# Experimental Hops



## spog (11/5/08)

evnin all, i read in the weekend aus newspaper about the latest cascade release' first harvest'.in the article it states that 3 experimental hop varieties have been used in this brew,they are, guy fawkes,mill line and strickland falls.
has anyone heard of these 'new hops' apparently never been used in a beer before......cheers...spog.....


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## kevo (11/5/08)

Report says that it should improve with time - my understanding was that hops fade with time rather than improving.

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story...5010800,00.html

Kev


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## dr K (11/5/08)

There was a great article in Beer and Brewer a few issues back that mentioned some of some new Tasmanian Hops.
Well worth supporting.


K


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## Darren (11/5/08)

dr K said:


> There was a great article in Beer and Brewer a few issues back that mentioned some of some new Tasmanian Hops.
> Well worth supporting.
> 
> 
> K




Hey K,

Is that the magazine or the hops?

Would be great to see some Aussie hop growers selling direct to homebrewers.

cheers

Darren


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## mika (11/5/08)

Not likely to happen, but I guess if enough people enquire about them at the LHBS, something might happen. Given Oz's small hop market I would have thought they would have been all contract grown or forward sold before they go in the ground.


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## sinkas (11/5/08)

Looks like they have dropped the price, I think ti was nearly $30 a sixer last year, 
and atleast the packaging makes it a little more obvious what its all about


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## brendanos (11/5/08)

I preferred the out-of-code batch from last year that I drank a few of than this years release. So I'd take their advice when they say to put some aside for a few months.


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## mfdes (12/5/08)

These are advanced selections from the HPA breeding trials. 
Not likely to ever be seen in the market for homebrewers. They may not ever even be released commercially, as Cascade use different hops for their First Harvest ale every year. Two of them are generic high-alpha selections from the POR / J78 parentage, if that means anything (the backbone of the Australian breeding program). 
The aroma selection they used is fantastic and has an aroma much like Spalt. I have 250g at home waiting to be brewed up into a few styles 

MFS.


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## Fourstar (19/5/08)

kevo said:


> Report says that it should improve with time - my understanding was that hops fade with time rather than improving.
> 
> http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story...5010800,00.html
> 
> Kev


The beer will imprve with time not the hop arome and flavor. much like a dark beer does.

Has anyone picked up a 6pack of this? Any good? I'll run past the local Dan's tonight and grab a 6er.


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## Fents (19/5/08)

had a sixer of this sat night whilst eating dumplings in the city. was quite impressive. thought i would of been smacked in the nose with hops but wasnt. more of a subtle aroma. nice balance between malt/hops for me. much nicer than any cascade i've ever had.


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## sinkas (19/5/08)

Tried this last week,
definitly the best in this annual serires I have tried.
Really a pretty good IPA ish feel to it, really tasty, and worth a sixer.


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## mfdes (19/5/08)

Interesting combination between an IPA and a pilsner, in my oopinion. Nice drinking and unlike most commercial beers fermented with a lager yeast, quite nice even when it warmed up.

MFS.


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## Kai (25/5/08)

kevo said:


> Report says that it should improve with time - my understanding was that hops fade with time rather than improving.
> 
> http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story...5010800,00.html
> 
> Kev



Drinking some right now, I'd concur with it improving other time as the crystal malt flavour seems quite prominent to me. Hops are quite herbal / grassy, I like the comparison to Spalt except it's nicer than any Spalt beer I've made. I can definitely see this beer maturing well; it's not a beer that exhibits distinct but ephemeral hop wallop. I like it. I don't think my case will last long enough to mature though.


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## Fourstar (27/5/08)

Well the 2 i had were quite good, good fresh but has potential to get better with some age. The 1st i overchilled and had to wait sometime for it to warm up. both were quite floral and as noted (second better as it was slightly warmer. Didnt get much of a slap in the face with a wall of hops which i was expecting.

Will put away 1 bottle to have every 3 months and see what she's like in 12.


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## dr K (28/5/08)

Surely the point of a brewery going to the extent and expense that their marketing blurb suggests, with a beer brewed on only one day and with a limit full stop of 4300 cases (screw all really) at $ 80 a slab..which by given the facts is actually a bargain though I digress, surely the point is to release this single day batch at its optimum, at its best by say 5:15 this afternoon !!
This is not a bier de garde we are talking but a fresh beer, a beer where freshness is what it is all about, and I will totally defer to the brew-masters at Cascade to decide when that is, thus when to release it.
I think they did a fine job thank you very much but I suspect that a bottle that I bought today and cellared for three months would show a significant degradation of the hop presense.

K


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## Kai (28/5/08)

So you liked the one you had at 5:15? I like the fact they've made a beer that exhibits some ageing potential and I think the hop profile will still be good a few months down the track. I think they've taken a stab at producing a hoppy beer that will keep a good malt-hop balance over the next half-year or so.

Guess I'd better buy some more to put my money where my opinions are.


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## mfdes (28/5/08)

For all you Hobartians and other Taswegians about, the next H.O.Ps meeting (next thu) will feature a VERY RARE keg of the 2007 First Harvest side by side with a keg of this years. I can tell you if you've not been to Cascade Brewery to sample it on tap (at their visitors centre), you've not lived 

MFS.


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## kevo (3/6/08)

Tried some of the '08 on the weekend, certainly not what i had expected, much more restrained as far as the hops go and had some port/red wine character to it I thought. 

I'll be buying more to put away for a rainy day. Much more enjoyable than the '07 I had.

If people are interested, there's a First Choice on the Gold Coast, at Burleigh with a fair amount of the the '07 release still on the shelf. Only 4 packs. 4 packs meaning packs of 4 rather than packs of 6.

Kev


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