What hops to add?

[nhenson22]

Hi all,

i am going to make up the Best Of British IPA I picked up from Wilkos. Read on here that some did not find it was particularly hoppy so want to add some hops after fermentation.

First question is which hops would you recommend to add for this style of beer?
Also, how do I go about hopping, do I just chuck it in the FV or do I need to get a muslin bag?

 

[RobWalker]

any english aroma hops will be fine - goldings, fuggles, bramling cross... look here for a good list, but i'd suggest goldings as that's the famous british finishing hop.

http://www.britishhops.org.uk/british-hop-varieties/

 

[calumscott]

*waits to be stoned*

The big American hops that start with the letter "C".

Personal favourite is Chinook - tastes a bit like grapefruit. You could also look at the Australian Galaxy which is like passion fruit. Take a read through The Malt Miller's hop list and see what flavours tickle your fancy. Just be sure that it says that it is good for Aroma or specifically dry hopping. :thumb:

 

[rpt]

*waits to be stoned*

The big American hops that start with the letter "C".

Personal favourite is Chinook - tastes a bit like grapefruit. You could also look at the Australian Galaxy which is like passion fruit. Take a read through The Malt Miller's hop list and see what flavours tickle your fancy. Just be sure that it says that it is good for Aroma or specifically dry hopping. :thumb:

Won't be Best of British if you use American hops.

 

[calumscott]

Can't imagine it being best of much from wilko...

(Although I believe they are Muntons kits so actually should be pretty decent)

 

[oldjiver]

Simplest way would be hop tea. Put 10gm Goldings in a jar, add 500ml boiling water,and put on lid. Leave till cool then strain liquid through fine sieve onto finished beer just before bottling.

 

[nhenson22]

Thanks for the replies, I will have a look into those different hops. I do like a punchy american pale ale but since this is a British IPA I might stick to the British hops until I know a bit more about everything.

Simplest way would be hop tea. Put 10gm Goldings in a jar, add 500ml boiling water,and put on lid. Leave till cool then strain liquid through fine sieve onto finished beer just before bottling.

Presumably this is not dry hopping? What is the difference when dry hopping, would you say the hop tea is a better method?

 

[oldjiver]

Thanks for the replies, I will have a look into those different hops. I do like a punchy american pale ale but since this is a British IPA I might stick to the British hops until I know a bit more about everything.

Simplest way would be hop tea. Put 10gm Goldings in a jar, add 500ml boiling water,and put on lid. Leave till cool then strain liquid through fine sieve onto finished beer just before bottling.

Presumably this is not dry hopping? What is the difference when dry hopping, would you say the hop tea is a better method?

With dry hopping you are infusing the hops in cold beer which is less effective at extracting the aroma. Some say you are also risking infection by adding non sterilized ingredients. Hop tea has the advantage of using heat without the disadvantage of boiling which would disipate the aroma, it does not add bitterness so you do not upset the balance of the beer.

 

[nhenson22]

Thanks for the replies, I will have a look into those different hops. I do like a punchy american pale ale but since this is a British IPA I might stick to the British hops until I know a bit more about everything.

Simplest way would be hop tea. Put 10gm Goldings in a jar, add 500ml boiling water,and put on lid. Leave till cool then strain liquid through fine sieve onto finished beer just before bottling.

Presumably this is not dry hopping? What is the difference when dry hopping, would you say the hop tea is a better method?

With dry hopping you are infusing the hops in cold beer which is less effective at extracting the aroma. Some say you are also risking infection by adding non sterilized ingredients. Hop tea has the advantage of using heat without the disadvantage of boiling which would disipate the aroma, it does not add bitterness so you do not upset the balance of the beer.

Sounds like the hop tea is the best option then. There must be some benefits to dry hopping though, otherwise why would anyone do it?
One more thing, what exactly do the different alpha percentages mean, is higher stronger?

 

[fbsf]

Dry hopping gives a bit of flavour and a lot of aroma, whereas the hop teas tend to reverse that ratio, so more flavour and less aroma.

I quite like hop teas in my brews, but others aren't as keen.

If you really want to go for it, do a 20g hop tea and dry hop with the rest of the 100g pack :lol:

Also, don't forget that any big hop flavours will diminish with time in the bottle, so once it is conditioned, start drinking it if the hop flavour is key to you.

 

[calumscott]

Thanks for the replies, I will have a look into those different hops. I do like a punchy american pale ale but since this is a British IPA I might stick to the British hops until I know a bit more about everything.

