The Great Chinese Hop Buy 2009

[staggalee]

The problem with feedback, you have a hundred blokes all seeing it different... some say MP smells of onion and garlic, others saying no, it smells great......some saying hops are a bit brown and crumbly, others they`re green and fresh as a daisy......and so on.
How do you base an informed opinion on so many differentials coming in?
When the tasting of the first brews come in, it`ll be a lot harder again to pin anything down, won`t it?

stagga.

 

[townsville]

The problem with feedback, you have a hundred blokes all seeing it different... some say MP smells of onion and garlic, others saying no, it smells great......some saying hops are a bit brown and crumbly, others they`re green and fresh as a daisy......and so on.
How do you base an informed opinion on so many differentials coming in?
When the tasting of the first brews come in, it`ll be a lot harder again to pin anything down, won`t it?

Of course, your DEAD RIGHT. All we can look at is trends, the main one is "are there more pluses than minuses". So far accross the board the plusses are running well over 90%. I have also no doubt the tastings will bring up similar results.

A better reflection would be in a competition, where the tastings are blind, then we will see if the hops stack up. BUT that is a long way away.


What does one do out there with this conflicting info. Well definitely take it onboard. BUT the better option is take a "Fear No Beer" approach to this.

BUY IT
BREW IT
DRINK IT

Craftbrewer

 

[Beer&Kebab]

The problem with feedback, you have a hundred blokes all seeing it different... some say MP smells of onion and garlic, others saying no, it smells great......some saying hops are a bit brown and crumbly, others they`re green and fresh as a daisy......and so on.
How do you base an informed opinion on so many differentials coming in?
When the tasting of the first brews come in, it`ll be a lot harder again to pin anything down, won`t it?

stagga.

The colour if the sky is yellow I tells ya !
I do smell onions in the MP but I don't say it smells bad. Also, I figure due to the quantity, you get overloaded with as Graham says Sulphur. I usually only open a 90g pack. Not 3kg worth at once. I have no doubt they will go a ways to making a nice APA. They all looked fresh enough to me.

 

[QldKev]

OK,

I am fairly confident what happened to Chappo

In all Bulk Buys thter are hiccups, and this time Chappo got the raw prawn. Now as I make these comments this is no relfection on packers, organisors, esp BribieG or Chappo and the packing crew. SHIT HAPPENS.

BUT THIS FEEDBACK IS IMPORTANT FOR ANYONE ORGANISING BULK BUY - So it comes out this way.

For 380kg of hops, being packed into 1 kg bags, well you only need 10 grams out and we can lose 4 kg of hops, they will disappear. The pack will come up short. Chappo in his goodness, left his order to last, and after the pack and distibution, no-one noticed his order went missing. ALL to late after mailing.

How to prevent this, well its easy, and this is my fault as I didn't spell it out. If you cut a bag of grain, or hops, splitter should naturally check it marries. ie a 25 kg bag of grain should yield 25 1 kilo bags of grain in a simple count. Equally the hops, after each 10 kg bag of hops was split, a count should have been done.

Of cousre in the excitment of a big pack, this can be lost in the hetic day of the pack. That I believe is what happened. I dont think we were short changed on weight, as the weigh bill at the airport shows the right amount by weight. (in fact a little more).

LESSION, in any bulk buy, splitters need to do a head count per split.

CHAPPO"S solution

yes guys feel sorry, Chappo missed out. And he shouldn't. I am going to see about compensation in the next Hop Bulk buy for him.

BUT

Guys you all have a bucket load of cheap hops, so I propose.

If any of you can shave a little, 50grams or even 100grams and mail it to him, that would be great

A good Christmas Present, no matter what he says

Graham L Sanders

I agree here Graham,

Thats one of the things I was hitting on my post this morning about purchasing some extra hops for the buy.

Post from earlier
Just and idea for the next buy, maybe up front charge the same as ths one started at, but buy at least a couple of kilos of each hop extra. This will allow 1kg of powder waste and help if some goes missing in Aust post, or just at the end of packing the 20kg the 20th bag only weights at 0.5kg. Any left over powder could then be split up between organisers/packers.


QldKev

 

[Online Brewing Supplies]

I am prone to sulphur and breathing difficulties, so any chance of a ORGANIC HOP BULK BUY ? I am sure there would be enough call for such a product.
GB

 

[townsville]

I am prone to sulphur and breathing difficulties, so any chance of a ORGANIC HOP BULK BUY ? I am sure there would be enough call for such a product.
GB

If you have been using hops before, then there is nothing to worry about.

