Tropical Closet Hop Head - A Fine Home Brew if I Say So Myself

Tropical Closet Hop Head in all its glory!

A few weeks ago, I brewed for the first time in about ten months.  It was a Belgian IPA, based on a recipe I made last year that a called Closet Hop Head.  At the last minute, I impulsively made a couple last minute substitutions to replace coriander with cinnamon and Cascade Hops with Galaxy Hops to create a more tropical character to the brew and decided to call it "Tropical Closet Hop Head".

Wouldn't you know, I think I pulled this off.  The cinnamon works with the tropical Galaxy hops to create a nice tropical vibe with a slight floral notes from honey, Chinook and Amarillo hops.  The honey thins out the brew to make it a little more drinkable, and I detected no off flavors.  It doesn't have a strong hop punch but the hop bitterness is certainly there, and it's got nice aromatics.  Call it more of a hoppy Pale Ale than an IPA, but it works pretty well.

Such is the fun of home brewing.  I've heard people claiming every home
brewer harbors this deep desire to brew professionally.    They're wrong!  Home brewing is fun, professional brewing is work.   Ken Grossman can't wake up someday and say "You know, today I'll ditch the Cascade hops and go with Galaxy Hops in Sierra Nevada Pale Ale and see what happens."   And if Ken Grossman did cook up something tasting like Tropical Closet Hop Head, I think he'd be pretty damn proud of it in my totally unbiased opinion.

Brew Day! Tropical Closet Hop Head Belgian IPA

It's been something like 9-10 months since I last home brewed and with a free weekend, decided I had to do something about that.  So last Sunday, I did a little twist on my last home brew, a Belgian IPA I called Closet Hop Head.  Giving it more of a tropical vibe, Galaxy hops replaced Cascade while cinnamon spice substituted for coriander.  Making snap changes on a whim is part of the fun of home brewing which professional brewer rarely have the luxury for.   Can you imagine Ken Grossman waking up one day and deciding to use Galaxy hops instead of Cascade in his Sierra Nevada Pale Ale?

I call this beer Tropical Closet Hop Head and here's few pictures the afternoon of brewing along with the recipe at the bottom.  I'll let you know how it turns out.

Floating Thermometer in a Sea of Mash

All set to start sparging

Boiling away 

Galaxy and Chinook hops, along with some cinnamon
ready to go in at the final minutes

My extremely primitive wort chilling method.
(But it works!)

Time for the yeasts to do their thing!

Tropical Closet Hop Head Belgian IPA

4 lbs. 2-row Malt
1 lb Munich Malt
1/2 lb clover honey  (added at 5 minutes)

Mash with 1 1/2 gallons water

Sparge with an additional 1 1/4 gallons water

Boil for 60 minutes
0.3 ounces Amarillo hops 60 minutes
0.3 ounces Amarillo hops 45 minutes
0.1 ounce Amarillo hops 30 minutes
0.5 ounces Galaxy hops five minutes
0.5 ounces Chinook hops five minutes
0.2 ounces ground cinnamon, five minutes
Cinnamon, Amarillo, Galaxy and Chinook hops, steeped at flame out for additional 15 minutes

Add 1/2 gallon cold water at flame out

White Labs Belgian Ale Yeast in 1-gallon fermenter
White Lab California Ale Yeast in a second 1-gallon fermenter
Makes two gallons

Original Gravity:  1.070
Final Gravity: 1.016
Approximate ABV 7.1%