Follow up to Two Hearted Ale

May 31

Follow up to Two Hearted Ale

OK, I finally got around to sitting down with that batch of IPA from a couple months ago. I got a bottle of Two Hearted (batch 8409) and filled out style sheets on both. Then, I tasted them side by side. Without some interactive magic, can you tell the difference apart?

Mine is the one on the right, and the focus kind of messed up my clarity a bit. It’s slightly more hazy, but it cleared up well. IPAs though should have a little haze from the hops.

I’m actually pretty surprised how close these are. Mine is a bit darker, likely from using Maris Otter vs US Pale. When tasting Bell’s I thought I got a bit maltyness from a Munich or Vienna, but in comparison, I think the Maris Otter makes up for it. I don’t plan changing the malts at all. The body is about right on, and mine was actually just a tad a dryer, which I kind of prefer, so no changes there.

The big fault of my recipe is the hop aroma. This is more like a Pale Ale than an IPA. So, I need to beef up the dry hops I think. The hop flavor and bitterness is pretty close. Maybe just a bit low.

The other difference is when side-by-side I can pick up some funk from Bell’s yeast. That added a little intangible to the Bell’s, but I kind of like it a little cleaner to showcase the hops. Maybe notch the fermentation up a degree. This used Cal Ale V, and while I usually use reg Cal Ale, I wouldn’t hesitate to go for 051 again.

Obviously I procrastinated this thing, in part because I wanted some time to have a couple IPAs, but really I wasn’t really expecting too much. I knew the aroma was down, but I wouldn’t think it would be this close side-by-side.

For the record, I gave my bottle of Bell’s a 46, and my IPA a 38. I dinged my bottle of Bell’s in the aroma and flavor for slightly under hop aroma and flavor for my interpretation of the guide. Mine more so for the same.

Original Recipe

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2 comments

§ Dick Messick said on : 06/01/08 @ 22:48

I brewed a batch of your recipe in mid-April, but dry hopped wiith 2 oz. of Centennial, as you suggested to me. I am quite pleased with the results, and look forward to brewing it again. I used the Cal Ale 001, but maybe I'll try the 051 next time. Wish we could get Bell's around here (MA) . . .
§ Mike Flaminio® said on : 06/02/08 @ 09:17
Glad to hear it. I don't use 051 too much, usually just when 001 is out of stock. It turned out well, although I'm sure either will do. If you're going for an all out clone, I think you need to use Bell's yeast. It's not as noticeable as with like Oberon, or even some of their other styles, but the funk is there when doing side-by-side. I'm mostly out for just getting the malt and hops right.