I asked farmer about this, and the response.

"The stronger the onion smell, the fresher the hops"

Craftbrewer

 

[staggalee]

If you have been using hops before, then there is nothing to worry about.

I asked farmer about this, and the response.

"The stronger the onion smell, the fresher the hops"

Craftbrewer

Now for the posts "hey, my chinese hops don`t smell enough like onions, wot`s going on here?" :lol:

stagga.

 

[townsville]

YEHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

18 kilogram of hops have arrived

my opinions shortly

Craftbrewer

PS, the postal man could only say "Geee- that has stunk out my van"

 

[Bribie G]

I just stirred my dex (yes dex so sue me) into my Chinese Pale Pilsener International Style. It was already krausening well this morning, I'd forgotten to buy dex yesterday.... anyway I slurped a spoonful and nary a pickled onion in sight. Bloody lovely for the style, so far. :beerbang:

 

[Online Brewing Supplies]

If you have been using hops before, then there is nothing to worry about.

I asked farmer about this, and the response.

"The stronger the onion smell, the fresher the hops"

Craftbrewer

Still, my question, Can you arrange organic hops?
GB

 

[chappo1970]

no, no.....he insists he doesn`t want any, leave it at that :lol:

stagga.

Actually you are dead right Stagga... Really appreciate the sentiment from guys like Sully, NickB, MB etc but I really don't need the damn things plus I have my reasons not accepting your very kind offers which those close to me know why.

Enjoy brewing with the hops lads and hopefully a few test brews might come my way? Who knows? :icon_cheers:

Cheers

Chap Chap

 

[big78sam]

Still, my question, Can you arrange organic hops?
GB

I saw this last night. If you're really keen and willing to pay try here

http://www.hopsdirect.com/detail.src?SKU=H...y=Pellet%20Hops

Other organic varieties are available

 

[townsville]

Guys

just did a smell test, hop teas being made (true test)

I will go out on a limb here. That onion smell. I dont smell it, BUT i do smell suplhur like smells. Twist my mind to think onions, then that smells like onion.

Goes to show these are indeed fresh hops, and that smell will go with age and always out of the boil, as I said before, sulphur is used in the process.

More to come

Craftbrewer

edit - on a further limb, what this business they are brown, papery etc. To me accross the board, the colour looks fine, they are sticky, various good general DEEP green colours. All look GREAT

 

[Fourstar]

edit - on a further limb, what this business they are brown, papery etc. To me accross the board, the colour looks fine, they are sticky, various good general DEEP green colours. All look GREAT

Mine are as green as the 'quote' button, my Marco Polo anyway. The rest are standard hop colours.

 

[Batz]

Guys

just did a smell test, hop teas being made (true test)

I will go out on a limb here. That onion smell. I dont smell it, BUT i do smell suplhur like smells. Twist my mind to think onions, then that smells like onion.

Goes to show these are indeed fresh hops, and that smell will go with age and always out of the boil, as I said before, sulphur is used in the process.

More to come

Craftbrewer

edit - on a further limb, what this business they are brown, papery etc. To me accross the board, the colour looks fine, they are sticky, various good general DEEP green colours. All look GREAT

Perhaps nobody here has actually had hops as fresh as this before? All the strange smells are possibly true fresh hop smells, and a little alien to us all.
I know we have bought "this seasons" hops before, but how old were they really?

Looking forward to collecting mine from Pete soon, and a big thanks the Graham and the packing line.

Batz

 

[townsville]

Craftbrewers, this is my review of the hops

Cavet - yes I guess you can argue I may be biaised, I leave it to my repretation

FIRST IMPRESSION

All the hops look to be the right colour, various grades of green. Dont know where this papery-brown colour comes in some say, they look fine to me, typical colours of fresh hop I have seen arround the world.

A crush give stickiness accross the baord. meaning resins. Again, dont know where people are coming back, saying they are stale and no good.

And smell, I dont smell onions, BUT I do smell sulphur like smells, and if one was to imagaine, well yes, thats the onion other smell. This is normal, showing they have come straight out of the dryer to the press. It means one thing, THEY ARE FRESH.

This onion smell WILL mask other aromas, so dont go on thie initial smell as a guide.

ALL hops to me exhibit similar smells to what I have seen with namesakes from overseas. Cascade smells like cascade, and so does the Saaz smell like well saaz. All hops has good potent smells.


