18B American Pale Ale
Dusty Zombies IV
ABV7.5% OG1.071 FG1.010Grain bill
| Gladfield Ale Malt | 4.7 kg | 71.2% |
| Gladfield Vienna Malt | 1.9 kg | 28.8% |
Adjuncts
| Whirlfloc | 1 g @ 10 min |
| Yeast Nutrient | 4 g @ 10 min |
Hop schedule
| Hop | 60 min | 20 min | 10 min | WP 75°C | DH#1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Citra | 20g | 10g | 20g | 20g | 60g |
| Krush | · | 20g | 10g | 40g | 60g |
Yeast
| LalBrew Pomona | 2 packets |
Water additions
| Calcium Chloride | 2 g |
| Magnesium Sulfate | 4 g |
| Calcium Sulfate | 6 g |
Tasting notes
2025-12-20
Fermentation profile
Gravity
Temperature
About This Beer
V4 of the Dusty Zombies series, brewed 12 December 2025. Citra and Krush, the pairing that restores the undead character.
V2 and V3 had returned to single-hop Citra, recovering the signature from the original Zombie Dust. V4 puts Krush alongside it, bringing more tropical passionfruit aromatics while keeping the dank sweaty-socks character that defines the line.
The Ale and Vienna grain bill carries forward unchanged from the original template. Hops load across all four stages: kettle, whirlpool and a dual dry hop.
Two process choices are Pomona-specific, both aimed at the thiol-driven aromatics. A cool 20 minute whirlpool held at 75°C drives biotransformation of thiol precursors during the kettle hops, and the dry hop goes in during active fermentation rather than at terminal, to capture more thiol release.
This one sits higher than a typical pale ale, closer to IPA territory in strength, with an aggressive hop-forward character.
Fermentation
Two packets of Pomona at 18°C, raised gradually to 20.5°C by day 5. Dry hop on day 6. Clearing the collection jar mid-ferment to remove trub helped settle the beer before it went in. Crashed to 4°C by day 10, kegged 23 December by closed transfer.
The result
Sampled 20 December, eight days after brew day: clean and bright with strong Citra and Krush expression. The higher gravity fills out the body without heaviness.
The pairing settles the hop question for the series. Citra carries the original fruit and dank undead signature, and Krush layers tropical passionfruit on top.
Lineage
- Zombie Dust (Feb 2023): the original Three Floyds clone, 150 g Citra, the start of the line
- Dusty Zombies V1 (Oct 2023): Citra out, Superdelic and Nectaron in, lost the undead character
- Owen’s V1 (Oct 2023): parallel V1
- V2 (May 2024): return to single-hop Citra, Verdant yeast
- V3 (Nov 2024): continued all-Citra, first Pomona
- This brew, V4: Citra and Krush, the pairing that restores the undead character
- Owen’s V2 (Mar 2026): mirrors this one with BRY-97