IPA vs SAISON
Our next Brew Academy will give attendees the chance to brew either a Lemongrass Saison or a classic IPA. With that in mind we thought we’d take a quick look at both styles with some of our favourite examples of each, and a few tips on brewing them.
SOME OF OUR FAVOURITES…
Vocation: Heart & Soul. An instensly fruity, session strength IPA brewed with loads of West Coast hops.
Five Points: IPA. A strong, rich and malty IPA balanced with massive fruit flavours such as lychee and passion fruit.
Beavertown: Bloody ‘Ell. A modern legend! An epic IPA with a mega blood orange smack.
Moor: Return of the Empire. An awesomely hoppy IPA showcasing the exciting flavours from modern English hops.
Wild Beer: Epic Saison. A fusion of traditional Belgian style farmhouse beer and punchy American hops.
Beavertown: Applelation. Created to be the Champagne of saisons, Applelation pairs champagne yeast with tart Bramley apples.
Brew By Numbers: 01|01 Citra. A classic saison heavily hopped with Citra — the king of hops.
Partizan: Lemongrass Saison. Light farmhouse ale with lemongrass and loads of citrus.
BREWING AN IPA VS SAISON
Much of the process for brewing either an IPA or a saison is basically the same. Mash the grains for 40–60 minutes at 64–69c; err towards the lower end for a saison to get a dryer, lighter finish and towards the higher end with an IPA for a sweeter finish. Vorlauf and sparge to reach the desired boil volume. 60 minute boil with the usual hop additions. Cool, pitch and ferment.
The main differences will come to choice of ingredients, most significantly the grain bill and the choice of yeast.
Grain Bill
The grain bill plays an important part in the creation of an IPA. Commonly pale ale mat such as Maris Otter will make up the base. The use of caramalt and carapils can add a deeper flavour and more residual sugars which can help to promote hop flavour.
Typically a saison will use primarily Pilsner malt, this may be supported by crystal malts to add colour and some Vienna malt for added bready/biscuit flavours.
Yeast
Where the malt selection will shine in an IPA, yeast will define a saison. Yeasts such as Lallemand Belle Saison will add the spicy, peppery flavours typically associated with a saison. They will also ferment out most of the sugar giving a really dry, crisp finish.
Safale US-05 and Mangrove Jack’s M44 yeasts will promote malt and hop flavours, without contributing much flavour directly, perfect for a classic IPA.
You can learn more about brewing both an IPA and a Saison at our upcoming Brew Academy on 16th July. A last few earlybird tickets are available here.