HOP TEA TEST

Now we get serious. here I break it up. I rarely give detailed decriptors, because everyones taste perceptions are different. Describe the taste of an apple to some-one. I give opinions instead

MARKO POLO - If you like those taste bud numbing, stupidfying over the top, overhopped APA's, this hop wont disappoint. (I dont personally). It has that typical harse, overpowering Typical APA flavour that to me should be banned from every beer on earth. BUT if you do like that sort of thing, it is indeed pudgent, strong and as described by others. I personally dont like it mind you. And yes, guess what, - to my disappointment, no onion smells.

CASCADE - another hop that should be banned. This is like the USA Cascade but BETTER. While to me the USA Cascade just hits you with one dimentional grapefruit tastes and smells, and thus a boring hop, I find this cascade a little more suttle on the grapefruit. It does on the otherhand have complexity that the USA Cascade doesn't have. The Chinese cascade has more a whole citrus orchard in taste, and yes agree with ross, even lime. This could get me brewing with this hop again (well just maybe, I would have to convinced more to change my mind)

CLUSTER - I love Aus Cluster. So much so, I use it in my Belgain ales, I like it sooo much. Drink the hop tea, and all I get is XXXX in a nice way. I cant tell that much difference to be honest on this taste test. It scrubs up well. In my smell sample of the raw hop, this has sulphur too, BUT again no onions in this hop tea sample. I am simply sold

NUGGET - Generally I have found nugget would be a good hop if it didn;t give that ribena (black current) taste. SAAZ B from NZ does as well. If I taste that I go off the sample straight away. Well I taste Ribena in this Chinese sample. I dont like, I say no more

SAAZ - The one causing questions. Whats wrong with it I ask. I agree with BribieG on this - nothing. In fact I'll use his assessment, as its accurate. The hop tea immediately reminded me of Kingfisher in India, or many a quality Japanese beer. I like my Saaz to be a compliment to a light pilsner based malt, and like quality SE Asian beer, this saaz hits the mark, in taste and smell. Yes its not that overpowering Boh saaz, but the sort you would expect in a good lager. You would have to be picky not to like it.

There you go my assessment

Craftbrewer

 

[jbirbeck]

Mine are as green as the 'quote' button, my Marco Polo anyway. The rest are standard hop colours.

Re colour - just a note I did a hop take of my hops last night...5 year old Saphir (yes that's right and they smell and taste great) beautiful emerald green, 08 Summer Saaz dull green like the 'quote' button. If I were to go on the colour scale people are using here I'd chuck the Summer Saaz and use the Saphir.

Quit smelling them, looking at them and get to using them. Had I managed to get any on the last buy (too much indecision) I would have taken a day off to get the stuff into the fermenter, used a fast yeast and had a keg full by now. Slackers :lol:

 

[Leigh]

Have the delivery slip at home, but won't get to the post office until at least Saturday Bugger big time!

 

[Fourstar]

Re colour - just a note I did a hop take of my hops last night...5 year old Saphir (yes that's right and they smell and taste great) beautiful emerald green, 08 Summer Saaz dull green like the 'quote' button. If I were to go on the colour scale people are using here I'd chuck the Summer Saaz and use the Saphir.
Quit smelling them, looking at them and get to using them. Had I managed to get any on the last buy (too much indecision) I would have taken a day off to get the stuff into the fermenter, used a fast yeast and had a keg full by now. Slackers :lol:

I always wondered why people kick and scream over the colour of them. which is why i have been trying to nut out if it is an issue (which it seems not to be). Obviously cultivars will have differing colours and hue due to soil conditions, location, sun damage/shade, variety etc. To me, if they smell good i can assume they will be good. With any food product, fresh is best(with the exception if preserves). Its '09 release so we can assume we are getting the freshes hops available to us. :icon_drool2:

 

[townsville]

I always wondered why people kick and scream over the colour of them. which is why i have been trying to nut out if it is an issue

Its simple, ever try to get a kid to eat green coloured potates, or steak. We are hard wired to look at colour in our food. And yes, for no logical reason, we over-react on colour. Its a human failing. If you dry hops without sulphur, they go pale in colour. Sulphur is used to preserve that green colour, which by all admissions already on this forum, people prefer for no other reason than "darker green means better hops" which as you state, is very VERY misguided.

What it does mean is darker green more sulphur used.

Craftbrewer