<![CDATA[iBrewalot.com - Blog]]>Sun, 11 Oct 2026 01:01:36 -0700Weebly<![CDATA[Thirsty Thursday: King Sue clone recipe]]>Sat, 10 Oct 2026 05:30:29 GMThttps://www.ibrewalot.com/blog/thirsty-thursday-king-sue-clone-recipeThirsty Thursday Brewing Idea of the Week #3: King Sue Clone
This week we're chasing a Midwest whale: Toppling Goliath's King Sue, the double dry-hopped, all-Citra hazy double IPA (~8.5% ABV) that has sat near the top of the national beer rankings since 2014. Named after "Sue," the T. rex fossil at Chicago's Field Museum, it's the bigger, louder sibling of Pseudo Sue — and every documented Sue clone recipe converges on the same architecture: simple pale grist, Citra everywhere, clean English ale yeast, big whirlpool, bigger dry hops.
Target stats: OG 1.076 · FG ~1.012 · ~8.4% ABV · ~70 IBU · 5 gallons
Grist: 15 lb pale 2-row · 12 oz crystal 20L · 8 oz flaked barley. Mash at 152–154°F for 60 minutes.
Hops: 1 oz Warrior at 60 min for clean bitterness. Then all Citra, all day: 2 oz at 5 min, 4 oz in a 30-minute whirlpool at 170–180°F, then the signature double dry hop — 3 oz on day 4–5 as kräusen falls, 3 oz more around day 10–12, 3 days each.
Yeast: White Labs WLP007 Dry English Ale (or US-05). Neutral and attenuative — it gets out of Citra's way.
Water: Keep it hazy-soft: chloride-forward, roughly 135 ppm chloride to 67 ppm sulfate.
Why it works: The bitterness comes almost entirely from the whirlpool and dry hops, so the grapefruit, mango, and orange character leads while the bitterness stays firm but not harsh. Dry-hop while fermentation is still winding down so the yeast scrubs introduced oxygen — a trick every good hazy-IPA brewer swears by.
Brew it and let it condition two weeks before tasting. Happy brewing.

]]><![CDATA[Thirsty Thursday: Julius clone recipe]]>Sat, 10 Oct 2026 05:29:32 GMThttps://www.ibrewalot.com/blog/thirsty-thursday-julius-clone-recipe🍺 Thirsty Thursday Brewing Idea of the Week
Clone: Julius (Tree House Brewing Co.)
The hazy IPA that put New England on the map — all passionfruit, orange, and mango juice with barely a hint of bitterness.
The Recipe (5 gallons, all-grain)
  • Stats: OG 1.061 / FG 1.014 / ABV 6.5% / IBU 75
  • Grain bill: 11 lb UK pale ale malt, 1 lb oat malt, 5 oz honey malt, 5 oz Carapils, 5 oz flaked oats, 8 oz turbinado sugar (last 15 min of boil)
  • Mash: 154°F, 60 min
  • Hops: 8 mL HopShot @ 60 min; hop stand at 180°F for 30 min with 2 oz Citra, 2 oz Mosaic, 1 oz Simcoe; dry hop on days 4–5 for 3 days with 2.5 oz Citra, 2 oz Mosaic, 1.5 oz Simcoe
  • Yeast: Wyeast 1318 (London Ale III)
  • Fermentation: 68°F; dry hop as the kräusen starts to fall; carbonate to 2.4 vol
Brewer's tips:
  • Water matters as much as hops here — shoot for roughly 200 ppm chloride to 100 ppm sulfate for that soft, full mouthfeel.
  • Dry hop while fermentation is still winding down so the yeast scrubs the oxygen you introduce — this is the #1 fix for hazies that turn brown and dull.
  • One variant floating around uses Amarillo/Centennial/Simcoe instead of Citra/Mosaic/Simcoe; this version follows the BYO-published recipe, which is the better-documented of the two.
Happy brewing! 🍻

