# Red IPA Grain Bill - Critique



## IsonAd (14/4/14)

Just hoping to get some feedback on a grain bill I've put together for a Red IPA i'm planning. Would really love to get that ruby red colour (whilst also just using what I have on hand - also have amber, crystal 40, carapils, pilsner malt, chocolate) 

Marris Otter 5.5kg
Munich 2 - 250g
Caraaroma - 250g
Roasted Barley 50g

OG -1.058
FG - 1.015
SRM - 14.9

Haven't worked out hops yet but probably bitter to 70 IBU - mostly late additions, possibly using, Chinook, Centennial, Simcoe and Citra.

Grateful for your feedback.


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## Tony (14/4/14)

Munich and Munich 2 are base malts, not spec malts.......use as such

If your not using over a kilo, dont bother. Use a kilo!

caraaroma and RB are both on the dark and harsh end of their range and while fantastic malts, should be used along with other malts to ballance them.

If your using what you have on hand, id replace 500g of the MO wiht carapills to add some body and sweetness to ballance the darker malts and bitterness of the hops


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## hoppy2B (14/4/14)

Just for my taste, needs a bit of dark or medium crystal to balance with the 70 IBU.


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## Ducatiboy stu (14/4/14)

Tony

Give me a yell mate


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## Ducatiboy stu (14/4/14)

IsonAd

Look at my Pillar of Red in the DB and adjust the IBU but keep the grain bill

http://aussiehomebrewer.com/topic/19044-ducatiboys-red-ale/?hl=pillar+red+ale


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## GrumpyPaul (14/4/14)

Here is a link to one I did recently...I would have liked it a bit redder. But it was a delicious beer - possibly the best I have made.

Recipe link

Pictures of the finished product in the Whats in the Glass thread


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## Ducatiboy stu (14/4/14)

Getting it "Red" is actually very hard. 

You can get "Red" from various combinations of malts...but the balance is VERY fine. You can go the roast barley method, but it can end up harsh....or you can go Carared and end up sweet. 

Carared does not make a beer red. A lot of brewers think that it does. 

You need a carefull combination of xtals and RB to get a good red colour that is balanced to your style....and then you need to take into account the hop balance....


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## pk.sax (14/4/14)

Experience - I personally like 200g caraaroma with 5kg pilsner malt. Using it with a maltier malt I would actually drop that a little. Too much of such a dark crystal can get cloyingly sweet.

Expectation - If I were making a stronger beer with a low mash temp and high hopping I would raise the caraaroma a bit to compensate and add malt complexity to match the hopping.


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## Ducatiboy stu (15/4/14)

200g/5kg of caraome to base is about my limit as well.

More than that and it just unbalances it. 

Cararoma, in fact any dark xtal can make a beer to cloying. 

The darker the xtal...the less you need to use


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## IsonAd (16/4/14)

Thanks for the feedback guys. I've revised to the following.
5kg MO
500g carapils
30g RB
150 caraaroma
700g Munich 2 - all I have left.

SRM= 14 about where I want it. I don't really want it super malty more if an IPA with a bit of red colour.


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## jyo (16/4/14)

Using carafa I or II in beers like this is a much better choice than RB. It will give you the colour, but none of the harsh / dominating flavours of RB.


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## Phoney (16/4/14)

IsonAd said:


> Thanks for the feedback guys. I've revised to the following.
> 5kg MO
> 500g carapils
> 30g RB
> ...



If you dont want it that malty and you want to save a bit of money, use BB or JW ale / pale malt. You can also use 5% sugaz to thin it out a bit.


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## AndrewQLD (16/4/14)

If you're looking for something similar in color to the IPA in my avatar then try 87% Maris Otter, 7% Crystal (140ebc), 3% Cara Aroma, 3% invert sugar. The beer had a lovely red hue.


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## IsonAd (16/4/14)

Will 30-50g of roasted barley really have that much effect on the flavour? I've never used it before so am curious. Lots if the things I've red seem to say 1-2oz of RB will give colour but little flavour.


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## pk.sax (16/4/14)

Being frank here, 5.7 kg of very malty malt + 0.5 kilo of carapils is already adding a fair hit maltiness to the brew.

Now, if you want only colour I'd suggest carafa types to stay away from adding any more malt sweetness.

If wanting something a bit more of a sipper - like Sierra Nevada first harvests, use some caraaroma or roast barley too. But chop maybe the carapils out. You CAN make your beer too sweet. Don't go for a truckload of different malts, be simpler.


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## GalBrew (17/4/14)

I would change the carapils to wheat and sub out 8-10% of the base malt for dextrose. I would also mash reasonably low to get a highly fermentable wort which will hopefully result in a dry beer. I find with my red IPA turns out far more drinkable this way.


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## Dan Pratt (17/4/14)

Check out craftedpours.com and click on the homebrew recipes and then select red ales. 

there is a bunch of recipes to make very dark to glowing red beers.


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