Case of the Clumps Hazy IPA - 21C

August 15, 2026

Intro
Hazy IPA Common Methods
Case of the Clumps Hazy IPA Recipe Logic
Hop Bouquets
Case of the Clumps Hazy IPA Recipe
Resources

This is a recipe AND PROCESS! for a hazy IPA that does not assume you have a centrifuge. Hazy IPAs are particularly delicate beers. It’s said, “Try a brewery’s pilsner to see how good of a place it is.” Well, that’s actually quite true of a brewery’s hazy, probably even moreso. Many breweries have fallen off the hazy bandwagon after facing mixed results.

Here you'll hopefully find a more complete guide to brewing the classic Hazy IPA, with a little bit of why-do-this. It highlights common methods taken in creating well-executed hazies. Because this style is so new and evolving, the general pulse seems these methods are less applied or understood around the community. The intended outcome leans conservative in hopping rates and adjunct usage to provide a strong basis to adjust from. It will also share some process recommendations to improve hop brightness, and mitigate common pitfalls such as cases of the clumps, cases of glitter, and cases of the milkshakes and more.

What kind of haze are we talking? The type that are indeed hazy: softer mouthfeel, and of course intense fruity aroma and flavor derived from lots of hops. "Hazy" is often used interchangeably with "juicy," which hazies are. But this is not to be confused with the less bitter American IPAs that incorporate juicy brewing methods, which are also juicy but may or may not be hazy. These versions are seem to be starting to be called Juicy IPA or Modern IPA.

The delicacy of a proper hazy IPA requires a bit of...finesse. This is not a pitch it and forget it, routine, forgivable beer. Weldwerks Brewing puts it best in their motto: "Dialed-In Beer." There are few right or wrong answers, and much comes to personal preference, trial and error, and "I heard that if..." brewing technique.

However, there are a few common themes from many sources that move the needle on making a good example of the style. This list is intended to be a good starting point to consider and highlight less routine brewing practices. (a future post can expand on these points!)

Hazy IPA Common Methods

Target 2:1 chloride-to-sulfate ratio. Unless you know your water chemistry, use RO or distilled water. Use calcium chloride to target 150-180 ppm chloride. Use gypsum (calcium sulfate) to target about 50-80 ppm sulfate. Increasing calcium chloride increases softness, increasing gypsum increases dryness.
Modest usage of adjuncts, especially for the first time. ~20% of the grist will be flaked wheat, rolled oats, and malted wheat split evenly. This will create an approachable body and mouthfeel – not over-the-top, also not clear. These malts interact with hop polyphenols to create haze and the soft mouthfeel, but increasing amounts increase the risk of clumping and overly-thick beers.
Modest usage of hops, especially for the first time. Excessive hopping can leave that undesirable bitterness in the beer (hop burn) and contribute to haze instability (clumping).
Multi-step flameout/hop stand additions. As wort temperature decreases after boiling, more volatile hop compounds are infused, and isomerization decreases.
Dry hop contact time. After dry hopping, limit contact time on beer to 3 days maximum. Ensure a low-risk way to remove hops from the fermenter, such as using a muslin or nylon bag.
Dry hop temperature for the final aromatic charge. Lower to cold crash (~37°F), or try around 50°F. The lower-than-ambient temperature is known to extract more desirable fruity hop aromatics, whereas ambient temperature can extract more grassy, vegetal character, especially if contact time exceeds around 3 days.
Cold crash. Lowering the temperature before packaging gets the easy yeast, hops, and polyphenol-protein complexes to precipitate. Better to drop these in a fermenter than in the keg.
Dissolved oxygen management. For most homebrew setups without advanced closed systems or other creative setups, there are known tradeoffs to exposing beer to oxygen. Hazy IPAs are particularly susceptible to dissolved oxygen due to the delicate hop compounds and suspended polyphenol-protein complexes (haze) that make or break the beer.

- No splashing on post-fermentation transfers – ensure auto siphon has a good seal because they sometimes pull air at the bottom of the racking cane.
- No splashing when adding or removing dry hops.
- Consider purging your fermenter with CO2 before and after opening it if fermentation has stopped.
- Purge the keg with CO2 before transferring in.
- After transferring into the keg, pressurize and depressurize the keg numerous times before holding pressure for carbonation.
- Drink the beer quickly if you’re concerned about high DO levels - before detrimental effects can happen in the first place. Making reasonable tradeoffs is the game of life.

Case of the Clumps Hazy IPA Recipe Logic

Fermentables

Some malt complexity, with lightly kilned malts, is desirable in these beers to at least minimally support the heavy hop load. In the BJCP, "Absence of any malt character is a fault." For this recipe, pilsner and pale ale malts will split the base. Pilsner is the "plain" base, pale ale will slightly boost color and add increased malt character - the two play off each other.

Adjuncts and malted wheat target about 20%. Equally split 3-ways with malted white wheat, flaked wheat, and rolled oats. Each boosts varying levels of protein and beta glucans for the hop polyphenols to bind to - creating the haze and pillowy sensation.

