I harvested a big bowl of hops the other day. I left the bowl outside and the next morning I noticed
what looked like sawdust on the hops and the rim of the bowl. The sawdust turned out to be a jillion
(I counted them ) bugs. These tiny things are the color of the hops and are about the size of a piece
of sawdust.
If I boil them along with the hops I’m probably OK, but wanted to see if anyone here has had a similar experience with fresh whole hops.
Thx,
John
Yes. Aphids. Totally normal and nothing to worry about. They will die either when you dry or boil your hops. Even commercial hops contain bugs. There is just no way to avoid it and no sense in trying. That’s life.
The protein in the bugs is great for head retention.
I see what you did there :lol:
I find that the spiders and mites add a nice nutty character. No, really…
viewtopic.php?f=28&t=78473&p=733075&hilit=bugs+hops#p733075
I personally don’t think aphids are a good sign, and if in large numbers, can destroy your hops. What happens is, the aphids secret a type of excrement called honeydew (really) and under some conditions, this can get moldy. Check for black/grey spots within your hops. If nothing’s there, you should be fine.
Good info. My wife is a big gardener and has had aphids on various plants of hers over the years.
The good news is, no mold and the aphids seem to be abandoning the hops now that they’ve been
harvested. Her aphids were mostly red in color. These were greenish/white and were camo’d perfectly
on the hops. There are some organic sprays you can make to combat these little pests. Maybe I’ll try
that next year.
Now, how do I weigh these hops without a scale ? If I had to guess, would a sandwich bag full of hops be about an ounce ?
Thx,
John
[quote=“dmtaylo2”]I find that the spiders and mites add a nice nutty character. No, really…
viewtopic.php?f=28&t=78473&p=733075&hilit=bugs+hops#p733075 [/quote]
I always found them to be a little… dunno… grainy perhaps?
Whether you grow hops or not, if you’re brewing, you’re going to need a scale.
[quote=“john57”]Good info. My wife is a big gardener and has had aphids on various plants of hers over the years.
The good news is, no mold and the aphids seem to be abandoning the hops now that they’ve been
harvested. Her aphids were mostly red in color. These were greenish/white and were camo’d perfectly
on the hops. There are some organic sprays you can make to combat these little pests. Maybe I’ll try
that next year.
Now, how do I weigh these hops without a scale ? If I had to guess, would a sandwich bag full of hops be about an ounce ?
Thx,
John[/quote]
Less than you think. A mixing bowl of hops ended up being 2 oz dried for me. Get a scale… Hops are pungent enough that half an ounce makes a huge difference.
[quote=“porkchop”][quote=“dmtaylo2”]I find that the spiders and mites add a nice nutty character. No, really…
viewtopic.php?f=28&t=78473&p=733075&hilit=bugs+hops#p733075 [/quote]
I always found them to be a little… dunno… grainy perhaps?[/quote]
Have you done a triangle test on aphids? If not, your opinion is subjective, biased and worthless :lol:
In a regular size sandwich bag if you stuff it really tight, it is 1/2 ounce.
[quote=“uberculture”]
Have you done a triangle test on aphids? If not, your opinion is subjective, biased and worthless :lol: [/quote]
Dang, you reminded me of that just in time. I was about to send the results off to be peer reviewed and everything.
