Lawson’s Finest Liquids: Double Sunshine clone

Lawson’s Finest Liquids: Double Sunshine clone

(5 gallons/19 L, all-grain)
OG = 1.074 FG = 1.013
IBU = 100+ SRM = 6 ABV = 8%

Double Sunshine is a sought-after “Vermont-style” Double IPA. It’s packed with juicy tropical fruit flavors and bright herbal aromas thanks to the abundance of US-grown Citra hops.

INGREDIENTS
9.5 lb. (4.3 kg) 2-row pale malt
2.5 lb. (1.1 kg) Vienna-style malt
1 lb. (0.45 kg) flaked oats
12 oz. (0.34 kg) carapilsen malt (7–9°L)
6 oz. (0.17 kg) caramunich-type malt (20–30°L)
1 lb. (0.45 kg) dextrose (10 mins.)
10.5 AAU Columbus hops (60 mins.) (0.75 oz./21 g at 14% alpha acids)
12.5 AAU Citra hops (20 mins.) (1 oz./21 g at 12.5% alpha acids)
37.5 AAU Citra hops (5 mins.) (3 oz./84 g at 12.5% alpha acids)
37.5 AAU Citra hops (knockout) (3 oz./84 g at 12.5% alpha acids)
3 oz. (84 g) Citra hops (dry hop)
Fermentis Safale US-05, Lallemand BRY-97, Wyeast 1056 (American Ale), or White Labs WLP001 (California Ale) yeast (as a 3.5 L yeast starter)
3/4 cup (150 g) dextrose (for priming)

STEP BY STEP
A few days before brew day, make a yeast starter. You will need 254 billion healthy yeast cells. Mash at 152°F (67°C) for 45 minutes. Mash out, vorlauf, and then sparge at 170°F (77°C). Boil for 60 minutes, adding the hops as instructed and the dextrose with 10 minutes left in the boil. After the boil is complete, begin a whirlpool in the kettle and let the knockout hops rest in the hot wort for at least 30 minutes before chilling. Chill the wort, pitch the yeast, and ferment at 68°F (18°C) for 1 week. Cool to 55°F (13°C) to settle the yeast. Dump the yeast from the bottom of fermenter or rack to a clean, sanitized vessel. Add the dry hops and let the beer sit for an additional 4 to 7 days at 55–57°F (13–14°C). Bottle or keg as usual.

EXTRACT WITH GRAINS OPTION:
Substitute the 2-row pale malt in the all-grain recipe with 6.6 pounds (3 kg) light liquid malt extract, skip the carapilsen malt, and boost the dextrose up to 1.5 pounds (0.68 kg) (versus 1 pound/0.45 kg in the all-grain recipe). Mix the crushed Vienna-style malt, flaked oats, and caramunich-type malts into 2 gallons (7.6 L) water to achieve a temperature of 152°F (67°C), then hold at this temperature for 45 minutes. Rinse the grains with 2.5 quarts (2.4 L) hot water, add the liquid extract, and bring to a boil. Top off the kettle to 6.5 gallons (25 L). Boil for 60 minutes. Follow the remaining portion of the all-grain recipe.

Tips for Success:
Having a strong and healthy fermentation as well as following good practices during downstream beer handling are key to trying to replicate a beer like Double Sunshine IPA. Be sure to run a clean fermentation and you also need to make sure oxygen has no chance for uptake post fermentation.

Sean Lawson advises homebrewers to, “determine if you have hard or soft water. I recommend John Palmer’s How to Brew for reference. If you have hard water, then cut by at least half with distilled or reverse osmosis (RO). With soft water, a basic guideline for IPAs would be to add equal parts gypsum and calcium chloride to bring total calcium content over 50 ppm.” If you homebrew with a water source that is chlorinated, one Campden tablet in 20 gallons (76 L) of water (left overnight) will rid your water of chlorine compounds that can lead to off-flavors in your beer.

For all-grain brewers, a handful of rice hulls in the mash may help you if your brew setup is prone to a stuck mash. Rice hulls are a great tool when using moderate to high percentages of gummy grains such as flaked oats.