2015 Rye IPA: brewing with wet hops

This photo makes the beer look more amber than it
really is. The calculated SRM = 6.

I really enjoyed the Rye IPA I brewed last summer. So I decided to redrew it this year, with a few alterations:

2014 Rye IPA w/ wet hops

I have upgraded and changed equipment in the last year and had to adjust the recipe.  I have added a blichmann Hop Rocket and Therminator. Therefore, I have had to udjust my preboil volume to account for the loss in volume in both pieces of equipment. On top of that I add an additional gallon of to the preboil volume to account for wort lost to wet hop absorption. I have heard many brewer say that do not loose any volume to wet hops, but I have found the opposite. A 1:1 ratio of wet hops: additional gallons of preboil wort is the equation I use when brewing wet hopped beers. 

The majority of the grist is US 2-Row. There is a healthy dose Rye Malt, some Vienna Malt, and Crystal 20L for color and mouthfeel. 

The second change from last year is that I am using my own hops. I harvested a little over a pound of fresh, wet Centennial hop cones from my first year plant. I was actually shocked I ended up with so many hops due to the mild and overcast summer we had in Southern Michigan. I ended up using the a whole pound in this beer: 12 oz steeped at the end of the boil and 4 oz in the hop rocket on the way to the chiller. I supplemented the rest of the hops with pellets. 

Again this is a hoppy, crisp beer for the end of summer. Now that the keg is tapped, I am looking forward to 2016 Rye IPA.

Centennial Hops on the vine. If the tips of the cones turning brown and feel "papery", they're ready to be picked.

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Volume adjustments for Wet Hops Beers:
Preboil Volume = 8.5 gallons of wort

OG: 1.067

FG: 1.010

ABV: 7.6%

IBU: 68 calculated

SRM: 6

Grain:

13 lbs Pale Malt (US 2-Row)

3 lbs Rye Malt

2 lbs Vienna Malt

.5 lbs Carmel/Crystal 20L

Mash: Single Infusion 

75 minutes @ 150 degrees F

15 minutes@ 168 degrees F

Hops/Boil:

1 oz Bravo Pellet (15.5% AA) @ 90 minutes

1 oz Centennial Pellet@ 20 minutes

1 oz Centennial Pellet @ 10 minutes

12 oz Centennial Wet @ 0 minutes +20 minute hop steep

4 oz Centennial Wet @ HopBack

Ferment: 312 billion cells of WLP090 San Diego Super Yeast

Primary: 14 days @ 66 degrees F, + 1.5 oz Centennial Pellet added with 7 days left

Secondary: 7 days @ 66 degrees F, + 1.5 oz Centennial Pellet