Azacca IPA #2 - YASF IPA

Source: NorthernBrewer.com

My first Azacca IPA (named "My So Fly IPA") turned out so well that I wanted to make it again, this time with a twist...in this case, using White Labs Clarity Firm.  A buddy of mine liked the Azzaca IPA so much that he wanted his wife to try it, and she needs gluten free products.

Interestingly, I received an order shipment from NorthernBrewer yesterday, and thumbing through the supply magazine, I came across an Azacca recipe.  The malt bill is different, as is the hop schedule; my hop schedule is a bit more aggressive than the one NB uses.

In this case, the "YASF" in the page title stands for "Yet Another So Fly".  My wife dubbed my first iteration "My So Fly IPA", and this one is simply a remake using the Clarity Firm.

All steps (partial mash, boil) followed the normal processes I've been using.

Brew Day: 27 Oct 2015

Partial Mash (usual method):
1 lb Belgian Munich malt
1 oz CaraPils

Boil (60 min)
1.25 lb Golden LME (@ 60 min)
3 oz corn sugar (@ 60 min)

Hops
7 g Azacca (@ 60 min)
14 g Azacca (@ 10 min)
11 g Azacca (@ flameout)

Yeast: Safale US-05
*Added ~1/2 vial of Clarity Firm

Addendum, 28 Oct: About 13+ hrs after pitching the yeast, I checked on the fermenter.  There's a good deal of activity, and I'm very happy about that.  What's different is there isn't much krausen in the blow-off tube (there is a very small amount), and none in the blow-off bottle.

Addendum, 6 Nov: Dry hopped with 19 g Azacca hops.  Within seconds of putting the new cap and airlock on the fermenter, the airlock cap was floating.  I'll bottle next week, and then this should be ready for it's first side-by-side comparison tasting with the original Azacca IPA on 27 Nov.

Addendum, 12 Nov: Bottled the beer tonight, with 1 oz table sugar dissolved in 1/2 cup boiling water as the priming sugar.

Addendum, 20 Nov: I was doing some research tonight, and I ran across this Beersmith article that discusses gluten reduced beers and Clarity Firm...

Addendum, 25 Nov: Tasted one tonight after chilling; it's almost exactly the same as the first batch!  Definitely a keeper recipe.  The next step is to do a side-by-side comparison between this one and the original batch, for which I still have a few bottles left.

Addendum, 10 Aug: I still had one of these in my fridge, believe it or not, and I decided that tonight was the night to finish it off.  Man, it was still good.  I had originally made this one as an effort to let a friend try the Azacca IPA, with the caveat being that she can't have gluten.  The beer poured with a small-ish head which dissipated quickly, and after the first couple of sips, there wasn't much apparent lacing.  The beer was absolutely crystal clear, as expected, and was a nice golden color.  Even without a prominent head, the carbonation was still good.  The beer had a medium body, was drinkable without being really heavy.  As far as the flavor, I'm getting a little bit of pine, and only a very small amount of bitterness.  The best I can describe is that it's like having something just a bit less bitter than a Bell's Two-Hearted.  I'll have to look at revisiting this beer in the future.