Simplest way would be hop tea. Put 10gm Goldings in a jar, add 500ml boiling water,and put on lid. Leave till cool then strain liquid through fine sieve onto finished beer just before bottling.

Presumably this is not dry hopping? What is the difference when dry hopping, would you say the hop tea is a better method?

With dry hopping you are infusing the hops in cold beer which is less effective at extracting the aroma.

Not *quite* so. The whole point of dry hopping is to extract *different* aroma compounds. 90 or sixty minute boils will leave nothing much but alpha acid which gives the bitterness, 30 minute down to around 10 minutes will leave some of the more resilient flavour compounds. Hop teas, ultra-late additions and flameout hops will extract chemicals that need a bit of heat but are quite volatile but they will still lose the most volatile compounds. Dry hopping will put into solution chemicals that even that little time on the heat will drive off.

Some say you are also risking infection by adding non sterilized ingredients. Hop tea has the advantage of using heat without the disadvantage of boiling which would disipate the aroma, it does not add bitterness so you do not upset the balance of the beer.

If that were the case (and yes there are infection risks) why would a commercial brewery ever risk their income with dry hops?

Because the result is different...

 

[oldjiver]

I bow to your experience Calumscott, but surely the point of hop tea is that banging the lid on keeps the volatiles in the mixture, and retains them when the mixture is cool.?
Also regarding dry hopping infection, "some say" really means I dont know, but I have heard it!

 

[calumscott]

That's the trouble with volatiles - once you release them it's very hard to get them back in again...

...unless you steep in a container with no headspace you're going to lose them.

And yes, dry hopping does pose a risk but it's well worth it IMO.

 

[Rilers]

That's the trouble with volatiles - once you release them it's very hard to get them back in again...

...unless you steep in a container with no headspace you're going to lose them.

And yes, dry hopping does pose a risk but it's well worth it IMO.

Shirley by the time you are dry hopping there is enough alcohol in the brew to minimise / kill off the infection risk - presuming dry-hopping takes place after primary fermentation is complete.

I am serious and don't call me Shirley!

 

[calumscott]

It's all about reducing that risk. Dry hopping after fermentation means that there is still a dominant microbe (yeast) against which any "invader" would have to compete, there is little easy food (the yeast have eaten it all) and there is an antiseptic (ethanol) but it doesn't eliminate the risk.

 

[oldjiver]

I am serious and don't call me Shirley! :rofl:

 

[Duxuk]

The way I understand it is that hops contain alpha acids. These are bitter but not the bitterness of a bitter beer. To make it more bitter you heat the alpha acids and chemical changes occur creating iso alpha acids. This is where the bitter taste comes from. The greater the heat and the longer the time the more isomerisation occurs. This is why a late hopped beer loses it fresh taste after a few months, even though you store it at a lowish temperature, the chemical changes still occur. To counter this you get a mellowing effect with time so the bitterness does seem less and an older beer often seems to have a roundness to it's flavour.
So a hop tea will be more isomerised and hence more bitter than dry hopping with the same amount of hops. For a fresh, late hopped taste dry hopping is the way to go. If I was doctoring a kit I, too, would go half and half. Hop tea and dry hopping, since it's likely to be lacking in bitterness and freshness. Having said that I tried a kit brew in the recent "beer swap" and very much enjoyed it, so don't be discouraged in any way.
I agree with Calumscott that American "C" hops are where it's at, for my taste. I'm typing this in a state of "peace" having just drunk 500ml of a Cascade and Maris Otter SMASH at 1062 OG.
Who'd go to a shop for bottled beer? :thumb:

 

[rpt]

I wouldn't worry about an infection risk with dry hopping. The hops themselves are antiseptic so don't harbour many germs. Plus the alcohol and yeast helping too as already mentioned.

 

[RobWalker]

I wouldn't worry about an infection risk with dry hopping. The hops themselves are antiseptic so don't harbour many germs. Plus the alcohol and yeast helping too as already mentioned.

yup. and dried too, and mine are usually frozen, and if you're REALLY worried you could pour boiling water over them prior to adding them. but it literally won't get infected unless you're **** out of luck!

there are many methods, just try them and see which you like. like fbsf says, hop teas are better for flavour (I read the other day that 15 minutes is best for flavour with little bitterness,) and dry hopping better for aroma. see what works best for you, either way you're putting new hops in :thumb:

 

[nhenson22]

So a hop tea would be added just before bottling, yes?

What about dry hopping, at what stage would I do that, and do the hops need to be in a bag or something or can you throw them straight in?