"Aussie" IPA

[blonberg]

Dont know how this turned out for you but definitely interested as I brew at an Australian owned/influenced brewpub in Miami. We use a prodigious amount of Australian hops so if you want to connect on this give a shout any time.

Thanks for the vote of confidence. Overall, I was happy with the beer. Vic Secret is a lovely aroma hop, but I was a little underwhelmed with it in the final product. I bittered with Chinook and had a little Cascade in the kettle with the Vic, and then heavily dry hopped it with the Vic alone. The final result was a little rough around the edges. I don't know if that was all the bready malt I used, or the yeast variety that I had been unfamiliar with, or the hop, which seemed a lot more one note in the beer itself. I liked the beer, but it isn't one I'm planning on brewing again.

I wish you success, and am certainly interested in your pub's concept.

[gberbusse]

Dont know how this turned out for you but definitely interested as I brew at an Australian owned/influenced brewpub in Miami. We use a prodigious amount of Australian hops so if you want to connect on this give a shout any time.

[blonberg]

I'm looking at brewing an "Australian" IPA. I know it isn't exactly a style, but I'm trying to focus on Australian hops, and want to do something like the locals. I've reached out to a few people (not pros) that I know Down Under, and have scanned through Aussie websites and Beer Advocate/Ratebeer for info.

Can anybody confirm a few suppositions I've made?

1) I'll be primarily using Pale Ale malt instead of basic 2-row as a base, in keeping with their British Heritage.
2) I'll be limiting any caramel malt to 10 degrees, to keep it extra pale.
3) I'm throwing in a little Vienna malt to accentuate the malt character further without adding sweetness.
4) I'm using the Aussie Ale strain from Inland Island to get the right fermentation profile, but fermenting it a little warmer as to get a slightly cleaner profile than the bread bomb that that can be (as I've read they are trending cleaner/more American in fermentation profile).
5) I'm mostly sticking to Vic. Secret hops, but I'm throwing in a few other classics. Hoping will be largely dry hopping and late kettle additions
6) I'm going for brite beer - as haze doesn't seem to be super in there quite yet (and honestly, it isn't 'in' with me, either).
7) I'm shooting for an abv of 5.5% - this is what I'm having the hardest part divining. It seems the best rated Australian IPAs are much higher, but then that is true in the US. The strength of their IPAs strikes me as something akin to a American IPAs circa 2010.

Can anybody in the know comment on my recipe, and let me know if I'm in the ballpark of what indie breweries are making in Australia today?