This recipe is… unique. While it does appear to be the average overly-hopped American Ale, it is the product of an odd experiment. For those who know me, you already know my weird obsession with algorithmic analysis. For those that do not, buckle up.

Over the last few weeks, I’ve been constructing a “Brew Bot.” Sadly, this is not a robot to automate the brewing process. Rather, it is a means of automating the recipe generation process based on different levels of randomness and user guided behavior. This recipe was a result of the weighted-random setting, which allows you to prefer certains grains, extracts, hops, and yeasts. The application will respect those preferences, and randomly assemble ingredients while aiming for the things you prefer. To this end, I selected ingredients commonly used for IPA-like recipes and spun the wheel of chaos. Here’s what I got:

• Grains
  • 3.5 lbs 2-row
  • 0.75 lbs Crystal 60L
  • 1.0 lbs Crystal 40L
• Extract
  • 3.5 lbs Rye Extract
  • 1.0 lbs Light Malt Extract
• Yeast
  • White Labs 001 – California Ale
• Hops
  • 0.75 oz Magnum (60 minutes)
  • 0.75 oz Cascade (30 minutes)
  • 1.25 oz Liberty (15 minutes)
  • 0.25 oz Willamette (10 minutes)

Respecting the infinite wisdom of weighted probability, I actually didn’t mess with the recipe as I had originally planned to. Even though it doesn’t “technically” meet the specifications of its style, I am more than happy to take the experimental results as is. I’m expecting something like the Rebel IPA Sam Adams released a few years ago. You’ll hear more soon.