Dry Hopping With Target

[Dazza_devil]

G'day Brewersr,
I've got some Target pellets left over from the boil but not sure if it's worth using 25g or so to dry hop for a week in the primary. The brew is in the style of a Robust Porter with chocolate and roasted barley flavours. Would it be too much out of style, too much aroma? I used 25g Target pellets for a ten minute addition and another 20g at flameout for flavour and aroma, along with a 60 min boil using 25g for bitterness. This is my first encounter with the Target hop and I wish to familiarise myself with all of it's characteristics and perhaps showcase it's potential in the style of a Robust Porter.
What do you reckon?

 

[mwd]

I was thinking you can dry hop with any old hop you have lying around if it's aroma and not flavour you are looking for.

I have dry hopped with a few different hops but they all smell the same to me I could not tell the different brews apart using aroma alone.

So maybe you can use up all the dregs of hops in store for dryhopping for aroma only. :unsure: If that makes any sense at all. :excl:

 

[bum]

Are you a smoker by any chance, TB?

Boagsy, my understanding is that Target is considered a good bittering hop with "acceptable" aroma qualities. If you like it use it.

 

[Dazza_devil]

The pellets didn't seem to have a lot of aroma about them and were definitely not as pleasantly aromatic as the Cascade I used in my last brew.

 

[mwd]

Non smoker.

I was under the impression that dryhopping ads next to nothing in taste mostly aroma.

 

[bum]

I was referring to this:

I have dry hopped with a few different hops but they all smell the same to me I could not tell the different brews apart using aroma alone.

I am far from being expert in identifying specific hops but I can tell very clear differences between beers based on aroma - sometimes even moreso than flavour (ignoring flavours imparted by grain bill).

I apologise if my original statement came across a little aggressive. I'm not having a go.

 

[Dazza_devil]

This brew could have a fair amount of aroma from the grains. Perhaps a reason why Robust Porters and Stouts have little hop aroma, maybe?

 

[mwd]

Not sure that's why I put the original theory.

I have dryhopped Amarillo, Cascade, Bramling Cross and Saaz B and would have very little success in picking a brew on AROMA alone. Bearing in mind the aroma fades in time. And the memory fades quicker if you don't label the bottles. :huh:

Hop aroma just smells like hop aroma to me I could not pick Fuggles pellets from Challenger in a blind aroma test. Still need the labels on the packets.

I also doubt 99.9% of people can name a hop from aroma alone.

Would be a good test in a brewing competition. Just like Masterchef name that ingredient.

 

[bum]

There are a very few hops I could pick with some degree of certainty based on aroma alone but even beers I can't identify the hop for I can tell smell different from other beers and identify differing qualities in aroma. I agree completely that I cannot tell the difference between pellets based on aroma (but then I've only purchased 3 hop varieties so far (and one of them is still sealed)).

 

[kabooby]

Dryhopping does add flavour to a beer aswell as aroma.

If you want to use target, get a few pellets and warm them up in your hands, squash them a little bit to release some aromatics and have a smell.

If you like the smell and think it will go well in your beer than give it a go.

Kabooby

 

[MHB]

I love Target; its my first choice for bittering most anything British. Save the target for that and use something with a better aroma for dry hoping.

If you have bits and pieces of left over hops, combine them, just work out a weighted average alpha and use that in your calculations.

MHB

 

[DR.RELAX]

of the hops ive used i cant tell the difference in aroma when they are in pellet form except for nelson sauvin which reeks of passionfruit and i have to admit of the hops ive dry hopped with(fuggles,styrian,amarillo,cascade,sauvin)the cacade and the sauvin are the only ones i find noticable.

rob

 

[Dazza_devil]

Subjectively speaking, the Target pellets have a pleasant aroma on closer inspection. Perhaps my original way of thinking was the way to go with this brew. The Target pellets being light on aroma may be suited to a Robust Porter when used for bitterness and aroma. It turns out there was 22g left so I put them in the primary enclosed in a hop bag.
Cheers.