My first solo all-grain batch was a recipe I saw on BrewingTV for the Cloverland Resinator India Red Ale. The name is a reverse of my first ever brew because this is another first. Irish Red Ales are what got me into craft brew, so they have a special place in my heart. I’m also a hop head, so I enjoy hoppier versions of many styles. This seemed like a great way to bring both worlds together.
I split the batch into two 2.5 gallon batches and pitched two different yeasts from White Labs, the WLP001 (California Common Ale) and the WLP090 (San Diego Super Yeast). I had a vile of the 001 and the 090 was harvested from a previous batch.
The 001 fermented much more completely than the 090, but that could be the difference in my fermentation setup. This one was dry-hopped with the pellets dropped right into the primary fermenter (no hop bag) and left to fluctuate in temperature between 62-70°F in my closet. I’m guessing the richer hop flavors and aromas are from not using a hop bag, and the higher attenuation is due to the cooler temps.
I’m pretty happy with the results from this 090 yeast, although I would have liked it to dry out a bit more and have a stronger hop character. I used a hop bag for the dry hops and racked it to secondary at which point I put it under temperature control in my chest freezer set to 68°F. This resulted in a maltier but clearer final product that didn’t fully attenuate.
Brew Date: May 6, 2012
Bottled On: May 26, 2012
O.G.: 1.055
WLP001 F.G.: 1.008
WLP090 F.G.: 1.012