Hops

[chappy71]

Hi Guys I am about to put down my 3rd brew just wondering the best way to introduce hops

 

[mr_tyreman]

pour them in

im not sure really, im a noob brewer

 

[manticle]

It depends on the brew. If you're doing a kit you possibly just want to add finishing hops which give a bit of flavour and aroma. In that case you can use the morgan's teabags (suggested by many that they're not particularly fresh) or hop pellets or fresh flowers.

If using pellets or flowers you can use a hop sock or you can chuck them straight in to a pot of malt and water you're boiling for 10 - 15 minutes or you can chuck them straight in the fermenter or you can make a hop tea (same as a cup of tea with the hops instead of tea) or you can add them when your brew is nearly done.

The latter will give lots of hop aroma which will dissipate over time. If you leave them in too long it may give grassiness.

If you're doing extract and need bittering hops you need to bring your malt and hops to the boil, add hops boil 30 mins add more hops, boil another 30 mins add more hops. If you do this you will need to calculate addition amounts and you can play with the times (could do 45 minute 15 minute and 10 minute) Basically longer gives more bitterness, mid gives more flavour, late gives more aroma so it's about finding the balance you want.

Hope that's clear. Ask if it isn't.

 

[Wisey]

when in the fermentor chuck in a Morgans teabag - it'll give you an idea whether you like them...... try cascade hops

 

[vanceonbeach]

Are you brewing kits or extract? If you're doing kits then you've got bittering hops in there already, maybe add a small amount as finishing hops for lovely aroma and a touch of flavour. It all depends on the style you want.

You could go the really easy route and buy one of those hop teabags that you steep before chucking in the fermenter. Someone will shout me down and say they are expensive and not very good but it's a very simple introduction. Or you could do a wee boil as a practice for future advetures in extract brewing on the road to partials and all grain.

 

[vanceonbeach]

crickey you've gotta be quick around here!

 

[Renegade]

Hi Guys I am about to put down my 3rd brew just wondering the best way to introduce hops

You have chosen a very interesting username ! There's a prolific chap here, (a minor celebrity known for his fervent use of dextrose) that you many get mistaken for.

Anyway, it's hard to answer your question quickly. There's lots of ways you can use hops. Generally if you boil them for an hour this will give you a lot of bittering, if you add them into your fermenter you will largely add aroma. In varying degrees between, you will add flavour, bitterness & aroma.

I hate to say this, but dude, do some reading ! Or at least tell us where youre at with homebrewing and what you wish to achieve. If youre doing kits by instruction, then the first way to change the character of your beer is to just through about 20 grams of pellets into your wort a few days after it starts fermenting.

 

[buttersd70]

Hi Guys I am about to put down my 3rd brew just wondering the best way to introduce hops

"Mr Goldings, Have you met Mr Fuggles? Mr Fuggles, this is Mr Goldings. I do believe you two gentleman have something in common. Perchance, if I may leave you to get aquainted, I'll get Jeeves to get some pink gin, what what?"

:blink:

A little CDF goes a long long way....

 

[chappo1970]

BTW Chappo71 welcome to the forum. Stick around and you'll learn heaps for good and bad brewing techniques. The best thing you can do for us to help you let us know where your at brewing wise, then we can help, yeah?

You have chosen a very interesting username ! There's a prolific chap here, (a minor celebrity known for his fervent use of dextrose) that you many get mistaken for.

Oh I doubt that Ren! THERE IS ONLY ONE CHAPPO!!!


Cheers

Chappo (the original one) :icon_drunk:

 

[Nick JD]

This is how I introduce hops in extract brews using unhopped malts. It works, but there's many other ways.

In a 5L pot, steep 300g of carapils grain for 30 minutes @ ~60 C (for head retention) and any other steepable grains for flavour or colour.

Remove grain and add hops in nylon bag (usually 15-30g, usually high Alpha Acid varieties) and boil for 45+ minutes, tasting as you go.

Add second bag with 20 minutes to go (often noble hops 15-25g). Add third bag with 3 minutes to go, and throw this one into fermenter (15-25g).

Then proceed as K&K brewing but using your 3L of boiling hopped grain steep instead of the plain boiling water. You'll never do a K&K again...

Buy good yeast that suits your brewing temperature.

 

[petesbrew]

Have a look in the knk sub forum for the hops spreadsheet.
It'll give you an idea on what hops to use with which beer.

So many flavours out there, if you choose the wrong one, it could be like putting tomato sauce on your cornflakes.

edit: welcome to the forum!

 

[chappy71]

Hi Guys thanks for the quick responses, I am just basically using a can, I have just put down the cascade Golden Harvest but want to start experimenting with more flavours.

 

[Cocko]

Hey Chappo71,

Welcome aboard.

The first thing to understand about what hops will give to your beer is to understand how to utilise them... and that is to boil them. Different boil time produce different attributes to your brew.

To fully utilise the hops during the boil it is best done in a liquid that is of a SG about 1040. To reach this SG mix about 100g of Dry Malt per Litre of water...

So for example:

Next brew you wanna try some EK goldings flavour and Styrian Goldings for aroma...

Take about 5L of water - put it in a pot.
Add 500g of dry malt.
Bring to the boil.... So we are gonna boil for half an hour!
So, once at the boil add x amount of EK Goldings [This is a 30 minute addition]
Then counting backward to the turn off.....
AT 5 minutes [To go, as in 25 minutes has passed] add x amount of styrian....
SO 5 minutes later turn the pot off.

Then add this greeny soupy shit to your mix up with your can of goo and other sugars etc....

I hope this makes sense and helps!

[like a flick knife he pulls out the butters graph!]

View attachment 29093


:icon_cheers:

 

[JaffaMan]

To fully utilise the hops during the boil it is best done in a liquid that is of a SG about 1040. To reach this SG mix about 100g of Dry Malt per Litre of water...

Great, thanks, thats something I needed to know.
Going to do my first hop boil as soon as my package in the mail arrives (cant wait).
Wasent quite sure why the recipe said to put 500g LDM in boil first.

 

[Cocko]

Yep, a great inside secret.. don't tell anyone

Also remember this when you start doing partials as well!!


Glad I could help!

 

[Wisey]

Cocko: say I want to add a hop late flavour to a nearly fermented beer - is there a method for this without adding too many fermentables?

Its just that I once got terrific flavour out of some cascade hops, and I cant seem to replicate it - and Im not real sure on what I did to get that sort of flavour?

Cheers
Matt

 

[manticle]

You don't have to add any fermentables when adding hops. You can use a coffee plunger and make a hop tea to add to the brew or use a hop sock with hop pellets into the fermenter or you can dry hop by adding them straight in. If you add them straight in then don't leave too long as it can lead to grassiness. After a few days of dry hopping (adding straight in) either rack or bottle.

 

[Wisey]

To get good flavour with a coffee plunger, would you steep for 10 or 20 mins?

 

[manticle]

To be honest I'm not sure it would make a massive amount of difference. You're not boiling so it won't add much to IBU and a lot of it will just be aroma. Maybe try splitting the difference - make a tea and add half then 10 mins later add the rest. Plunge, cool slightly and pour in.

 

[RdeVjun]

Doesn't really matter, I've always thought that as its cooling (not boiling) then steeping it longer rather than shorter.

As an aside, I recently added the styrian dregs from a hop tea (plugs, not pellets) to a TTL-esque boil at 20 minutes- no results yet but I guess it'll be a hint more flavour. It just seemed to be such a waste tipping it out when it was just so aromatic :icon_drool2: ... Could be a silly thing, but there's only one way to find out!