21A American IPA
Fresh Hop West Coast IPA
ABV6.8% OG1.064 FG1.012Grain bill
| Gladfield American Ale Malt | 5.2 kg | 82.5% |
| Gladfield Munich Malt | 0.5 kg | 7.9% |
| Gladfield Toffee Malt | 0.3 kg | 4.8% |
| Gladfield Wheat Malt | 0.3 kg | 4.8% |
Adjuncts
| Yeast nutrient | 5 g @ 10 min |
| Whirlfloc | 1 g @ 10 min |
Hop schedule
| Hop | 75 min | 20 min | 5 min | WP 85°C | DH#1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Columbus | 20g | · | · | · | · |
| Centennial | · | 25g | · | · | · |
| Tangerine Dream | · | · | 167g | 167g | · |
| Cascade | · | · | 167g | 167g | 75g |
| Riwaka | · | · | 166g | 166g | · |
| Krush | · | · | · | · | 75g |
Yeast
| LalBrew Pomona | 2 packets |
Water additions
| Calcium Chloride | 2 g |
| Magnesium Sulfate | 4 g |
| Calcium Sulfate | 8 g |
| Lactic acid | — |
Tasting notes
2025-03-30
Fermentation profile
Gravity
Temperature
About This Beer
A fresh-hop West Coast IPA on 1.5 kg of green cones harvested that season, which is a rare chance in New Zealand to brew with fresh hops rather than dried pellets.
American Ale anchors the grist for a clean neutral base, with Munich for roundness, Toffee for a subtle caramel sweetness, and wheat for head retention and body.
The hop structure
Three layers. Columbus at 75 minutes for a dank earthy bittering foundation and Centennial at 20 for grapefruit and floral mid-boil, both pellets.
Then the fresh charge: three batches of 500 g, equal thirds of Tangerine Dream, Cascade and Riwaka, added at five minutes, then at whirlpool at 85°C, and again at 75°C. The grain basket was repurposed as a hop basket to handle the volume, with careful thermal management to avoid scorching the cones.
Pellet dry hop of Cascade and Krush at day 3 for a clean biotransformation hit.
Fermentation
Pomona at 18°C, and one of the more vigorous starts on record here. Dry hop at day 3 on a gravity trigger, then stepped to 22°C for cleanup. Pressure built and closed to around 20 psi before crash cooling.
Packaging and tasting
Mixed packaging on day 15, keg and bottles, carbonated to 2.4 volumes.
Tasted the day before kegging: high hop intensity with dank and fruity aroma, balanced bitterness and body. The fresh hops delivered noticeably different character to a pellet-only brew, grassier and more aromatic, with a distinctive green freshness.