21C Hazy IPA
October Hazy
Grain bill
| Gladfield Light Lager Malt | 4.7 kg | 64.4% |
| Gladfield Big O Malted Oats | 0.85 kg | 11.6% |
| Gladfield Munich Malt | 0.75 kg | 10.3% |
| Gladfield Flaked Wheat | 0.65 kg | 8.9% |
| Gladfield Golden Oat Malt | 0.3 kg | 4.1% |
| Gladfield Aurora Malt | 0.05 kg | 0.7% |
Adjuncts
| Riwaka Amplifier Oil | 1.5 ml whirlpool + 1.5 ml dry hop |
| Motueka Amplifier Oil | 1.5 ml whirlpool + 1.5 ml dry hop |
| Yeast nutrient | 4 g @ 10 min |
| Whirlfloc | 1 g @ 10 min |
Hop schedule
| Hop | 60 min | 30 min | 10 min | DH#1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hallertau Mittelfrüh | 15g | 15g | 20g | · |
| Citra | · | · | · | 50g |
Yeast
| LalBrew Verdant IPA | 2 packets |
Water additions
| Calcium Chloride | 6 g |
| Magnesium Sulfate | 4 g |
| Calcium Sulfate | 2 g |
Tasting notes
2025-10-20
October Hazy marked two firsts: the debut of the Red Reaper counterflow chiller, and an experiment with hop oil concentrates replacing the usual pellet-heavy whirlpool and dry hop charge.
Grain Bill
The grist leaned heavily on Gladfield Light Lager (64%) as the neutral base, with a layered oat stack for body — Big O Malted Oats (11.6%), Flaked Wheat (8.9%), and Golden Oat (4.1%) together accounting for nearly a quarter of the bill. Gladfield Munich (10.3%) added warmth and roundness, with a touch of Aurora (0.7%) for depth and a hint of colour.
Hops & Oils
Hallertau Mittelfrüh handled the bittering at 60, 30, and 10 minutes (15/15/20 g) — noble character chosen to complement rather than compete with the oil-forward late additions.
The whirlpool and dry hop stages used Bintani Amplifier hop oils: 1.5 ml each of Riwaka and Motueka added to the whirlpool (20-minute stand) and again at day 5 of dry hopping. These concentrated terpene products deliver aroma without vegetal matter. A post-transfer addition of 50 g Citra pellets in the keg added a final fresh hop note.
Fermentation
LalBrew Verdant at 1.070 is vigorous — blowoff was needed from day one. Fermentation started at 19°C, ramped to 21°C, then held at 22–22.5°C for clean-up. Gravity reached approximately 1.014 at day 10 before finishing at 1.009, giving 8.0% ABV.
Packaging & Tasting
Kegged 15 days after brew day, carbonated to 2.4 vol CO₂, and tasted on the same day. The initial pour showed an interesting but malt-forward character — the oils needed reinforcement, which came via an extra dose at keg transfer alongside the Citra dry hop. After those adjustments the hop aroma improved considerably.
Lessons: Hop oils benefit from a follow-up keg-side treatment to hit the desired aroma intensity. Verdant at high gravity needs blowoff configured before pitching.