Dumpster Double IPA - Homebrew Recipe and Results
Sometimes we look down at the grains, hops, and yeast we have leftover from other brews and wonder what sort of concoction we’ve accidentally made. This is where homebrewing creativity comes in, for as the wise men say: Waste not, want not.
Spring and Summer left us with dark Belgian malt, classic hops for bittering, and some modern and fruity hops for punchy aromas. So, we thought, why not make ourselves a beautifully bitter, heavy, aromatic, malty and (if we have to) balanced Double IPA.
So here it is, the recipe and results for our Dumpster Double IPA 1-gallon recipe.
In goes the malt into 1 gallon of water at 150℉ for 1 hour:
Malt
26 oz. 2-row
11 oz. Caramel 15L
5 oz. Special B
5 oz. Flaked oats
2.5 oz. Flaked Barley
1 oz. Carapils
Obviously, the ratios are a little strange, but these were the quantities we had leftover from other brews. We’re hoping the Special B adds a lot of caramel and dark fruit depth and that the addition of flaked oats, flaked barley, and Carapils help with head retention and body.
After sparging with 1 gallon at 170℉, we went on to a 90-minute boil and dropped the quantities of hops at the following times:
Boil (90 minutes)
0.3 oz Magnum – 60 minutes remaining
.6 oz Cascade and Centennial mixed equally – 15 minutes remaining
⅕ tsp. Irish Moss – 15 minutes remaining
2.5 oz. Corn sugar (to increase gravity) – 15 minutes remaining
.6 oz Cascade and Centennial mixed equally – Flameout (Whirlpool)
1 oz El Dorado – Dry-hop 3-5 days after start of fermentation.
1 oz Azacca – Dry-hop 3-5 days after start of fermentation.
After our beer cooled to 70℉, we added 4 grams of CALI ale yeast preactivated in 40 ml of 95℉ water.
Now, for the hard part: We waited 2 weeks, keeping the beer between 65-68℉, and then we bottled with corn sugar (0.78 oz. boiled in 1 cup water for five minutes), before we set it aside for another two weeks.
With the huge doses of hops we hoped to add a classic flavor and bittering with the Magnum, Cascade, and Centennial hops on the hot side, and on the cold side we used the aromatic and modern Azacca and El Dorado hops for a lot of fruity and distinct aroma to balance the malt sweetness and hop bitterness.
A note about hopping heavily in such a small batch. Make sure you have enough headspace for the hops, or they can be expelled by the yeast. Also, don’t be afraid to reduce the amount of hops (we used a ton!), or to dry-hop them at different intervals throughout the fermentation process. Like I said, we simply used what we had leftover, so we went wild with the hops, but it is a Double IPA, right? No holding back.
Here are our first impressions of our Dumpster Double IPA.
First Impressions:
On the Eyes--Amber-brown and hazy (opaque); topped with a beige head that diminished quickly.
On the Nose--Floral and full of tropical fruit from the Azacca and El Dorado dry-hop additions. The Special B malt sticks out, so hopefully it’s noticeable in the first sip like we wanted. Pineapple and citrus are hanging around with a touch of strong alcohol aroma.
On the Palate--Very smooth, with a full body and mouthfeel, as expected from the additions of oats and flaked barley. It has almost the mouthfeel of an Irish stout, which we can attribute to the flaked barley. The ABV is high and very noticeable. I’d say around 9%. The maltiness is dense with the Special B taking prominence with notes of raisin and dark caramel. The clean bitterness from the trusty Magnum hops blends so well with the citrus and floral flavors from the Cascade and Centennial and the fruity (pineapple and melon) flavors from the Azacca and El Dorado hops. The bitterness lingers a bit, but not too bad for a Double IPA.
Final Thoughts:
You know, we’re not ever sure what we’re gonna get when we throw a bunch of leftover ingredients in a pot and bottle it. Often, we are surprised, and this time is no different. We expected a lot of hop complexity with such an array of profiles and large additions, but what really surprised us is the maltiness and mouthfeel in this DIPA. A good Double IPA is only as good as its malt backbone, and this one has a stout spine. It has density and deep flavors with the help of Special B, and man, is it smooth. It is a sipper without doubt, but a damned smooth sipper. The malt complexity balances with the hops surprisingly well, and besides working out a few strange ratios, I don’t actually think I would change much in this one, which is rare for what we call accidental ales. It’s a Double IPA, and it deserves to be excessive. That’s why we named it Dumpster, because we filled it to the brim.
Overall, not too bad for a Mr. and Mrs. Brew Accidental Ale.
Cheers!
Mr. Brew