Dark India Pale Ale Mk1( Kingsland Ale )

Is the title a Misnomer? I know its not a beer style so 'thank god, the freedom of brewing outwith style'!

 When i was around 14 years old or About a Thousand years ago(or so it seems). I read a book By Stephen King & Peter Straub Titled 'The Talisman'. Maybe you know it? It had a massive impact on my psyche and contributed towards my lifelong love of reading. There is a moment In the book where a wagonload of a fictional ale 'Kingsland Ale' is spilled across a mud road  much to the regret (albeit shortlived) of the cart driver.

 I have never forgotten the mind movie that unreeled in my brain through the words as all that beer spilled across the road and the nearest villagers became very drunk on the spilled barrels of beer with some bending to drink from horseshoe impressions in the muddy mire that the road had become. It's a powerful scene in the book and i would suppose that Stephen King or Peter Straub remembered it as well as they resurrected Kingsland ale in their next collaboration 'Black House' where it is brewed in this world  by a Biker gang who also happen to be the Brewers at the brewery at French landing, Wisconsin.

 If you are reading this and saying 'Eh?' i understand.

I am using the idea of Kingsland Ale as my inspiration for my next beer. In this instance i am going to dabble in the art of 'Dark IPA'. I could witter endlessly about the links in my head between the books Black House, Talisman, The Dark Tower series, Good Beer and many other apparently Randoms.

 I won't for two reasons. Firstly i might know some of you in the 'real world' so i wish to show no more of my mental instability than i absolutely have to and secondly, it would become boring quickly to all but a few of the scary people!

The bottom line is that i'd like to create a Dark IPA using the following ingredients and taking influence from the idea of a beer that never existed other than in two writers heads both of whom i have never met! Easy enough then, eh?

The idea is to end up with a beer that looks more like a stout than a pale IPA and it must have a decent but not overpowering malt backbone. I also wish to achieve a roast coffee element and huge tropical hop notes. If i can ferment the beer at the upper end of the scale i'll be happy with whatever esters i can get the yeast to throw The beer will have to keep its head to the bottom of the glass and it must be quaffable so it will be below 5%ABV.

Kingsland Dark Ale

Type: All Grain

Date: 21/11/2010

Batch Size: 8.00 gal

Boil Size: 9.63 gal
Boil Time: 90 min

  

Ingredients

2.00 kg Munich Malt
2.25 kg Pale Malt

1.25 kg Wheat Malt,
0.50 kg Caramel/Crystal Malt 
0.50 kg Caramunich Malt
0.20 kg Black Barley
0.20 kg Chocolate Malt

4.00 oz Hallertauer [6.80 %] (90 min) (First Wort Hop) 

2.00 oz Simcoe [13.00 %] (5 min) (Aroma Hop-Steep) 

2.00 oz Amarillo Gold [8.50 %] (5 min) (Aroma Hop-Steep)

1.50 oz Simcoe [13.00 %] (Dry Hop 7 days)

1.50 oz Amarillo Gold [8.50 %] (Dry Hop 7 days)
0.75 kg Sugar, Table (Sucrose)  10.14 %

2 Pkgs British Ale (White Labs #WLP005) Yeast-Ale

Est Original Gravity: 1.052 SG

Est Final Gravity: 1.015 SG 

Estimated Alcohol by Vol: 4.9 %
Bitterness: 73.3 IBU 

Est Color: 28.5 SRM

The above recipe is a first pass, i am deliberately keeping away from any Belgian influence in this beer tempting though it is with the wide range of grains and yeast available. I might throw in a couple of handfuls of naked oats as well to alter the mouthfeel.

While playing about in my head with the recipe i knocked up a first pass label. I'll post a bottle of the finished product to the person who can tell me the reference book for the label?