Torpedo clone.

[chefchris]

I think I like my recipe better. Wish I could find some citra hops. If I do I'm gonna buy me a whole freaking pound! Maybe this fall..................

Charlie

http://hopstoyou.com/allproducts.html

[cdburg]

In case anyone is interested...

I dunno. The bitterness contribution of the magnum and crystal at 5 min is virtually zilch, and no way you're going to get 70 IBU from 1.2 oz Magnum at 60 (or 90, or 120!). And what's with the caramel malt? My clone at SRM 8 was darker than genuine Torpedo, so they overshot the SRM by at least 4 units.

I think I like my recipe better. Wish I could find some citra hops. If I do I'm gonna buy me a whole freaking pound! Maybe this fall..................

Torpedo clone v0.0.2 is scheduled for 8/23/09, and I do have a Torpedo! http://www.thebrewingnetwork.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=13902&p=155988#p155988

Charlie

Keep in mind that the BYO clone is only 5 gallons, not 6 as most BN recipes tend to be. I just plugged it into ProMash, and 1.2 oz of Magnum at 60 minutes shows about 68 IBU. The numbers are pretty close to where they should be.

It's just another piece of information for anyone who's interested. The article goes into a lot of detail about how the "torpedo" was designed and is used with information directly from Sierra Nevada brewers. Since they were involved so heavily in the rest of the article I really doubt that the clone recipe was made without any input from SN. From what I've seen, Sierra Nevada uses crystal 60 in their pale ale too, so using it in the Torpedo also would be consistent. I'll admit that some of BYO's clones aren't even close, but this one looks like it should be pretty decent.

If you like your recipe better, that's great, especially since you know how it's turned out previously. The BYO recipe may give some other people ideas where to start, especially since it likely had some input directly from the brewers. Either way though, the Citra hops will be key, like you said.

[Charlie]

From what I've seen, Sierra Nevada uses crystal 60 in their pale ale too, so using it in the Torpedo also would be consistent.

OK, I read Caramel and saw chocolate. It's been a long week

I based my recipe on this info from SN's site:

Sierra Nevada Torpedo
Yeast: Ale Yeast
Malts Two-row Pale, Carapils & Crystal
OG: 17.8 Plato (1.073)
TG: 4.6 Plato (1.018)
Bittering hops: Magnum
Finishing hops: Magnum & Crystal
Dry hopping: Magnum, Crystal & Citra
Bitterness units: 70

So when I didn't see the carapils and crystal, but saw caramel my brain shut down. The hops difference is probably because I'm a hop junkie and use Tinseth. Sincere apologies for freaking out.

Amarillo is an adequate, not perfect, replacement for citra. Hopstoyou is currently out of citra (and has been for a while), but the guys have promised me they'll e-mail if they get so much as an ounce in.

I had one major fox paw with v0.0.1, namely that I dry hopped too soon and the CO2 blew most of my nice aroma right out the air lock. Then I sat around 14 days while I was waiting for it to bottle condition. V0.0.2 will be dry hopped when it is almost still. Then I'm gonna keg the sucker and drink fast. Alternately I have considered dry hopping in the keg.

Charlie

[brewinhard]

Just brewed the Green Flash IPA clone from CYBI per Nathan's instructions. It came out great with some new techniques for dry hopping that I highly recommend. I let my beer ferment until it started to slow down (about day 6 and 1 bubble in the airlock every 10 sec.). I then opened the fermenter and added my dry hop pellets, swirled the beer to wet the hops and let them sit for a total of 7 days contact time. I used to let my beer ferment out (2wks), then rack to a secondary and add dry hops. After following Nathan's directions, I will always dry hop my beers this way. Here is why:

1. Less work (don't have to clean and sanitize a second fermenter)
2. Drinking the beer a week earlier mmmmmm..........

I added a bit more hops than the recipe called for simply because I knew that some aroma would be lost to CO2 scrubbing it out of the fermenter and besides, one can never have enough hop aroma in an IPA. By adding while the beer had just begun to slow down its fermentation there was very little risk of oxidation because the carbon dioxide would simply push any introduced oxygen out of the airlock. After 7 days of contact time with the hops I placed an S shaped airlock filled with vodka and covered with a square of sanitized aluminum foil (just in case the vodka got sucked into the beer) on the fermenter and placed it in my fridge to crash cool it for 2 days. This dropped all of the remaining pellets and a lot of yeast out of suspension and when I racked to my keg I had a clear beer free of hops particles and yeast. I highly recommend this procedure for its ease and efficiency. Give it a try the next time you brew your Torpedo.

[Charlie]

I let my beer ferment until it started to slow down (about day 6 and 1 bubble in the airlock every 10 sec.). I then opened the fermenter and added my dry hop pellets, swirled the beer to wet the hops and let them sit for a total of 7 days contact time.

My less than good IPAs have two things in common.

1. I racked at 7 days and added dry hops.
2. I bottled and conditioned them.

This latest batch of Torpedo went on the dry hops yesterday. I'm doing about 1/2 my method and 1/2 yours.

1. I fermented 14 days in the primary.
2. I racked the beer onto the dry hops in the secondary and put it in the FC at 64F.
3. After 7 contact days I will keg it.

So far I am having no problem with the hops plugging the neck of the carboy. This whole thing is a learning process so who knows what I'll try next.

And thanks for mentioning the Green Flash clone. I'm gonna try that one again.

Charlie

[NikoBrew]

[quote="CharlieWish I could find some citra hops. If I do I'm gonna buy me a whole freaking pound! Maybe this fall..................
[/quote]

http://www.nikobrew.com/index.php?page= ... t&Itemid=1

If you use BNARMY coupon code that's $26.97 per pound, I have it per ounce also. JUST got my first supply in, pellet form, and 2009 crop. If you want leaf I have a small amount of that left in the whole leaf section on my website.

[Charlie]

This recipe has come quite a way since April 2009 when I first attempted it. I now have real citra hops, although I never did use my "Torpedo" to dry hop the brew. I'm sampling V 0.0.4 even as I type, and It is very close to the fresh Torpedo we (rarely) get here, but quite different from the 2 month old stuff I find in the stores.

Torpedo V 0.0.4. Recipe for 11 gal batch.

O.G. 1.073 (actual)
F.G. 1.014 (actual)
ABV 7.2 (est)
IBU 67.3 (Tinseth)
SRM 8.3 (est)

23 lbs Pale 2-row
2 lbs Cara-Pils Dextrine
2 lbs Crystal 40L

2.5 oz Magnum 14% 90 minutes

2 oz Magnum 13.5% 10 minutes
2 oz Crystal 3.1% 10 minutes

0.5 oz Magnum 13.5% 0 minutes
0.5 oz Crystal 3.1% 0 minutes

2 oz Magnum 13.5% DRY 7 days
2 oz Crystal 3.1% DRY 7 days
2 oz Citra % DRY 7 days

Mash at 152 F
Mash Efficiency 79%

Yeast: White Labs WLP-001

I don't have any fresh Torpedo to compare this to, but it jives well with my memory of it. I even get the occasional cascade tasting burp off of it!

This brew differs in at least three ways from genuine Torpedo:

1. It's slightly less bitter and needs about 10 more IBU.

2. I get a prominent crystal malt flavor off Torpedo, and not the clone, so I'm pretty sure they're using crystal 60 instead of crystal 40. I don't care much for a strong crystal malt flavor, so that suits me fine.

3. The hop aroma and flavor is not quite up to my memory of fresh Torpedo, so bump the zero hop addition or try some hop layering late in the brew ala Tasty APA.

Charlie

[brewinhard]

Way to go Charlie! Cool to see you are honing in on this one!