Thu, 08/18/2011 - 23:05 — BBuron
I am planning on brewing up an IPA and I am not sure what to use as a crystal malt. I was thinking about a pound of 75L, but a lot of the recipes I have looking at for ideas only use up to 40L to 60L. I want it to have some color and maybe even a bit darker than the average IPA, but obviously don't want it to be so dark as to not fit within the style. Anyone have any thoughts as to the max Lovibond to use for a 5 gallon batch? Is 75L too high? Any thoughts/advice would be greatly appreciated.
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That said, I wouldn't use that much of that dark a crystal malt if I were trying to brew an American IPA to style. In fact, I don't think I'd use a pound of crystal at all in an IPA. If you want to use 75L, try 4 oz and make up the rest with other specialty malts. I've found a bit of honey malt or aromatic malt can do great things for an IPA. I would think a pound of Crystal 75L would leave you with too rich a beer.