Here is the suggested recipe for the BYO/BBR extract method experiment. (See my previous blog entry if you don't know what I'm referring to.) It’s a double IPA that took some inspiration from a variety of hoppy beers — including Russian River’s Pliny the Elder, Stone IPA, Racer 5, AleSmith IPA and Rogue I2PA — as well as my own IPA recipe I’ve been fiddling with. This recipe is not clone of any of the commercial beers. This is intended as a light-colored, highly-attenuated, American-style IPA/double IPA. I give both 5-gallon (19-L) and 2.5-gallon (9.5-L) versions of the recipe. An advantage of the 2.5-gallon version is that stovetop brewers can perform the full boil trial. (Note: a stovetop brewer could also do the full wort boil as a 2.5 gallon batch and one or more of the other trials as a 5-gallon batch.) If you don’t like this recipe, feel free to use a Pliny clone or the IPA/dIPA recipe of your choosing.

In the instructions for these beers, I’ll point out some things to keep in mind in order to keep the experiment as tightly controlled as possible. The basic idea is to keep everything between the two or more batches (experimental trials) identical except for the experimental variable, which in this case is the wort production method. Along these lines, it would be a good idea to buy your ingredients in bulk, so you’re not just using the same recipe, but the same exact ingredients. Use the same equipment for brewing each batch, with the possible exception of using multiple fermenters. Keep the hops frozen between batches. If possible, crush the grains yourself on brewday. 

1.21 Gigawatts (AKA Doc Brown’s Double)
(5.0 gallons/19 L, extract with grains)

OG = 1.069  FG = 1.014
IBU = 121  SRM = 7  ABV = 7.1%

Ingredients
1.0 lb. (0.45 kg) domestic 2-row pale malt (~2 °L)

0.50 lb. (0.23 kg) British 2-row pale ale malt (~ 3 °L)
0.25 lb. (0.11 kg) Vienna malt (~5 °L)

0.25 lb. (0.11 kg) light crystal malt (20 °L)

1.0 lb. (0.45 kg) cane sugar

5 lb. 10 oz. (2.6 kg) Briess Light dried malt extract

23 AAU Magnum hops (60 mins)

    (1.6 oz./46 g of 14% alpha acids)

6 AAU Simcoe hops (30 mins)

    (0.50 oz./14 g of 12% alpha acids)

10 AAU Centennial hops (15 mins)   

    (1.0 oz./28 g of 10% alpha aids)

1.0 oz. (28 g) Cascade hops (5 mins)

1.0 oz. (28 g) Amarillo hops (0 mins)

2.0 oz. (57 g) Cascade whole hops (dry hop)

1 tsp. Irish moss (15 mins)

Wyeast 1056 (American Ale), White Labs WLP001 (California Ale) or Fermentis US-05 yeast
    (2 qt./2 L yeast starter for liquid yeasts)

1 cup corn sugar (for priming) 

Step by Step -- Full Wort Boil
If the full wort boil is one of your options, brew this trial first. Prepare your brewing water and write down exactly how you did it so you can use the same water for subsequent trials. In a large kitchen pot, steep the crushed grains at 150 °F (66 °C) for 45 mins. Steep the grains in 2.75 qts. (2.6 L) of your prepared water. In a separate pot, heat 1.5 qts. (1.4 L) of the same water to 170 °F (77 °C) to rinse the grains. While the grains are steeping, begin heating 5 gallons (19 L) of brewing water to a boil in your kettle. Remove the grain bag from the steeping pot and place in a colander over your kettle. Pour the “grain tea” through the grains (to filter out the solid bits), then gently rinse the grains with the 170 °F (77 °C) water. Dissolve the malt extract and sugar and bring the almost 6.0 gallons (23 L) of wort to a boil. Once the boil starts and you see some hot break forming, start the 60-minute boil. Add hops at times indicated in the recipe. Cool wort and transfer to fermenter. Mark the amount of wort in your fermenter. (For carboys, put a piece of tape at the liquid line. Use a permanent marker on the outside of your bucket.) Aerate wort and pitch yeast. Ferment at 70 °F (21 °C). When fermentation stops, let beer sit on yeast for 1 day, then rack to secondary. Let condition (with dry hops) for 1 week, then bottle or keg. Preferably, brew your next beer as soon as you rack to secondary and your primary fermenter is clear. 

