What’s the Correct Temperature for Mashing IPA (Tried and Tested Temp) 

Until recently, I’ve always followed tried and tested recipes from homebrewing books and websites. Earlier this year I decided to start experimenting and try to develop my own IPA recipe.

As most homebrewers know, a beer’s taste, appearance and mouth feel depend on a combination of factors including the grain bill (mix of malts used), variety of hops and when they are added, as well as the mash temperature.

For my early attempts, I decided to stick to a proven selection of malts and then experiment with different types of hops. This led me to think about what is the best mash temperature for making IPA.

I compared more than eighty different recipes and found that the most popular mash temperature for IPA is between 65 and 67ºC (149 – 153 Fahrenheit). Most English IPA recipes recommend a mash temperature of 65ºC (149 Fahrenheit) whereas the majority of American IPA recipes favour 67ºC (153 Fahrenheit).

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The origins of IPA

IPA (India Pale Ale) is probably the most popular style of craft beer. The style was developed during the nineteenth century as a way to preserve beer that was shipped to British troops overseas (mostly to India).

The most popular beers in the UK at the time were pale ales and porters. Unfortunately, these beers weren’t suited to being stored at higher temperatures and by the time they arrived in India, they had gone off.

British brewers found that if they added more hops to pale ale, it would survive the journey intact. To offset the excessive bitterness caused by the extra hops, they also added more malt. This not only helped balance out the hops but also increased the alcohol content, also helping preserve the beer.

The new India Pale Ale style of beer was so popular among the troops that soldiers continued ordering it when they returned home.

During the American craft beer revolution of the 1980s, US brewers began reinterpreting traditional IPAs and developed a whole range of styles. Different strains of hops and brewing techniques such as dry hopping have brought a whole new mix of flavours and appearances to IPA.

Extra hops are no longer synonymous with bitter as brewers have developed recipes which bring out citrus, fruity and pine flavours. Today, more than just a style, IPA is a diverse subset of beers.

Effect of mash temperature on IPA

Last month I wrote a post discussing the effect that mash temperature has on the taste and alcohol content of beer.

In that article, we saw that the optimum temperature for single-step infusion mashing is between 63ºC and 70ºC (145-158 Fahrenheit).

We said that mashing between 63 and 65ºC (145-159ºF) yields more fermentable sugars and produces a beer with a dryer taste and higher alcohol content. Whereas mash temperatures between 66 and 68ºC result in more long-chain sugars and a fuller-bodied ale.

Most IPAs fall somewhere in the middle as far as mouthfeel and alcohol content are concerned, so it makes sense that the best mash temperature lies in the middle of this range.

The fact that most of the English IPA recipes listed below recommend a mash temperature of 65ºC (149ºF) and most American IPA recipes recommend 67ºC (154ºF) is probably just a coincidence. Either temperature will work well for any style of IPA.

I don’t think that a two-degree temperature difference is really noticeable in the taste of the finished beer. The differences between the different IPA styles are due to the types and quantities of hops used, when they added and the grain bill.

Recommended mash temperature for IPA

This table shows the recommended mash temperature for eighty-seven different IPA recipes.