How To Get More Hop Aroma ?

[deegee]

G'day All, Recently I've been using some extra finishing hops in my K & K brews, trying to get some real hop aroma into them, but with little success.
I've been using Morgans 12 gram "teabags". Tried boiling them for 5 minutes, then only two minutes, & recently I just poured boiling water over one, steeped it for ten mins & poured the "hop tea" into the fermenter with the K & K.

So far I have tried this with an ale using Goldings, a lager using Hallertau, and a pilsner using Saaz, and they all seem to come up with more hop flavour, but little or no aroma. The only one to have any aroma was the pils/saaz brew, and it was very slight. I don't want to increase the amount of hops because I'm already getting as much or more hop flavour as I want.

I wonder if most of the aroma is being driven out with the CO2 during fermentation, and have thought of dry-hopping late in the fermentation, but searches here show that some brewers on this site think that this could cause infections.

I know the basic theory of adding hops at different stages of the boil to get bittering, flavour, and aroma, but it just isn't working for me when it comes to the aroma bit.

One idea I'm considering is to just steep the pellets in very hot water, and mix the hop liquid in with the bulk priming just before bottling - any comments ??.

Any other suggestions on how to get some aroma without adding extra hop flavour, or risk of infection, would be welcome.

Cheers, Deegee.

 

[Guest Lurker]

The biigest problem is likely using teh hop tea bags. These are often not stored ina fridge at the HBS and may well be old. Also 12 g is a very small amount. To get the best aroma, buy a foil pack of 80 or 100 g out of a fridge from a reputable HBS/online supplier and you will likely get better quality hopd. Start by adding say 30 g to a 22 l brew. Steeping in hot water and adding late in fermentation is a good idea.

 

[bakkerman]

12 gram is not a lot of hop to add to a 23 liter batch.

Instead of using the teabags go to your LHBS an see what hop pellets they have.
Take 25 grams of Saaz or what ever takes your fancy, boil for a few minutes and strain.

Ad that to the wort, and I think you will find more aroma.

 

[razz]

G'day Deegee. Read the wiki on dry hopping. You should be able to dry hop without fear of infections. I use a s/s teaball and hop plugs. I do get more flavour that aroma. I think you need to use hops that a renowned for their aroma.

 

[bear09]

G'day Deegee. Read the wiki on dry hopping. You should be able to dry hop without fear of infections. I use a s/s teaball and hop plugs. I do get more flavour that aroma. I think you need to use hops that a renowned for their aroma.

What the others guys have said is spot on. I have done it and it has worked - however....

Adding hops to water and boiling for a short time seems to work but I have found that it induces a slightly harsh tone to the beer. the best way to get wonderful Hop Aroma is to bring your entire brew to the boil. After 1 min add a good lot of your fav aroma hop ( for me its Amarillo - just cant go past it for an APA ) and let it boil for 30 secs. Then - flameout. Put a lid on and let sit for 10 - 15 mins and then rapidly chill and ferment out. You will find that this imparts a wonderfully fresh hop aroma to your beer without the harsh tone of boiling up a few hops and then adding. Of course you may not have the time/tools for any of this but It is worth a go. And, you are bound to hear this often on this site.... Go to Partials and then All grain - you will never look back - kits are simply rubbish in comparison.

Cheers and good luck!

 

[Enerjex]

I would say to stay away from the 12g teabags. As mentioned above by some hops from a good hi volume retailer who has the latest season of the varieties and also tells you exact AA % and not just approx. I recommend the site sponsors I've had good experiences with both. As for dry hopping I usually dry hop 20g in a ss teaball, never had an infection. Dry hop your ales but for lagers add a large flameout addition as I've been advised against dry hopping lagers.

 

[mfdes]

I'd go with everything above. 1-1.5 g/L of hops at flameout (if you're boiling your kit up as you should be) or a hop tea of 1-1.5 g/L (i.e 20-30g for a 25L brew). Your hop choices look good for the styles. Dry hopping works very well for ales (just add the hops to the fermenter after fermentation stops and the yeast drops off), especially bitters and pale ales, just make sure your hops are fresh or have been stored properly. I find dry hopping lagers doesn't work for me, and I don't know of any commercial pilsner that is dry hopped. A hop tea or adding at flameout is best for these.

Cheers.

MFS

 

[warra48]

No need to worry about dry hopping causing an infection. Hops are a preservative. I have never heard of it causing any problems nor will you find any posts on this site from anyone reporting such a problem. It just doesn't happen.
Other than that, the advice above is all good.

 

[Enerjex]

Another thing to add in regards to the hop tea suggestions, you'll get a harsher grassier taste boiling hops in water, I recommend only boiling them in malt extract.

 

[deegee]

Thanks guys for your prompt and helpful replies. You may well be right to blame the teabags, at least for part of the problem. I think that some of them came from Big W where they were not in a fridge at all. They are in an airtight foil sachet, but they have no "best by" date on them, so who knows how old they are.

Re the quantity - I have been using a teabag or two boiled for 20 -30 minutes to offset the malt I'm adding to the kit, and this is giving me the bittering and hop flavour I'm looking for. It's just recently I started using another one right at the end to trying for some extra aroma, but not getting it.

Razz - Now that you mention it, I like the idea of using plugs, I did get some quite a while ago, and I remember thinking at the time how good they smelled. I just need to find a source and get some that are high in aroma and low BU.

Bear - I just don't have the gear to do a full boil, but I could try a quick boil with some or all of the added LME in about 5 or 6 litres of water, I have a pot big enough for that. I always use at least 50% malt for my added fermentables.
Funny that you should mention Amarillo, because I'm thinking of trying some in my next brew (or two) - see my post re JS Kit Clone just a few minutes ago. You might want to comment there too.
As for the rest of your advice --- I know all about you missionaries from AG trying to lure simple K&K brewers over to the dark side!!.

Enerjex - MFS & Warra - thanks, I will try the dry hopping and when I boil I will do it with some of my malt extract as mentioned above.

Thanks again - Deegee

 

[Enerjex]

Plugs or pellets will work well for you. It's not so much a case of finding some high in aroma and low in BU, it's more a case of using the right type for the brew you're making and adding them at the right time .

 

[deegee]

Yes I see what you mean - If they are added late, or dry you dont get any bittering - just a bit of flavour and some aroma.

 

[Ross]

Don't steep your hops in hot water. Just add straight to the fermenter as the krausen starts to die back or add to your secondary cube, if you use one. As other have said, get decent fresh hops that are properly sealed. Any half decent HBS/online retailer will give you good advice in what to add for the results you seek.

cheers Ross

 

[dicko]

Hi all,

I have found since using the renown "Ross Hop Bag" I add my aroma hops a minute or so before flame out and then remove the bag at flame out and this adds aroma without the hops "stewing " at the bottom of the kettle and adding more unwanted flavour than aroma.
For a K and K brewer what I would do is bring the malt additions to a low boil and use the above method then cool the result and add the can of goo and ferment as usual.

Cheers