I plan on brewing a pale ale with the following partial mash grain bill:
4# Light DME
3.25# Two Row
.25# Crystal 10L
.50 Carapils
Yeast will likely be US-05, but could be either of the two similar liquid yeasts.
I plan to use the following hop schedule:
1 oz Columbus at 60 minutes
1 oz Cascade at 30 minutes
What I would like are some suggestions on hop additions at 15 minutes and 5 or 0 minutes.
I have used Citra and Amarillo in the past and would like to try something different. I prefer the citrus aroma, but am open to other suggestions. If you offer some suggestions, please describe what the impact of your suggestion is expected to be on the final product.
Any hop you like will work (Amarillo, Citra, Cascade, Centennial, Mosaic, etc). For a schedule, I like to do something like this for Pale Ales
1/2oz Magnum at 60min (columbus would be fine too, I just prefer the clean bittering of Magnum)
1/2oz (any hop) 15min
1/2oz (any hop) 10min
1/2oz (any hop) 5min
1oz (any hop) flame out
1 - 2oz (dry hop any hop) 5-7 days
I’ve been brewing a lot of single hop pale ales recently to really get a taste for each and know exactly what I’m working with.
If you want to use a few hops, how about Cascade and Centennial? They always seem to go well together. When using multiple hops, I like to blend them together. So for the late additions and dry hop, I have a total of 4.5oz. I’d weigh out 2.25oz each of cascade and centennial. Blend them together. Then add the additions listed above. This is something I’ve done many times and like what I get.
EDIT: I’ll add if using a strong flavor hop like Citra, I would back down the amount used a bit and up the other hop. For example, if using Citra and Cascade, I’d probably use 2.75 - 3oz of cascade and 1.5 - 1.75oz of Citra. I love Citra, but it can be dominating. But if I were to use something like Amarillo and Cascade together, I’d use them equally.
You could use practically any NW American hop for finishing in this type of beer, but there’s no good reason at all not to just finish with the hops you’re already using for bittering. Those are classic American hops that are just as good for finishing as they are for bittering. If you really insist on using something else, though, there are some great finishing hops coming from down under these days. I’ve used Pacific Gem and Pacific Hallertau in my pale ales to great effect several times, and there are numerous other varieties from Australia and New Zealand that I haven’t tried yet. Just a suggestion.
On APA’s, I like a 60 of something neutral (warrior/magnum), then heavy late hopping to maximize flavor/aroma. I’m afraid I cannot find a use for 30 minute hop additions. They don’t seem to do anything.
One last thought, you may want to try blending the hops at intervals (as opposed to a single hop at a given interval).
That said, my go-to hop for APA’s is Centennial. Its like a roided-up cascade. If you really like citrus, try some citra (heavy tangerine, but there is a compound in those that is polarizing. Some people (like me) LOVE them, some people hate them. Same with Simcoe. Heavy tangerine/orange, but a slight dankness/resinous flavor/aroma that some people can’t stand and say tastes like cat pee/weed. If you want to go in a slightly different direction, pick up som New Zealand hops, such as Galaxy or Calypso. Some citrus, but a lot of tropical fruit aromas/flavors as well…and I would add the majority of the hops to the last 15 minutes of the boil/dry hop.
[quote=“Pietro”]On APA’s, I like a 60 of something neutral (warrior/magnum), then heavy late hopping to maximize flavor/aroma. I’m afraid I cannot find a use for 30 minute hop additions. They don’t seem to do anything.
One last thought, you may want to try blending the hops at intervals (as opposed to a single hop at a given interval).
That said, my go-to hop for APA’s is Centennial. Its like a roided-up cascade. If you really like citrus, try some citra (heavy tangerine, but there is a compound in those that is polarizing. Some people (like me) LOVE them, some people hate them. Same with Simcoe. Heavy tangerine/orange, but a slight dankness/resinous flavor/aroma that some people can’t stand and say tastes like cat pee/weed. If you want to go in a slightly different direction, pick up som New Zealand hops, such as Galaxy or Calypso. Some citrus, but a lot of tropical fruit aromas/flavors as well…and I would add the majority of the hops to the last 15 minutes of the boil/dry hop.[/quote]
I really like these ideas. I just ordered 2# of Cascade ($28 delivered!) and just got a rooted Cascade rhyzome that I’ll be planting when it’s warm enough. I really like SNPA so I’m planning on starting off with something heavy on the Cascades and then adding a different hop to the mix with successive brews until I get my “house” brew. Due to space, money and equipment limitations, I mostly brew partial mashes. Here’s what I have as a starting point but may switch up some later:
3 lbs 2-row
1 lb C-60 (saw this in a SNPA clone recipe-may change in future brews to split C40/C60 or something like that)
Mash 60 mins @ 153*
4 lbs X-light DME (may put 1 # in at 60 & the rest late addition)
1 oz Cascade FWH
.5 oz Magnum @ 60
.5-1 oz Cascade @ 15
.5-1 oz Cascade @ 5 or zero/whirlpool
1-2 oz Cascade DH
I’m thinking after tasting what this brings, maybe introduce the other C hops one at a time in future brews and possibly a third sometime down the road until I dial in my favorite.
