Med Bag of Chips

Ham, cheddar cheese, fresh tomatoes, and arugula.

Ham and Cheese Sandwich

Sliced turkey, lettuce, tomato, and mustard in a whole wheat wrap.

Fit Turkey Wrap

Oaked English IPA 5.6 % Alcohol by Volume 45 IBUs

Sanitize the 4 oz medium-toast oak chips by submerging them in enough neutral spirit (vodka) or boiling water for 15 minutes. If using vodka, soak briefly then allow excess alcohol to drain. Reserve for later use in primary or secondary (see Oak Regimen section).

Prepare Oak Chips

Heat about 3.5 gallons of water to a strike temperature of roughly 165°F (this will yield a mash temperature near 152°F depending on your equipment). Add the crushed grains (Maris Otter, crystal malts, Victory) to the water, stirring to avoid dough balls and ensuring an even mash. Hold the mash at 152°F for 60 minutes to achieve a balanced, slightly malty profile appropriate for an English IPA.

Strike Water & Mash In

After 60 minutes, raise the mash temperature to 168°F and hold for 10 minutes (mash out) to stop enzymatic activity and improve wort flow.

Mash Out

Sparge the grains with enough water (up to ~2 gallons) at 170°F to collect roughly 6.5 - 7 gallons of pre-boil wort. Collect enough to account for boil-off and losses so you end up with about 5.25 - 5.5 gallons into the fermenter.

Sparge

Bring the collected wort to a vigorous boil and begin timing a 60-minute boil.

Bring to a Rolling Boil

Add Target (or other high AA) hops - 0.5 oz - at the beginning of the boil (60 minutes remaining) to build bitterness toward ~45 IBU.

Bittering Addition (60 minutes)

With 15 minutes left in the boil, add East Kent Goldings (0.75 oz) and Fuggle (0.5 oz) for flavor. Also add Irish Moss (1 tsp) and yeast nutrient now to aid clarity and fermentation health.

Mid-Boil Hop Balancing (15 minutes)

At flameout, turn off heat and add a small whirlpool addition: optional Earl Grey leaf (0.25 oz) for a bergamot note and an additional small pinch of EKG if desired. Let the wort cool slightly in the kettle while whirlpooling gently for 10-15 minutes to extract aroma without excessive bitterness.

Whirlpool / Aroma (0 minutes)

Cool the wort quickly to yeast-pitching temperature (approx. 66°F) using an immersion chiller, counterflow chiller, or ice bath. Aim to transfer to the fermenter as soon as it reaches pitching temperature to minimize infection risk.

Cool Wort

Transfer cooled wort to a sanitized fermenter. Top up with water if needed to reach 5 gallons. Aerate vigorously by splashing or using an oxygen stone for 60-90 seconds to ensure healthy yeast performance.

Transfer & Aerate

Pitch a healthy English ale yeast (one pack or a properly prepared starter). Target an initial fermentation temperature of 66°F. This will produce a relatively English, slightly fruity ester profile while retaining hop character.

Pitch Yeast

Ferment at 64-68°F for 5-7 days until activity slows significantly and gravity approaches terminal readings (around 1.012-1.014 depending on mash efficiency).

Primary Fermentation

If using oak chips for an oaked character: add the sanitized oak chips to the fermenter after primary fermentation slows (around day 4-6) and allow contact for 3-7 days. For a subtler aroma, use 2 oz medium-toast bourbon-staved chips in secondary; for more pronounced oak, use the full 4 oz in primary for 3-5 days. Taste frequently to avoid over-oaking.

Oak Addition — Primary OR Secondary

Add 1 oz East Kent Goldings as a dry hop on day 4-6 of fermentation (can coincide with oak addition) and let sit for 3-4 days to develop classic English hop aroma without heavy citrus top-notes.

Dry Hop

After fermentation completes and desired oak/dry-hop contact time is reached, cold crash the beer to around 35-40°F for 24-48 hours to help clear.

Cold Crash & Condition

If bottling: dissolve 3.5 oz corn sugar in a small amount of boiling water, cool, and add to bottling bucket. Transfer beer gently to avoid aeration and bottle. If kegging: force carbonate to ~2.4 volumes CO2. If naturally carbonating, allow bottles to condition at ~68°F for 10-14 days, then lager at cooler temps for a week.

Bottle or Keg

Allow the bottled/kegged beer to mature for 2-4 weeks to harmonize malt, oak, and hop characters. Oaked notes integrate over time; an additional 1-2 weeks often improves balance.

Maturation

Maris Otter Pale Malt

Light Crystal / Caramel Malt (40L)

Medium Crystal / Caramel Malt (80L)

Victory or Biscuit Malt

Oak Chips (medium toast)

East Kent Goldings (EKG) - 5.0% AA

Fuggle - 4.5% AA

Target - 10% AA (or equivalent high AA bittering hop)

Earl Grey leaf (for hop aroma adjunct) - optional

East Kent Goldings (dry hop)

English Ale Yeast (e.g., Wyeast 1968 or White Labs WLP002)

Irish Moss (or Whirlfloc) - kettle fining

Yeast Nutrient

Water (brewing)

Priming sugar (for bottling) - corn sugar

Bourbon barrel-staved oak chips (medium toast) - secondary

Neutral vodka (sanitizing oak)

Distance Learning

Make Distance Learning Recipe in just 168h . Oaked English IPA 5.6 % Alcohol by Volume 45 IBUs

Distance Learning

Descriptors

Tasting Notes

Food Pairings

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