Authentic IPA Recipe

Apr 26, 2017

Authentic IPA (20 Litres)

Makes 20 litres. India Pale Ale was shipped from England to India for the British troops. To withstand the journey, IPA needed to be a heavily hopped, malty brew with high levels of alcohol. Coopers Brewmaster Selection IPA recipe can be easily modified to make an authentic IPA like those produced in the early 1800s. Beware, as this recipe produces a beer with serious bitterness, sure to please the "Hopheads"!

Ingredients

1.7kg Thomas Coopers IPA
1kg Light Dry Malt (2x 500g)
500g Dextrose Corn Sugar (or table sugar)
Coopers commercial yeast (or ale yeast of your choice) plus kit yeast
Dextrose Corn Sugar or Carbonation Drops

Features:

Colour: Copper
Body: Medium
Bitterness: High
Approx. Alcohol Level: 6.0% ABV
Naturally Carbonated: Natural

Instructions:

STEP 1: Mix

Place the Coopers Light Dry Malt into a drained, sanitised fermenter. Add 2 litres of hot water. Immediately pick the fermenter up and swirl the contents until dissolved (approx 15 secs). Mix in the balance of ingredients then top up the fermenter with cool water to the 20 litre mark. Add the yeast and fit the lid. Try to ferment at 21C.

STEP 2: Brew

Strong Beers are made from High Gravity Brews. The yeast may have difficulty in fully fermenting a High Gravity Brew. A few ways we can encourage a strong fermentation process: • Stir vigorously prior to pitching yeast • Add and extra yeast sachet and/or • Make a yeast starter. To avoid the risk of over carbonation - glass bottles may explode. Only bottle your brew when the fermentation process is complete. Fermentation is complete when the density of the brew remains constant over 2 days. We recommend the use of a hydrometer to check the specific gravity (density) of your brew.

STEP 3: Bottle

Bottles need to be primed so that secondary fermentation (producing the gas in the bottle) can take place. We recommend the use of PET bottles or reusable glass bottles designed for storing beer. For information about kegging, see the FAQ section.

Priming

Bottle the brew using 2 carbonation drops per 740ml-750ml bottle (that is a priming rate of 8g per litre) Sugar or dextrose may be used at the rate of 8g per litre (approximately 6g of sugar to a level metric teaspoon). Store the bottles out of direct sunlight at 18C or above for at least 1 week while secondary fermentation occurs. Your beer can be consumed after 2 weeks. Bottles may be stored (conditioned) for long periods of time (3 months or more). Conditioning should improve flavour, reduce the size of the bubbles and make the yeast sediment more compacted.

STEP 4: Enjoy!

Naturally conditioned Strong Brews, being higher in alcohol and fuller of body, benefit from extended conditioning at or above 18C. You may choose to serve it cloudy or bright. Try one less chilled to get the benefits of the extra aromas and flavour. Remember these brews are very high in alcohol and are not intended to be consumed as a session beer.