I visited my buddy in MN not long ago, and we had a few (Many) "Todd the Axe Man"s from Surly Brewing. Delicious, with over-the-top Citra & Mosaic hopping. Anyone have a good all grain recipe?
My buddy sent me a couple of cans, and I used this recipe on the site to brew it:
It turned out surprisingly close, lots of tropical fruit aromas, but a little less bitter. Next time I'm going to bump up the Warrior boil addition, leaving all other additions as they are. Mine is on the right in the photos.
I was surprised by how much hop debris was floating in the Surly though:
I'm surprised Axman isn't at least a little clearer, it's not filtered but they have a centrifuge. Kinda looks a little rough. It might just be dredges from the bottom of the can.
So I tried my own variation of the recipe, in an effort to get rid of the hop debris.
I used Great Western pale malt vs. Golden Promise, did FWH with the Warrior, but no dry hopping at all. As you might expect, there is a different hop note, but there is no debris, which was my primary goal- chunks floating in your beer is a turn off to me.
Although mildly different, this beer still has a kick (1068) and that great Citra/Mosaic flavor & aroma. I'm considering using Whirlfloc in the next batch, because I just don't see why not have a clear beer.