21C Hazy IPA
October Hazy
ABV8.0% OG1.070 FG1.009Grain bill
| Gladfield Light Lager Malt | 4.7 kg | 64.4% |
| Gladfield Big O Malted Oats | 0.85 kg | 11.6% |
| Gladfield Munich Malt | 0.75 kg | 10.3% |
| Harraways Flaked Wheat | 0.65 kg | 8.9% |
| Gladfield Golden Oat Malt | 0.3 kg | 4.1% |
| Gladfield Aurora Malt | 0.05 kg | 0.7% |
Adjuncts
| Riwaka Amplifier Oil | 1.5 ml whirlpool + 1.5 ml dry hop |
| Motueka Amplifier Oil | 1.5 ml whirlpool + 1.5 ml dry hop |
| Yeast nutrient | 4 g @ 10 min |
| Whirlfloc | 1 g @ 10 min |
Hop schedule
| Hop | 60 min | 30 min | 10 min | DH#1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hallertau Mittelfrüh | 15g | 15g | 20g | · |
| Citra | · | · | · | 50g |
Yeast
| LalBrew Verdant IPA | 2 packets |
Water additions
| Calcium Chloride | 6 g |
| Magnesium Sulfate | 4 g |
| Calcium Sulfate | 2 g |
Tasting notes
2025-10-20
Fermentation profile
Gravity
Temperature
About This Beer
Brewed 5 October 2025, and two firsts: the debut of the Red Reaper counterflow chiller, and a trial of hop oil concentrates in place of the usual pellet-heavy whirlpool and dry hop.
The grist leans on Light Lager as a neutral base with a layered oat stack for body, Big O malted oats, flaked wheat and Golden Oat together making nearly a quarter of the bill, plus Munich for warmth and a touch of Aurora for depth.
The oils
Hallertau Mittelfrüh handled the bittering across three additions, noble character chosen to complement rather than compete with the oil-forward late additions.
Whirlpool and dry hop both used NZ Hops Amplifier oils, 1.5 ml each of Riwaka and Motueka into a 20 minute stand and again at day 5. These concentrated terpene products deliver aroma without vegetal matter. A post-transfer addition of Citra pellets in the keg added a final fresh note.
Fermentation
Verdant at this gravity is vigorous, and blowoff was needed from day one. Started at 19°C, ramped to 21°C, then held at 22 to 22.5°C for cleanup. Around 1.014 at day 10 before finishing.
Packaging and tasting
Kegged 15 days after brew day, carbonated to 2.4 volumes and tasted the same day. The initial pour read interesting but malt-forward: the oils needed reinforcement, which came as an extra dose at keg transfer alongside the Citra dry hop. After that the aroma improved considerably.
Two lessons. Hop oils benefit from a follow-up keg-side dose to hit the intended aroma intensity. And Verdant at high gravity needs blowoff configured before pitching, not after.
Owen ran a second oil trial three weeks later on a base recipe he had already brewed with pellets, which makes for a cleaner comparison of delivery method.