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Recipe: Firestone Walker Hopnosis
With thanks to Bradley Miles, head of R&D and innovation brewing at Firestone Walker, here is a homebrew-scale recipe for their modern take on West Coast IPA. Lager yeast and light malts create a “blank canvas” on which the hops can shine.
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For much more on the development and thinking behind this recipe, see brewmaster Matt Brynildson’s Hopnotized: Exploring the Future of West Coast IPA.
ALL-GRAIN
Batch size: 5 gallons (19 liters)
Brewhouse efficiency: 72%
OG: 1.061
FG: 1.010
IBUs: 45
ABV: 6.7%
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For much more on the development and thinking behind this recipe, see brewmaster Matt Brynildson’s Hopnotized: Exploring the Future of West Coast IPA.
ALL-GRAIN
Batch size: 5 gallons (19 liters)
Brewhouse efficiency: 72%
OG: 1.061
FG: 1.010
IBUs: 45
ABV: 6.7%
[PAYWALL]
MALT/GRAIN BILL
10.5 lb (4.8 kg) two-row pale
9.5 oz (269 g) malted wheat
7.5 oz (213 g) Briess Carapils
2 oz (57 g) Munich
HOPS SCHEDULE
0.5 oz (14 g) Simcoe at 60 minutes [20 IBUs]
0.5 oz (14 g) Simcoe at 30 minutes [17 IBUs]
0.5 oz (14 g) each Callista, Talus, and Simcoe at whirlpool [8 IBUs]
1.25 oz (35 g) Mosaic Cryo at first dry hop
2 oz (57 g) each Idaho 7 and El Dorado at second dry hop
1.5 oz (43 g) Cashmere at second dry hop
1.25 oz (35 g) Nelson Sauvin at second dry hop
0.5 oz (14 g) Riwaka at second dry hop
YEAST
German lager yeast, such as Fermentis SafLager W-34/70 or similar
DIRECTIONS
Mill the grains and mash at 149°F (65°C) for 60 minutes. Recirculate until the runnings are clear, then run off into the kettle. Sparge and top up as necessary to get about 7 gallons (26 liters) of wort—or more, depending on your evaporation rate. Boil for 65 minutes, adding hops according to the schedule. After the boil, do a whirlpool step: Stir or recirculate to cool the wort to 185°F (85°C), then add the whirlpool hops and steep 20 minutes. Chill the wort to 54°F (12°C), aerate well, and pitch plenty of healthy yeast.
Ferment at 59°F (15°C). After 2 days, add the first dry hops. When fermentation is about two-thirds complete (about 1.034), allow the temperature to rise to 64°F (18°C) for a diacetyl rest. After 4 days or at terminal gravity, add the remaining dry hops. After 3 more days, remove the hops or rack. Once the beer passes a VDK test (see Hunting for Diacetyl), crash, filter or fine, package, and carbonate to about 2.65 volumes of CO2.
