This collaborative recipe with Imperial Yeast is for a crispy Cold IPA that packs a tropical punch! Watch the brew day and tasting notes video.
Que Frio Cold IPA is largely inspired by the craft beer recipe for Bent Brewstillery’s Thawless Victory Cold IPA. Bent Brewstillery head brewer Kristen England was very gracious in sharing his ingredients and unique process to brew what I consider an exceptional version of the Cold IPA style: no boil hops, but back-loading the brew in the whirlpool, and with dry hops during both active fermentation and post-fermentation. This method creates some seriously rich hop notes to the beer, regardless of the hops you use.
Que Frio Cold IPA specifically features a blend of all Cryo Hops throughout. Cryo Amarillo in whirlpool provides a wonderful foundational citrus-y and orange zest bitterness and flavor. The combination of Cryo Sabro and Cryo Pop in fermentation and dry hop build these really fun and delicious tropical flavors (pineapple, coconut) as well as more citrus-y tangerine notes. If you’ve never brewed a beer like this before with no boil hops, you’ll be surprised at how much bitterness that flame-out/whirlpool addition gets you and the huge burst of hop flavor and aromas the post brew day hops provide.
If leaning tropical isn’t your thing, you could always Choose Your Own Adventure of hops and sub in varieties that target dank, fruity, or more classically C-hop notes. But I would suggest keeping all hops for this brew as Cryo Hop pellets to help boost those hop notes and cut back on the green flavor of more common T-90 pellets. And to keep it Que Frio!
Check out this article I wrote for Northern Brewer for more information on the Cold IPA style with tips and recipes from pro brewers. The newest issue of Brew Your Own magazine (May-June 2023) also has a cover story about the style that includes pro brewer recipes and advice for brewing the style.
If you’re looking for something less bold and hoppy, check out another collaborative recipe for Shoulder Season Pils, also fermented with Imperial Yeast L09 Que Bueno strain, for a beer you’ll enjoy no matter what kind of unpredictable weather Mother Nature throws at you.
Que Frio Cold IPA
For five gallons
OG: 1.064
FG: 1.010
ABV: 7.0%
IBU: 30ish
Malt
- 8 lbs Rahr Pilsner Malt (70%)
- 2 lbs Flaked Rice (20%)
- 1 lb Corn Sugar/Dextrose (10%)
Hops
Note: There are no actual boil hops in this recipe!
- Whirlpool: 2 oz Cryo Amarillo [14.9%aa]
- Dry Hop #1 (Active Fermentation): 2 oz each of Cryo Sabro [21.5%aa] and Cryo Pop (aka TRI 2304CR) [21.6%aa]
- Dryhop #2 (Post Fermentation): 0.6 oz each of Cryo Sabro & Cryo Pop
Yeast
Water Treatment
- I’m admittedly not the most well-versed in water adjustment. For this beer I just used the rough rule-of-thumb of adding 1/4 tsp of gypsum to strike water before adding grains, as this is said to accentuate hop flavors in lighter colored beers.
Process
Mash Pilsner malt and flaked rice for 60 minutes at 149-150F.
Run-off wort to collect target pre-boil volume in brew kettle.
Add corn sugar to wort and boil for 60 minutes.
Add a fining agent (WhirlFloc or Irish moss) 15 minutes before end-of-boil.
Kill the heat and stir to cool the wort slightly to 200F. Add Cryo Amarillo whirlpool hops and stir to create a whirlpool effect in the kettle. Steep these flame-out hops for 15 minutes, then proceed to chilling wort to 60F and transfer to the fermenter. Aerate wort with pure O2 for one minute.
Pitch Imperial Yeast L09 Que Bueno lager yeast and aim for a fermentation temperature of 60-62F.
Dry Hop #1: Active Fermentation
When beer has fermented to about 50% attenuation, add 2 oz each of Cryo Sabro and Cryo Pop hops. These hops churning around during active fermentation will release some major hop notes by way of biotransformation with the yeast.
Dry Hop #2: Post Fermentation
When fermentation is complete, cold crash beer or lower temperature to 55F. Add 0.6 oz of each Cryo Sabro and Cryo Pop hops. Pour these hops gently near the surface of the wort. On this addition, you want to be careful and minimize splashing to prevent oxidizing the wort. Let beer rest for 2-3 days and then package.
Adding Gelatin to Beer (Optional)
Personally, I love Cold IPAs to be crystal clear. My first brew of this recipe had a low level of haze even after a week in the keg. So, I added gelatin. The process for that is to put ½ tsp gelatin finings into 150 mL water and let it sit for an hour. Microwave it for 30 seconds and stir well to dissolve. Microwave again for 30 seconds and make sure the heat is at least 180 to sterilize it. Cover with foil and let sit to cool to room temp. Once cooled, pour the solution directly into the keg. You could also do this in the actual fermenter a day before racking to bottles or keg, if you know you’re going to need it. But in this case, I didn’t know until I was in the keg already. Stir the top 1/3 of the beer with a sanitized spoon. Put the keg back into the fridge and on gas. Let it sit for one day and don’t move it. The gelatin will fall out and take all hop and yeast particulate down with it. After one day to settle out, I poured about a half-pint of gunk out of the keg. After doing that, the rest of the beer was brilliantly clear. It worked like a charm – an absolutely beautiful, crisp beer with huge hop flavors and aromas. But you don’t have to take my word for it; I invited a true professional to get her thoughts on the beer and this brewing process.