Third Brewing

First,  Let me start off by saying that I originally intended for my next post to be about my second batch of beer, a red ale I've renamed Sekhmet Red in honor of the Egyptian Goddess. 
However, after sampling a bottle a couple of weeks ago, I decided to wait until it had a chance to cold condition a little further.  There was a slight cider taste, and I've heard that a little more time cold-conditioning will often help with that.  Apparently, it has something to do with the table sugar that is used in each batch.  If the extra time does have an impact, I anticipate a delicious brew!

Worth Reading if you really love beer!

So this post is about brewing my third batch of beer.  Since my last batch, I've started reading a fantastic book called Tasting Beer by Randy Mosher (Find a review here).  It is quite a comprehensive book, and at times, it's a bit like learning chemistry.  However, if you are interested in beer, and brewing beer.  It is worth reading.
At any rate, I decided to branch out this time, and try my own recipe for something different.  My goal was to put together a decent tasting I.P.A. as I've become quite enthralled with "hoppier" beers.  I looked at a few of the recipes on the Mr. Beer site, and consulted their online forum to get some suggestions from more experienced brewers.  Here's what I finally came up with:
1 can HME (Hopped Malt Extract) American Devil IPA
1 can UME (Unhopped Malt Extract) Pale Export
1 package (2oz) Brewers Yeast
1 oz. Centennial Hops
1/2 package Booster (adds body and alcoholic content).

With any luck, this will produce a quality pale ale, with a somewhat stronger flavor of hops.  The key to hops is in the boiling.  I've learned that the boil time for hops can produce a variety of different results.  For example,  an exceedingly long hop boil, will increase the IBU's (Individual Bitterness Units: this is how they measure the contribution of bitterness to the beer).  Less time will impart the flavor of the hops into the beer, and even less time, or adding hops after the boil (known as dry hopping), will contribute to the aroma.  For this particular batch, I concentrated on the last two elements.  I took one portion of the hops, and boiled it for approximately 15 minutes.  I also added a sack of the hops after the fact, to increase the aroma of the hops in the beer.  With any luck, I will have a tasty I.P.A. in a little over a month.