Pilsner - Hop Schedule

[Frank]

I am starting to plan next weeks brew and am planning to do a Czech Pilsner.
I was wondering if anyone has any strong suggestions to the best order to add Saaz hops.
I currently have 90g of each of the following:
B Saaz (flowers)
D Saaz (pellets)
Czech Saaz (pellets)
I don't need to get too carried away by using all hop varieties, but this is what I have so far.

The recipe so far is (50L), 26.6 IBU:
10kg Pilsner (Wey)
40g B Saaz 6.8% 60min
40g Czech Saaz 4.0% 40min
40g D Saaz 4.4% 20min
40g B Saaz 6.8% 5min
25g Czech Saaz 4.0% Dry hop
Wyeast 2278 (4L starter)
Pitch at 20 C, ferment at 12 C.

This is my first lager, so don't expect to nail it the first time, but would like to come close.

 

[MCT]

I am starting to plan next weeks brew and am planning to do a Czech Pilsner.
I was wondering if anyone has any strong suggestions to the best order to add Saaz hops.
I currently have 90g of each of the following:
B Saaz (flowers)
D Saaz (pellets)
Czech Saaz (pellets)
I don't need to get too carried away by using all hop varieties, but this is what I have so far.

The recipe so far is (50L), 26.6 IBU:
10kg Pilsner (Wey)
40g B Saaz 6.8% 60min
40g Czech Saaz 4.0% 40min
40g D Saaz 4.4% 20min
40g B Saaz 6.8% 5min
25g Czech Saaz 4.0% Dry hop
Wyeast 2278 (4L starter)
Pitch at 20 C, ferment at 12 C.

This is my first lager, so don't expect to nail it the first time, but would like to come close.

Looks good. I would use most of the Czech saaz in the later additions, and the higher aau% early on for the bittering if you want a Czech style pilsner.
But I'd be more inclined to use the B Saaz flowers later and get the full flavour/aroma you get from flowers. Might not be a true Czech pilsner but I reckon it'd be bloody nice.

BTW I'm drinking a Czech pils I did with 100% Czech Saaz right now and it's great!

 

[Duff]

I am starting to plan next weeks brew and am planning to do a Czech Pilsner.
I was wondering if anyone has any strong suggestions to the best order to add Saaz hops.
I currently have 90g of each of the following:
B Saaz (flowers)
D Saaz (pellets)
Czech Saaz (pellets)
I don't need to get too carried away by using all hop varieties, but this is what I have so far.

The recipe so far is (50L), 26.6 IBU:
10kg Pilsner (Wey)
40g B Saaz 6.8% 60min
40g Czech Saaz 4.0% 40min
40g D Saaz 4.4% 20min
40g B Saaz 6.8% 5min
25g Czech Saaz 4.0% Dry hop
Wyeast 2278 (4L starter)
Pitch at 20 C, ferment at 12 C.

This is my first lager, so don't expect to nail it the first time, but would like to come close.

Way too many flavours there for a Pilsener.

Keep your B Saaz for a LC Bright Ale style, your D Saaz combined with Cascade for APA's, and the Czech Saaz for Pilsener.

Go for something like 60, 40, 20, flame out additions. OG around 1.050, IBU's around 35 - 40 depending on taste.

 

[Zwickel]

Way too many flavours there for a Pilsener.

Keep your B Saaz for a LC Bright Ale style, your D Saaz combined with Cascade for APA's, and the Czech Saaz for Pilsener.

Go for something like 60, 40, 20, flame out additions. OG around 1.050, IBU's around 35 - 40 depending on taste.

+1

more than 90% of my beers are Pilseners and all the time I do only two additions: right after the hotbreak Im adding the bittering hops (just take the hops with its highest alpha acid) and 15min. before flameout Im adding the aromatic hops. Thats all.

Cheers :icon_cheers:

 

[Barry]

Good Day Zwickel
I have made numerous German and Czech Pils as well as judging many more that seem to lack the necessary hop aroma, and often hop flavour, found in commercial examples. How do your pils rate re aroma and flavour and is there some good advice about achieving this?

 

[Frank]

Way too many flavours there for a Pilsener.
Keep your B Saaz for a LC Bright Ale style, your D Saaz combined with Cascade for APA's, and the Czech Saaz for Pilsener.

I thought the Hop schedule might be too busy.

+1
more than 90% of my beers are Pilseners and all the time I do only two additions: right after the hotbreak Im adding the bittering hops (just take the hops with its highest alpha acid) and 15min. before flameout Im adding the aromatic hops. Thats all.

Just updated recipe.
90g B Saaz 6.8% 60min

90g Czech Saaz 4.0% 15min

Happy to keep it simple, 35.9 IBU, 5.06% ABV.
Planning 90 min boil.

Thanks

 

[domonsura]

That looks pretty good Boston. I reckon the D Saaz would have messed with the flavour profile too much.

 

[drsmurto]

Way too many flavours there for a Pilsener.

Keep your B Saaz for a LC Bright Ale style, your D Saaz combined with Cascade for APA's, and the Czech Saaz for Pilsener.