Proximity Body Builder is similar to a regular dextrin malt. It is designed specifically to help boost mouthfeel and body in hazy IPAs, as well as brighten color at 8L. The recipe uses 5% Body Builder.

Many hazy IPAs incorporate plain old sugar, or dextrose. After all this work on building body and mouthfeel, one reason for a sugar shot is to thin the beer out, providing some simple fermentables without excess malt. This helps with drinkability - a card taken from mass lagers.

Hop Bouquets

The recipe is available in the following bouquets. All the same process - hops split 1/3 each addition. Magnum, however, is used in a 60 minute boil to get about 35 IBU - the remaining IBU coming from hop stands.

Juicy Bits: (A) Citra, (B) El Dorado, (C) Mosaic
- Great to compare alongside the great Juicy Bits. Choosing this hop combo comes close to rendering this recipe a clone. Recognizable hops. Proven.
- Bright citrus, mango, berry. Typical juicy characters.
Wild Beach Party: (A) Strata, (B) Azacca, (C) Sabro
- Strata has a fun weed-like note. Sabro has a fun coconut note. Azacca brought the mangoes and pineapples. It's an out of control, wild beach party.
- Cannabis, coconut, strawberry, mango, papaya
Two Kiwis and a Talus: (A) Nectaron, (B) Talus, (C) Motueka
- Nectaron is most assertive with intense passionfruit and peach. Talus plays well in the middle, bringing tropical fruit and herbal qualities. Motueka adds a nice lime touch.
- Passionfruit, peach, grapefruit, lime, rose, sage
Build Your Own Party: (A) ?, (B) ??, (C) ???
- At checkout, select "Build Your Own Hop Bouquet" using this base recipe and suggested yeasts. Add the kit, and shop your own hops in the store.
- Don't forget - this option drops Magnum too!
- Choose complementary hops with slightly different descriptors.
- Adjust ratios to dial up or down desirable traits. Juicy-geared hops usually benefit from having friends in the mix - they can become one dimensional on their own.

Hop Additions - Hop Stand

Mentioned above, hops need to be handled in ways to deliver the attributes we're actually looking for. Hazy IPAs seek to capture the volatile compounds that are typically boiled off on more typical beers. This can be achieved by not boiling those hops!

This recipe includes a 40 minute hop stand - a period where wort is held in the kettle following the boil, but not yet cooled to fermentation temperature. Three hop charges are taken during the hop stand, each following a temperature reduction. This sequence is recommended as the wort needs to be cooled anyway, and the progressive lowering of wort temperature enables the volatile compounds to be better infused into the wort than simply allowing the wort temperature to fall ambiently and remaining just under boil.

.3 oz of each hop at flameout, no temperature intervention, 40 minute hop stand
.5 oz of each hop, target wort temperature 180°F, 30 minutes
.7 oz of each hop, wort temperature 170°F, 20 minutes
Then cool to fermentation temperature

A schedule like this quickly drifts into art, theory, and preference. However, it does mimic commercial practice better and helps close that process gap. In many setups, craft brewers pump boiled wort from the kettle to an uninsulated whirlpool vessel, where the hop stand additions are made. The wort loses more temperature in this process than a pot of homebrew sitting on a stove. It's not the "correct" way to brew - but noteworthy that (1) the temperature drop matters for hop stands and (2) trub falls out and isn't transferred to the fermenter.

Hop Stand - Dry Hop Balance

One way that's helpful to approach hopping rates and timing is starting with balancing hop stand and dry hop volumes. In this example, 3 oz of each flavor/aroma hop is used in the recipe, for 9 oz total (plus .3 oz Magnum). The hop stand receives 1.5 oz of each hop, and the dry hop receives 1.5 oz of each hop. 3 oz is actually conservative for the style. "Aggressive fruitiness" comes from both shifting the balance to the dry hop additions, and increasing hopping rates. 4 ounces of each hop is very reasonable in a recipe like this.

Hop Additions - Biotransformation Dry Hopping

Two dry hop additions will be made: biotransformation and aroma. Biotransformation is a really big word that describes the interaction of live yeast and hops. This hop charge is best made at the tail end of primary fermentation so as to reduce the level of aromatics that are scrubbed out with the fermentation CO2 release. Certain yeasts have the capability to take hop oils and convert them into compounds that are perceived to be juicy or fruity. One of the more commonly referenced ones is taking geraniol, an oil present in hops, and convert it into β-citronellol. As it sounds, this compound is perceived as citrusy.

Biotransformation can happen quickly. Extraction of desirable compounds from hops is done within 2-3 days. But there are also compounds we don't want getting into the beer. As contact time goes on, elements such as myrcene (grassy and vegetal) and excess polyphenols (bitter, sharp), continue to be absorbed into the beer especially at ambient temperatures. When hops go in the beer, there should be a plan to get them out.