Step by Step -- Standard Method
Prepare your brewing water and write down exactly how you did it. (Follow previous instructions if you did the full wort boil trial.) In a large kitchen pot, steep the crushed grains at 150 °F (66 °C) for 45 mins. Steep the grains in 2.75 qts. (2.6 L) of water. In a separate pot, heat 1.5 qts. (1.4 L) of water to 170 °F (77 °C) to rinse the grains. While the grains are steeping, begin heating 2.0 gallons (7.6 L) of water to a boil in your brewpot. Remove the grain bag from the steeping pot and place in a colander over your brewpot. Pour the “grain tea” through the grains (to filter out the solid bits), then gently rinse the grains with the 170 °F (77 °C) water. Dissolve the malt extract and sugar and bring the almost 3.0 gallons (11 L) of wort to a boil. Once the boil starts and you see some hot break forming, start the 60-minute boil. (Note the boil vigor.) Add hops at times indicated in the recipe. Cool wort and transfer to fermenter. Add water to make full batch volume -- to the mark in your primary fermenter, or to an equivalent volume in a separate fermenter, if you did the full wort trial first. Likewise, if you did the full wort boil trial, use water prepared as you did before, not just tap water. (If this is your first trial, mark the liquid line.) Aerate wort and pitch yeast. Ferment at 70 °F (21 °C). When fermentation stops, let beer sit on yeast for 1 day, then rack to secondary. Let condition (with dry hops) for 1 week, then bottle or keg. Preferably, brew your next beer (if you’re doing the extract late trial) as soon as you rack to secondary and your primary fermenter is clear. 

Step by Step -- Extract Late Method
Prepare your brewing water as with previous trail(s). In a large kitchen pot, steep the crushed grains at 150 °F (66 °C) for 45 mins. Steep the grains in 2.75 qts. (2.6 L) of water. In a separate pot, heat 1.5 qts. (1.4 L) of water to 170 °F (77 °C) to rinse the grains. While the grains are steeping, begin heating 2.0 gallons (7.6 L) of water to a boil in your brewpot. Remove the grain bag from the steeping pot and place in a colander over your brewpot. Pour the “grain tea” through the grains (to filter out the solid bits), then gently rinse the grains with the 170 °F (77 °C) water. Dissolve roughly 3 lbs. 5 oz. of the malt extract and bring the almost 3.0 gallons (11 L) of wort to a boil. Once the boil starts and you see some hot break forming, start the 60-minute boil. (Match boil vigor to the standard method, if you did that trial.) Add hops at times indicated in the recipe. Stir in sugar and remaining malt extract with 15 minutes left in boil. (Watch for foaming; don’t dump all the dried malt extract in at once.) Cool wort and transfer to fermenter. Add water to make full batch volume -- to the mark in your primary fermenter, or to an equivalent volume in a separate fermenter, to match the other trail(s). Likewise, as in previous trials, use water prepared as you did before, not just tap water. Aerate wort and pitch yeast. Ferment at 70 °F (21 °C). When fermentation stops, let beer sit on yeast for 1 day, then rack to secondary. Let condition (with dry hops) for 1 week, then bottle or keg. 

Things to record during the experiment: Volume and OG of each trial. FG of each trial. Color of each trial. (You can report this relatively -- darker, lighter -- or attempt to estimate SRM with color card or similar.) Foam height (in inches or centimeters) and duration (in minutes), if feasible. (This can also be reported relatively.) Comparison of clarity between trials (use identical beer glasses to judge). And, of course, perceived differences in the levels of hop bitterness between batches. And finally, other differences noted in flavor, aroma or appearance. 

Reporting your results: Fill in the online form at www.basicbrewing.com when your experiment is complete. Plan your two (or more) trials so you can get us the results by Feb. 1st. 

1.21 Gigawatts (AKA Doc Brown’s Double)
(2.5 gallons/9.5 L, extract with grains)

OG = 1.069  FG = 1.014
IBU = 121  SRM = 7 ABV = 7.1%

Ingredients
1.5 lb. (0.68 kg) domestic 2-row pale malt (~2 °L)

0.25 lb. (0.11 kg) British 2-row pale ale malt (~ 3 °L)
2.0 oz. (57 g) Vienna malt (~5 °L)

2.0 oz. (57 g) light crystal malt (20 °L)

0.50 lb. (0.23 kg) cane sugar

2 lb. 4 oz. (1.0 kg) Briess Light dried malt extract

12 AAU Magnum hops (60 mins)

    (0.8 oz./23 g of 14% alpha acids)

3 AAU Simcoe hops (30 mins)

    (0.25 oz./7 g of 12% alpha acids)

5 AAU Centennial hops (15 mins)

    (0.5 oz./14 g of 10% alpha aids)

0.5 oz. (14 g) Cascade hops (5 mins)

0.5 oz. (14 g) Amarillo hops (0 mins)

1.0 oz. (28 g) Cascade whole hops (dry hop)
0.5 tsp. Irish moss (15 mins)
Wyeast 1056 (American Ale), White Labs WLP001 (California Ale) or Fermentis US-05 yeast
    (no yeast starter required)

0.5 cup corn sugar (for priming) 

Step by Step
Follow the instructions for the 5.0-gallon (19-L) recipes, making the obvious changes in boil volume and batch size. The volumes of water for steeping and rinsing the crushed grains remain unchanged.