Go for something like 60, 40, 20, flame out additions. OG around 1.050, IBU's around 35 - 40 depending on taste.

Had the Pikes beer on Friday night and dropped in on the winery and grabbed a 6 pack.

Its a pilsner. The right up in the winery with some notes by Willie Simpson said NZ saaz hops. It was too subtle to be D Saaz IMHO.

Funny tho cos the media release from Pikes themselves says US grown czech ssaz.

Easy drinking beer in the german pilsner style. 35 IBU

 

[Zwickel]

Good Day Zwickel
I have made numerous German and Czech Pils as well as judging many more that seem to lack the necessary hop aroma, and often hop flavour, found in commercial examples. How do your pils rate re aroma and flavour and is there some good advice about achieving this?

hmmm.... the final taste of a good Pilsener does not only depends on the hops flavours, it depends also on the mash schedule.

let me say it in short words: if youre going to produce a dry and crispy Pilsener, the hops flavours should not be masked by an overly malty wort.
Also it is necessary to use a high flocculating yeast thats able to achieve a final gravity below 1008.

The bitterness of the Pilsener should be achieved by a bittering hops with more than 10%aa, such as Magnum or Northern Brewer for example. This should be added right after the hot break, may be 10min after boil began.

The arome you may taste, should come out of the aroma hops that almost nothing contributes to the bitterness of the beer, just added short before flameout.

A typical Pilsener recipe of mine would be: adding 100g/ 13%aa of Magnum 10min after boil began, then 35g/2%aa Saazer 10to 15min. before flameout.

That way Im doing already my 97th Pilsener brew next weekend.

Cheers :icon_cheers:

 

[Tony]

I agree Zwickel.

PEople think a pilsner should be a hoppy beer but thats not true.

I used to try and make them with a lot of late hops but it just doesnt work.

Bittering hops and a small amount of late hops for character is all that needed.

cheers

 

[tazman1967]

I agree with Zwickel and Tony.. All Saaz hops aint going to give you the bitterness that you need. I agree with Magnum or Northern Brewer for the bitterness additions, Saaz for the flavour and aroma and dry hop.IMHO

 

[Batz]

hmmm.... the final taste of a good Pilsener does not only depends on the hops flavours, it depends also on the mash schedule.

let me say it in short words: if youre going to produce a dry and crispy Pilsener, the hops flavours should not be masked by an overly malty wort.
Also it is necessary to use a high flocculating yeast thats able to achieve a final gravity below 1008.

The bitterness of the Pilsener should be achieved by a bittering hops with more than 10%aa, such as Magnum or Northern Brewer for example. This should be added right after the hot break, may be 10min after boil began.

The arome you may taste, should come out of the aroma hops that almost nothing contributes to the bitterness of the beer, just added short before flameout.

A typical Pilsener recipe of mine would be: adding 100g/ 13%aa of Magnum 10min after boil began, then 35g/2%aa Saazer 10to 15min. before flameout.

That way Im doing already my 97th Pilsener brew next weekend.

Cheers :icon_cheers:

Beautiful!
Look forward to you sampling one of my Pilsners Zwickel,we have very similar tastes in pilsners I believe

Batz

 

[Stuster]

A typical Pilsener recipe of mine would be: adding 100g/ 13%aa of Magnum 10min after boil began, then 35g/2%aa Saazer 10to 15min. before flameout.

What size batch is that for, Zwickel?

 

[Zwickel]

thanks brewers for the positive response :icon_cheers:

Batz, I think end of January/early February you will need to have some homebrew on stock

What size batch is that for, Zwickel?

thats for 65l of wort, 60liters into the fermenter and 5liters into the freezer

Cheers :icon_cheers:

 

[devo]

Honestly I don't see much point in doing 30/20 minute hop additions for flavouring because most of it is going out of the kettle as vapour.

 

[Jazman]

do not dry hop saaz or 5 min add my last pils i bittered with saaz b then at 30 mins and 15 used czech saaz

 

[SJW]

http://www.brewingtechniques.com/library/b....3/urquell.html

If the people from Pilsner Urquell can't be getting it right, we dont have a snow balls chance. They first wort hop, 60min and 25 min.
I have done many many Pilsners and a 60min and 20min is more than enough, otherwise u risk turning an otherwise fine beer into grass cuttings.

Steve

 

[Duff]

I agree with Zwickel and Tony.. All Saaz hops aint going to give you the bitterness that you need. I agree with Magnum or Northern Brewer for the bitterness additions, Saaz for the flavour and aroma and dry hop.IMHO

Huh? Pilsener Urquell produce a nice bitter beer with all Saaz.

 

[Ross]

Huh? Pilsener Urquell produce a nice bitter beer with all Saaz.

Duff,

I've heard that Pilsner Urquell hasn't been brewed with all Saaz for a while now.
....+ I'd be totally amazed if Urquell gets its aroma from a physical hop addition, I strongly suspect the use of hop oil.


cheers Ross

 

[bconnery]

Another option would be to bitter with something else, if you have it, and save the B-Saaz for another pilsner.
B-Saaz makes a very nice pilsner on its own...