Hop Additions - Aroma Dry Hopping

The aroma dry hop charge will take place after final gravity has been achieved for three days. At this point, we can begin the cooling process. There's a lot of preference of dry hopping at certain temperatures for ideal aromatics, so there's no correct answer. However, there is more consensus to reduce temperature at least slightly down from the ambient 65-70°F. This is because less desirable compounds (myrcene) are known to be have an increased extraction rate at higher temperatures. Try dry hopping at 50°F for 2-3 days. Cold crashing to 37°F seems to provide very clean extraction, though known to be more "narrow" - some compounds get left behind.

Whatever temperature you decide on, after this round of dry hops are removed, maintain a cold crash temperature of 37°F for at least two days before kegging. This time allows for flocculation and hop matter to fall out.

Yeast

Yeast strains are about as experimental as hops in hazy applications. Originally, English strains were prized for their ester forming benefits, as well as their biotransformation abilities that are more muted on traditional American strains. Certain Kveik strains also have the genetics to post esters and desirable biotransformation interactions. Cultivating yeast strains with these qualities has become a focus of the industry. For this recipe, these yeasts are recommended:

Safale S-04 English Ale Yeast: Classic English strain - high in desirable esters. Commonly used for this style. It can flocculate more.
LalBrew New England American East Coast Ale: Dedicated to the haze and ester mission. Prominent tropical and stone fruit esters.
LalBrew Pomona Modern Hybrid IPA Yeast: Bred to produce stone fruit and tropical esters and challenging fermentations.
LalBrew Voss Kveik: Produces citrus-forward esters best when fermented in the upper 90s-low 100s. Achievable down to the upper 80s as well.
Omega Espe Kveik - OYL-090: Produces tropical and stone fruit esters optimally in the low-mid 90s, though still performs well in lower temperatures.
Omega British Ale V - OYL-011: Ester-forward and haze stable.
Omega DIPA Ale - OYL-052: Prized for its pineapple and stone fruit esters. Helps maintain haze.

Case of the Clumps Hazy IPA Recipe

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Fermentables

Hops

Magnum bittering, then any combination of 3 hops (ABC) from above in equal additions.

.3 oz Magnum, boil - 60 minutes
.3 oz each hops ABC - hop stand - 40 minutes, ~204°F
.5 oz each hops ABC - hop stand - 30 minutes, ~180°F
.7 oz each hops ABC - hop stand - 20 minutes, ~170°F
.5 oz each hops ABC - dry hop - late primary - 2 days, fermentation temperature
1 oz each hops ABC - dry hop - aromatic - 2 days, ~50°F

Yeast

LalBrew New England American East Coast Ale
- Option: Safale S-04 English Ale Yeast
- Option: LalBrew Pomona Modern Hybrid IPA Yeast
- Option: LalBrew Voss Kveik
- Option: Omega Espe Kveik - OYL-090
- Option: Omega British Ale V - OYL-011
- Option: Omega DIPA Ale - OYL-052

Water

Recommended simple profile. Salts not included. Chloride: 160ppm. Sulfate: 70ppm. Calcium: 120ppm. (7 gallons is tight or just short for a 6 gallon boil)

	7 gallons	8 gallons
Calcium Chloride	8.8 grams	10.1 grams
Gypsum	3.3 grams	3.8 grams

Brewer's Friend Recipe - tech specs, copy and modify

Process

Have hops A, B, and C selected.
Treat 7 or 8 gallons of RO or distilled water with calcium chloride and gypsum from table above.
Do a single infusion mash with fermentables except corn sugar for 40 minutes at 155°F.
Collect about 6 gallons of wort in the kettle - the recipe target is 5.5 kettle gallons post 60-minute boil.
Add .3oz of Magnum, boil for 60 minutes.
Add 6oz of corn sugar for the last 20 minutes of the boil, ensure mixed well.
Turn off heat source after the 60 minute boil. Add .3oz each of hops ABC. Hold for 40 minute hop stand.
Lower wort temperature to about 180°F. Add .5oz each of hops ABC. 30 minute hop stand.
Lower wort temperature to about 170°F. Add .7oz each of hops ABC. 20 minute hop stand.
Lower wort temperature to fermentation temperature.
Nearing post-primary fermentation, add .5oz each of hops ABC. Remove after 2 days.
After final gravity has been maintained for 3 days, lower beer temperature to 50°F. Note: For typical setups, empty the airlock and keep it dry as beer temperature drops - the fermenter will pull a vacuum/suckback. When the temperature stabilizes, replace liquid with preferably clear spirit (if more suckback occurs, vodka is neutral and reduces contamination risk). Consider purging fermenter headspace with CO2 when replacing airlock liquid.
Once beer temperature is 50°F, dry hop with 1oz each of hops ABC. Remove after 2 days, and lower beer temperature to 37°F. Refer to Note in step 12.
Hold beer temperature at 37°F for two days.
Rack beer into the keg. Carbonate to 2.5 CO2 volumes.
Drink fresh!