372: Ian McCall of Ism is Brewing Pint After Pint of West Coast Pleasure
Craft Beer & Brewing Magazine Podcast
Crafting the Perfect West Coast IPA: A Brewmaster's Journey
This chapter explores the intricate balance of hop flavor and malt character in modern West Coast IPAs. It highlights the importance of brewer-farmer relationships and past experiences that shape the creative process behind unique IPA profiles.
With his new brewery, Ism, Ian McCall is back in the brewery and taproom that once housed Beachwood in Long Beach, California—a brewery where he was once lead brewer—although he’s in a different position now as founder and owner. Despite the very young age of this new brewery, McCall and team have already made a big splash, landing three World Beer Cup medals earlier this year, two of them gold, and one in the prized West Coast IPA category for their IPA Western Standard Time.
The conversation, of course, turns to West Coast IPA, and stays there, as McCall walks through his award-winning IPA. Along the way, McCall covers:
- optimizing the beer lineup to eliminate lower performers
- driving leaner malt in West Coast IPA
- using group hop selection to his advantage
- brewing with wheat to boost body without affecting dryness
- moderating chloride levels in West Coast IPA
- shaping bitterness to hit strongly and quickly then disappear
- using active fermentation dry hopping to push fruitier hop notes
- building complexity with hot side hop additions
- constantly evolving even award-winning recipes
And more.
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