.) I brewed it with flaked rice and an enzyme (glucoamylase) that removes all of the residual sweetness. Inspired by the original version from San Francisco's Social Kitchen & Brewery. 6.5% ABV, dry, spritzy, and dry hopped with Mosaic and El Dorado.
Backwards History Vol.3: 2012
Concept: Draft Only This third installment of Backwards History was inspired by one of the early pioneers of New England IPA in Massachusetts (Tree House). It has an orange color and richer flavor thanks to Honey Malt along with 2-row barley, and oats. I hopped it with with Apollo for bitterness, and dry hopped with Citra for aroma. The brewery is secretive, but this batch is fermented with a blend of dried strains determined by a genetic analysis which provides a slight bubblegum note. Mineral analysis of the original beer helped to estimate the water profile as well.
Backwards History Vol.4: 2010
Concept: Inspired by one of his favorite Vermont breweries (The Alchemist), this is my take on the original hazy (but not juicy) IPA! It's fermented with an English-origin ale strain (Conan) and brewed with Thomas Fawcett's English Pearl pale ale malt. That's where the similarities to the traditional English IPAs end, since it is loaded with Citra and Mosaic hops! Expect more malt flavor, but less malt sweetness than our typical Hazies. Both the IBUs and water chemistry make for a crisper more bitter balance as well.
Backwards History Vol.5: 2000
Concept: The IBU Wars: At the turn of the Millennium, breweries competed to make their West Coast IPAs as bitter as possible: 100, 200, 1000 International Bitterness Units! This month's Backwards History is a "measly" 130 calculated IBUs. The recipe was inspired by one of the Northern California pioneers (perfectors?) of the style (Russian River). Hopped in the kettle then dry hopped with a wide range of American hops including Crystal, Centennial, Chinook, Amarillo, and Simcoe. The base is American 2-row Barley, with a small addition of Caramel malt, fermented with a clean American Ale strain. The overall impression is citrus and pine, with a dry finish punctuated by a clean lingering hop bitterness!
Notes: Bitterness was about right, good hop aroma without being overwhelming. The Centennial, Crystal, and Chinook were just "OK" tricky without having access to great selections on those.
Backwards History Vol.6: 1997
Concept: It's an East Coast IPA, what I drank before West Coast and Hazy IPA were around in Massachusetts. Inspired by Victory Hop Devil, Dogfish Head 60 Minute, and Smuttynose Finest Kind! A really balanced version of the style. It's a little malty (Crystal 60 and Victory), firmly bitter (70 IBUs), with a restrained herbal-citrusy hop aroma (Palisade and Simcoe).
Notes: Pretty classic balance, not too malty, not too hoppy. Firm bitterness, but it reads differently with the perceived sweetness of the malt.
What's Next?
Today we're tapping "1980" inspried by early American craft IPAs. The rest of the year will be pushing further into the past. I already have December's batch brewed so it can age with Brett and whole-leaf Goldings hops. My friend Matt "PHD in Beer" Humbard is distilling a little Bullion oil for the mid-century Ballantine-esque American IPA. I'll post those recipes in about six months if you are interested!
If you're interested in trying these, they'll be tapped the last-Thursday of each month at Sapwood Cellars!
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