Surly Furious Clone WARS!

Here's a little tid bit of an update on a little tasting I did with my boy Kev.  We had both done the Surly Furious Clone recipe from Midwest Brew Supply.  Kevin did this as his first ever extract homebrew which is a pretty tough one with all of the hop additions.  I must say, for a first brew, it is a tasty beverage!  Mine was the all-grain version and I pretty much hit my temps, and everything from start to finish.  The results although similar to Furious, in no way are an exact clone.   I'd say that if you're going to try to brew this clone, use this one that Kristen England came up with that probably is more close to the actual one.  The Midwest Brew Supply kit comes close, but definitely falls short in about every catagory.   Here are the results as I remember them.  I got pretty hammered though cause Kevin had a growler of Angry Minnow's DIPA that kept my brain lubricated properly!

***Update....you can now get the recipe direct from the Brewer and from Northern Brewer.  Tastes and smells extremely similar to the real thing.  As close as you'll ever get!  

Surly Furious (actual)

• Dank pungent hops of citrus and pine.  
• Thick chalky mouthfeel upfront that makes you feel like your chewing on hop cones.
• Very dark reddish hue.
• Extremely bitter.

Extract Version

• Not quite as pungent of hops, but definitely there.  It's close.  Very close.  Almost smells like Juicy Fruit to me, which is either the hops, or possibly the Yeast at higher temps(?)
• The mouthfeel isn't really comparable, maybe due to the water source(NE MPLS), or the extract, or both.
• Dark reddish hue, but not as dark as the actual Furious which is surprising.  I expected it to be darker.
• Still pretty bitter.  Not as bitter as Furious though.
• A valiant effort for a first brew!  

All Grain Version

• Very pungent hops on the front end, similar to the actual furious.  Getting a little bit of the Juicy fruit that we tasted in the extract version.  
• The mouthfeel is a bit thinner then the actual Furious.  I mashed at around 152.  I can't imagine that Surly mash's higher then that for an IPA, but maybe that's the trick.  I'll probably try to mash thicker next time at around 156 or so.  Definitely thinner mouthfeel then the real deal though.  May be the water source which for me is (NE MPLS), and Surly is Brooklyn Center (chalky water).
• Dark orangish hue.  Much lighter then Furious.  This may be because my mash efficiency is lower then Surly's system.  Or it may be the clone recipe's isn't exactly spot on.
• Pretty Bitter, but not even close to the actual Furious. 

Learnings:  If your not a super hop head bitter freak, then you'd probably like The Midwest clone a little better then the actual Furious.  For the crazy bitter freaks though...the real deal is where it's at!  Or, up the bittering hops significantly if you buy the clone.


Fun times, and good brews!