Choosing hops: match or contrast?

[jezbrews]

So I'm looking to make a beer with blackberries and rye.

Apparently Cluster have a spicy, blackberry character, but would this be too much with blackberries and rye (which is a little spicy)? Should I try contrasting it with a hop with a different (although not clashing like citrus) aroma? It's going to be a darker beer so I feel tropical fruits and such would be just horrible.

 

[The Baron]

If its going to be a darker Ale/Beer I would stay with the English style hops or Cluster as you have suggested.
I have used rye malt many times and it is not as spicy as what I have read but just be aware large amounts of rye malt can cause a stuck mash. To combat this you can use Rice/Oat husks to give the mash some volume.
Ps if you are using large amounts of Blackberries the hops will just be mainly background to the fruit so that will have a bearing on your recipe choices

 

[jezbrews]

If its going to be a darker Ale/Beer I would stay with the English style hops or Cluster as you have suggested.
I have used rye malt many times and it is not as spicy as what I have read but just be aware large amounts of rye malt can cause a stuck mash. To combat this you can use Rice/Oat husks to give the mash some volume.
Ps if you are using large amounts of Blackberries the hops will just be mainly background to the fruit so that will have a bearing on your recipe choices

Thanks, I'll go with cluster. Rye is only 1/6th of the bill, so hopefully that won't happen.

As for large amounts of fruit, I'm undecided on the exact amount but I'm not a big fan of super fruity beers, I just want to give it blackberry notes, which I may have to ask about. I was going to purée and separate the juice from the fruit to prevent the bitterness of the skins (not a pleasant bitterness like with hops!) contributing. As for how much, I don't really know. That will be a second thread!