Brewed: Rabbit NEIPA

By scot in Beer, Beer Recipes, Home Brewing on Sunday, September 30th, 2018

Home brewing isn’t a necessity but it is therapeutic. I haven’t had the chance to put my skills on display in quite some time. No better way to get back on the band wagon than to brew up a batch of Northeast India Pale Ale (NEIPA).

Rabbit NEIPA gets it name from the most recent Avengers movie: Infinity War. In it, Thor, refers to Rocket as Rabbit. I immediately found that funny. It is funny since Rocket is a raccoon and, in multiple movies, they make fun of the type of animal is might be. I find this funny and knew I had to name a beer after the banter.

The itch to brew was upon me a couple of weeks prior to actual brew day. I made a trip to the local home brew store and I had one major goal: get some liquid yeast. Specifically I was looking for Wyeast 1318 – London Ale III. I have seen many recipes that use this yeast in NEIPAs but I always seem to be crunched for time with brew days being more of a spontaneous event rather than planned.

Formulating the recipe for Rabbit

Home brewing a NEIPA has certain prerequisites for me: oats/wheat (or both) and hops that will give a solid tropical aroma and flavor. The oats and wheat are always the easy part. I keep playing with the hops, leaving out Citra many times, to see if there are other variations that yield said tropical profile. I have been about 50/50 so far. I decided to go for a typical style profile using Citra. Simcoe was laying around; easy decision. Throw in a dash of Azacca and it sounds like a winner.

The kegging of this beer let the aromas free, creating anticipation for the first real taste. Enjoy!

Recipe for Rabbit NEIPA

General Information:
Brew Date: Sunday, September 30, 2018
Day: low humidity, high sky, started @60*F
Recipe Type: All Grain
Yeast: Wyeast 1318
Yeast Starter: 2L
Batch Size (Gallons): 5.5
Original Gravity: 1.047
Finishing Gravity: N/A
IBU: 63.1
Color: 3.9 SRM
Boiling Time (Minutes): 60
Conversion Efficiency: 67.75%
Alcohol by Volume: N/A
Apparent Attenuation: N/A
Calories per ounce: N/A
Primary Fermentation: 7 days @68*F

Grain Bill:
4.00 pound(s) 2-row
4.00 pound(s) Red Wheat
1.00 pound(s) Flaked Barley
1.00 pound(s) Oats
4.00 ounce(s) Caramel 20L

Mash:
Saccharification @150.5*F

Hop Bill:
1.00 ounce(s) 2016 Simcoe @first wort
1.00 ounce(s) 2016 Azacca @10 minutes
2.00 ounce(s) 2016 Citra @5 minutes
2.00 ounce(s) 2016 Azacca whirlpool, 20 minutes
2.00 ounce(s) 2016 Simcoe whirlpool, 20 minutes
1.00 ounce(s) 2016 Citra whirlpool, 20 minutes
3.00 ounce(s) 2016 Citra dry hop, high fermentation
2.00 ounce(s) 2016 Simcoe dry hop, high fermentation
2.00 ounce(s) 2016 Simcoe dry hop, slowing fermentation
1.00 ounce(s) 2016 Citra dry hop, slowing fermentation

Extras:
1.0 tsp Irish Moss @15 minutes
1.0 tsp Yeast Nutrient @15 minutes
4.0 quarts of rice hulls

Updates:

• 2018-10-01 evening: @67.1*F, added first round of dry hops.
• 2018-10-02 evening: @67.3*F, added second round of dry hops.
• 2018-10-06: cold crash.
• 2018-10-07: kegged.

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