Brü It Yourself | Black Cascadian Dark IP-Ale

Author: Cade Jobe

I started buying ingredients in bulk fairly soon after brewing my first batch, the main reasons being to save some cash while also having the ability to brew without having to plan too far ahead. At any given point, one will find multiple sacks of different base grains, a smattering of specialty grains, way too many hops, and multiple pouches of yeast in my brewery. When well stocked, I can brew pretty much any style I want with what I have on hand, though as my inventory starts to dwindle, I’m often left with odd amounts of ingredients that end up getting ignored, given away, or trashed.

Recently, I was having a chat with a couple brewing friends, Ron Samia and Sean Wee, when it occurred to us that we were all in possession of a bunch of hops in small amounts— 9 different varieties in multiple 1 oz/28 g packs, to be exact. As we mulled over ideas as to how we might use these in a beer, I mentioned that I had some experimental malts from OSU’s BarleyWorld leftover from past xBmts, as well as a blend of chocolate malt and black malt that I picked up months prior for a Stout that I never got around to brewing.

Given the hop varieties and roasted grains, we settled on brewing a dark, hoppy, moderate strength beer, aka Black IPA, aka Cascadian Dark Ale. Loathed by many, I rather enjoy the combo of smooth roast and hops, certainly more than the debate over what to call this unique style. After settling on a recipe using only our “leftover” ingredients, Ron, Sean, and I spent a pleasant afternoon brewing it together at my place.

| Making Black Cascadian Dark IP-Ale |

We ended up having enough ingredients to brew two 5 gal/19 liter batches, the recipe of which was dictated largely by the grains and hops each of us contributed. It should be noted that the “Stout Grains” were a 60/40 blend of chocolate malt and black malt.

Black Cascadian Dark IP-Ale

After collecting two sets of water and adjusting them to the same desired profile, I flipped the switch on my controller.

While the water was heating up, I weighed out and milled the grains.

With the water appropriately heated, I incorporated the grains then checked to make sure both batches were at my target mash temperature.

While the mashes were resting, I weighed out the kettle hop additions.

When the 60 minute mashes were complete, I removed the grains and boiled the worts for an hour, adding hops at the times listed in the recipe.

Once the boils were finished, I chilled the worts during transfer to carboys, filling each with half the wort from either kettle to ensure homogeneity. Refractometer readings showed they were at my target 1.062 OG. I then evenly split a nearly 2 year old pouch of Imperial Yeast A40 Bubbles, an English ale strain marketed for use in cider, between the batches. Concerned about a severe underpitch, we decided to split a pack of Safale US-05 between the beers as well.

The filled carboys were placed in a spot in my house that maintains a consistent 65°F/18°C and left to ferment.

After 2 weeks, I added the dry hops.

After another 3 days, I took hydrometer measurements confirming FG had been reached.

I cold-crashed the beers to 34°F/1°C and left them overnight before fining with gelatin. The following day, I pressure transferred the beers to CO2 purged kegs, which were placed in my keezer and burst carbonated overnight before I reduced the gas to serving pressure. After a couple weeks of conditioning, they were nicely carbonated and ready to drink.

| IMPRESSIONS |

Dark, hoppy, moderate strength beer, aka Black IPA, aka Cascadian Dark Ale, for whatever reason, is a style many love to hate, whether it’s for the name or the melding of roast with hops. Personally, I’m a fan, as are my friends, Ron Samia and Sean Wee, who helped me brew a unique version of this style using a bunch of leftover ingredients.

I’m happy to report that all 3 of us really enjoyed how Black Cascadian Dark IP-Ale turned out! The chocolate and black malts lent just enough smooth roast character to make it noticeable without being distracting, while the arguably haphazard hop combo contributed loads of juicy mango, passionfruit, and citrus. At an estimated 80 IBU, the bitterness was noticeable, but not jagged or harsh, and we all felt it worked to balance the malt and hop flavors.

One of our biggest concerns had to do with fermentation, as we not only underpitched this beer with old cider yeast, but also tossed in some fresh dry ale yeast. Thankfully, fermentation occurred without issue and none of us detected anything in the way of off-flavors. Considering the “kitchen sink” approach we took to brew Black Cascadian Dark IP-Ale, making an exact replication may be difficult, but it was definitely good enough that I plan to rely on it as inspiration for future batches of this killer style!

If you have thoughts about this recipe or experience making something similar, please feel free to share in the comments section below!

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