]]><![CDATA[Thirsty Thursday: Juicy Bits clone recipe]]>Sat, 10 Oct 2026 05:27:17 GMThttps://www.ibrewalot.com/blog/thirsty-thursday-juicy-bits-clone-recipe🍺 Thirsty Thursday Brewing Idea of the Week
Clone: Juicy Bits (WeldWerks Brewing, Greeley, CO)
The hazy IPA that drew 100-deep lines at the Great American Beer Festival — bursting with orange juice, grapefruit, pineapple, and mango over a soft, pillowy body. This recipe comes straight from head brewer Skip Schwartz.
Targets (5 gal, all-grain): OG 1.068 · FG 1.017 · 6.7% ABV · 45 IBU
Grain bill
  • 4.9 lb Pilsner malt · 4.2 lb pale ale malt · 1.25 lb white wheat
  • 1.1 lb flaked oats · 1.1 lb flaked wheat · 9.5 oz dextrin malt
  • 8 oz corn sugar (15 min left in boil) · 4.5 oz rice hulls
Mash & boil: 152°F for 60 min, mash out at 168°F for 10 min. 60-min boil — no kettle hops at all.
Whirlpool: Cool to 194°F, add 1 oz each Citra, El Dorado, and Mosaic. Stir, cover, rest 20 min.
Yeast: Wyeast 1318 (London Ale III) or equivalent — ferment steady at 68°F.
Dry hop: Once fermentation finishes (day 5–6), add 1.9 oz each Citra, El Dorado, and Mosaic. Three days later, cold crash 2 days, then package.
Water: Start from RO, mash pH 5.5, 1 tsp calcium chloride — chloride-forward (~175–200 ppm Cl).
Brewer's tips
  1. Dry hop only after fermentation finishes — avoids hop creep and grassy notes.
  2. Keep oxygen out post-fermentation: purge headspace, closed-transfer. Hazies go brown fast with O₂ pickup.
  3. Don't skip the 2-day cold crash — Schwartz calls it his top homebrew tip for a clean pour.
Who's brewing this one? 👇

]]><![CDATA[Gravity is my friend!]]>Fri, 08 Oct 2021 17:06:29 GMThttps://www.ibrewalot.com/blog/gravity-is-my-friend
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I have the pumps, but it's just more to clean! Something about the work put in to get those kettles on the table and ladder makes more for a sense of accomplishment! Relax and Have a Homebrew!
]]><![CDATA[Veteran's Day Stout]]>Sat, 07 Dec 2019 21:13:51 GMThttps://www.ibrewalot.com/blog/veterans-day-stoutPicture
-Designed by
a Veteran-owned
business to brew on
Veteran's Day
to be ready for
Christmas...
All-Grain
Coming Soon
]]><![CDATA[One Good Beer]]>Wed, 09 Aug 2017 13:32:12 GMThttps://www.ibrewalot.com/blog/one-good-beerOver the past few years brewing I've made a lot of mistakes and drank a lot of different off tasting brews to learn from them. My goal is to find one to two different recipes I really enjoy and improve on them each year. Right now I've got one really good Porter I brew on Veteran's Day and a couple IPAs I like to brew during the Spring months for a refreshing Summer ale. Once I get more comfortable with these brews I want to share them on the website. Shipping "One Good Beer at a Time," watch for more to come...
]]><![CDATA[I Make Beer and I Like It]]>Thu, 04 Feb 2016 00:27:24 GMThttps://www.ibrewalot.com/blog/i-make-beer-and-i-like-it
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You ever been halfway through a beer and realize its going to be good before you finish. Its a reality for me...
]]><![CDATA[3 Beers, 1 Yeast, and a Parti-gyle!]]>Fri, 06 Nov 2015 16:36:07 GMThttps://www.ibrewalot.com/blog/3-beers-1-yeast-and-a-parti-gyle
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Last week I had the chance to show some people how to home brew and we made 15 gallons of a Gateway IPA. I was the lucky keeper of one of the 5 gallon carboys and timed another big brew just right to use the yeast as I transferred the Gateway to the secondary fermentor. A clone of "Unearthly IIPA" was what I chose and then decided to do a parti-gyle off of the second runnings of the grains using a nylon bag to transfer to the second mash water at 155 degrees.
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For the parti-gyle we used hop additions as follows with no real calculations, just a little guess work with leftovers based on their alphas...

Half oz - German Perle at 60, 3/4 oz - Willamette at 20 and 1/2 oz German Hallertau at 5

We still have a few leftovers for some dry hopping! Also pictured is the original yeast we used on the Gateway IPA.
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]]><![CDATA[Site Brewing at Imajining "Red Shed Event" in Cleghorn, IA]]>Tue, 26 May 2015 18:15:13 GMThttps://www.ibrewalot.com/blog/site-brewing-at-imajining-red-shed-event-in-cleghorn-ia
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Last week we did a brewing demo at Once, Then, Again Antiques and Collectables and this week Gabe will be brewing in Cleghorn, IA. The Red Shed event is held every last Friday at 5869 H Ave, Cleghorn, IA by Imajining and features amazing refinished furniture and lots of unique items to add to your interior design. I'll be brewing an Extra Special Bitter from 2-row Maris Otter, Caramunich II, and Willamette, and UK Kent Golding hops. It should smell amazing at the event!  Some people start a brewery in their garage but I prefer a canopy outdoors! Cheers!
]]><![CDATA[Wed, Mar 18, 2015]]>Wed, 18 Mar 2015 17:59:38 GMThttps://www.ibrewalot.com/blog/wed-mar-18-2015
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I've been busy with my all-grain kit. Just finished a strong hop IPA and a Honey Wheat IPA. These two tasted amazing after the secondary! I can't wait to share!

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