Brü It Yourself | Krushin’ It West Coast IPA

Author: Jordan Folks

It’s stunning just how much the IPA style has expanded and evolved over the years – from its English origins and initial craft revival to the IBU wars of the early-aughts, hazy reimaginations, and all of the colorful sub-styles that have come and gone over the last two decades. Suffice to say, India Pale Ale has come to represent a lot more than its name implies, with essentially any highly hopped fermented malt-based beverage making the categorical cut.

While American IPA is traditionally known for having a decent malt backbone, over the last decade, brewers have tended to lean more heavily into dryer examples that are less bitter and much paler in color. Enter the West Coast IPA, an unofficial moniker that pays homage to the region widely accepted as the birthplace of this sub-style. Pairing the crisp drinkability of a pale lager with explosive hop character and a touch more strength, West Coast IPA recipes tend to have much simpler malt bills that often swap out standard Pale Malt with lower kilned Pilsner malt, and of course heaps of modern American and New World hops typically added later in the process. Moreover, brewers of West Coast IPA often rely on innovative concentrated hop products to up the pungency of their beers, while some prefer fermenting with neutral lager strains to further emphasize its clean, crisp character.

In my opinion, West Coast IPA is one of the best hop delivery vehicles (HDV) currently in the craft beer scene, the combination of intense hop saturation with a pale, dry, and effervescent format makes this style dangerously crushable despite its moderate alcohol content. As someone who loves brewing West Coast IPA as much as I love drinking, I’m regularly inspired by the seemingly never-ending onslaught of exciting new hop varieties and advanced hop products. One variety I’ve been excited about is Krush, which presents with a unique blend of Nobel-esque spice along with heaps of tropical fruit, and I recently used it in a West Coast IPA I call Krushin’ It.

| Making Krushin’ It West Coast IPA |

Using both anecdotal experiences of commercial beers made with Krush as well as information I read online, I designed this recipe to accentuate its best characteristics. Huge thanks to F.H. Steinbart for hooking me up with the malt for this batch!

Krushin’ It West Coast IPA

After collecting the full volume of brewing water, adjusting it to my desired profile, and getting it heating up, I weighed out and milled the grains.

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

While the mash was resting, I measured out the kettle hop additions.

When the 60 minute mash was complete, I removed the spent grains and boiled the wort for 60 minutes before quickly chilling it with my JaDeD Brewing SS Coil Hydra.

A refractometer reading showed the wort was at a respectable 1.060 OG.

I transferred the chilled wort to a fermentation keg and placed it in my chamber to finish chilling to my desired pitching temperature of 59°F/15°C, at which point I pitched 2 pouches of Imperial Yeast L13 Global.

To ensure a clean, healthy fermentation and aggressive attenuation, I added oxygen, ALDC, yeast nutrient, and a half teaspoon of alpha-amylase enzyme to the fermenter.

After a week of fermentation at 60°F/16°C, I added the massive dry hop addition along with another dose of ALDC for good measure.

After letting the hops mingle with the beer for 24 hours, I took a hydrometer measurement confirming FG had been reached.

At this point, I cold crashed the beer overnight then pressure-transferred it to a CO2 purged serving keg along with a dose of gelatin fining. The filled keg was placed on gas in my keezer where it was left to condition for a week before it was clear, carbonated, and ready to drink.

| IMPRESSIONS |

These days, when someone talks about IPA, they necessarily have to provide additional descriptive details given the advent of so many sub-styles. Arguably one of the first classic American IPA spinoffs is the pale, dry, and supremely refreshing West Coast IPA, which is known to trade malt character for amplified hop pungency. It also happens to be one of my favorite styles of all-time.

To my senses, Krushin’ It West Coast IPA absolutely hit the stylistic mark, presenting with extremely intense tropical fruit hop character that could be smelled from a distance. I also picked up some complimentary dank and spice notes, which I attribute to the Krush hops, and found to be reminiscent of other New Zealand varieties I’ve used. The malt character was delightfully muted and served only as a canvas, while the Imperial Yeast L13 Global resulted in a very clean fermentation and solid attenuation.

I loved this beer, as did everyone else I shared it with. I’ve heard that Krush could be overpowering and hence a deft hand is recommended when using it, and while I now understand how there could be too much of a good thing, I feel the amount used in Krushin’ It was just right. I will absolutely be making this recipe again, and for anyone who enjoys crisp, dry, and refreshing West Coast IPA, I cannot recommend it enough!

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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