:cheers:
My last house pale ale I used Falconer’s Flight 7c’s for bittering, 50/50 blend of cascades and willamette for flavor and aroma. Personally I like the combo as the willamette’s kind of cut some of the citrus with a little earthiness. Next go round I think I am going to try finishing with 7c’s and maybe drop the willies all together.
I made this pale ale recently and it was really good,
Batch Size: 5.50 gal Style: American Pale Ale
Boil Size: 7.89 gal
Color: 7.1 SRM
Bitterness: 48.9 IBUs Boil Time: 60 min
Est OG: 1.051 (12.6° P) Mash Profile: Single Infusion, Medium Body, Batch Sparge
Est FG: 1.011 SG (2.7° P) Fermentation: Ale, Two Stage
ABV: 5.3%
Ingredients
Amount Name Type #
10 lbs 6.4 oz Pale Malt (2 Row) US (2.0 SRM) Grain 1
8.0 oz Victory Malt (25.0 SRM) Grain 2
9.6 oz Caramel/Crystal Malt - 40L (40.0 SRM) Grain 3
0.6 oz Magnum [14.0%] - Boil 60 min Hops 4
1.10 Whirlfloc Tablet (Boil 15 min) Misc 5
0.5 oz Columbus (Tomahawk) [14.0%] - Boil 12 min Hops 6
0.5 oz Cascade [5.5%] - Boil 12 min Hops 7
0.5 oz Columbus (Tomahawk) [14.0%] - Boil 5 min Hops 8
0.5 oz Cascade [5.5%] - Boil 5 min Hops 9
1.0 oz Simcoe [13.0%] - Boil 0 min Hops 10
2 pkgs California Ale (White Labs #WLP001) Yeast 11
[quote=“Pietro”]On APA’s, I like a 60 of something neutral (warrior/magnum), then heavy late hopping to maximize flavor/aroma. I’m afraid I cannot find a use for 30 minute hop additions. They don’t seem to do anything.
[/quote]
+1. I typically bitter with magnum to get the IBU’s I’m shooting for and hop late with everything else. By late, I mean over the course of the last 5 minutes. The 30 minute addition doesn’t do anything appreciable IME.
[quote=“Pietro[quote]”]On APA’s, I like a 60 of something neutral (warrior/magnum), then heavy late hopping to maximize flavor/aroma. I’m afraid I cannot find a use for 30 minute hop additions. [/quote]They don’t seem to do anything.
One last thought, you may want to try blending the hops at intervals (as opposed to a single hop at a given interval).
That said, my go-to hop for APA’s is Centennial. Its like a roided-up cascade. If you really like citrus, try some citra (heavy tangerine, but there is a compound in those that is polarizing. Some people (like me) LOVE them, some people hate them. Same with Simcoe. Heavy tangerine/orange, but a slight dankness/resinous flavor/aroma that some people can’t stand and say tastes like cat pee/weed. If you want to go in a slightly different direction, pick up som New Zealand hops, such as Galaxy or Calypso. Some citrus, but a lot of tropical fruit aromas/flavors as well…and I would add the majority of the hops to the last 15 minutes of the boil/dry hop.[/quote]
Wow- you really consider Warrior hops to be neutral? You’re the first person I’ve ever heard say that. I’ve used them twice, and each time I used them, the character they added to the beer was SUPER intense. I don’t know exactly how to describe their character, sort of earthy and resiny, just to throw a couple of adjectives out there that come to mind. Of course, both of those beers were dark, so they could have been intensified somehow by their interaction with the dark grains, I guess. I don’t know. I wouldn’t necessarily say I didn’t like them per se, but I would definitely be cautious about how much of them I use in the future.
[quote=“deliusism1”]
Wow- you really consider Warrior hops to be neutral?[/quote]
I’ve been bittering lots of beers with Warrior over the last year or so, and I don’t find it to be overpowering at all. Even though the alpha acid content is high, they’ve got a low cohumulene content, which smoothes out the bitterness. You have to be precise when measuring out such small amounts (0.15 oz to bitter 6 gallons of kolsch, for example) but I’ve found them to be very clean and neutral. Your tastes may vary.
I’ve use Warrior in the following styles:
American Amber
APA
IPA
IIPA
Milk Stout
Smoked Porter
American Stout
Kolsch
American Brown
ESB
That’s a good idea. I have a digital kitchen scale that I use mainly for grains but also hops - its resolution is only .05 oz. But I do have a much more accurate scale that resolves down to .01 gram, which I use for mineral additions. I might start doing the hops on that one too though.
I typically just add the hop pellets one at a time when I get close to my target. As soon as it flips up to the amount I stop.
My point is, this is a powerful hop but it will work well in a lot of styles, as long as you’re careful with measuring.
I ran through a pound of Magnum in a similar fashion a couple years ago. I like Warrior better, because for me the Magnum was just a bit too mellow.
My last American IPA was Magnum and Warrior for bittering and a blend of Cascade, Falconer’s Flight and Cenntenial for flavor, aroma, and dry hop. It had a big citrus flavor and aroma but did not cover up the malt sweetness with cat pee or obnoxious bitter flavors. I have had a few good citra beers. Sometimes they have a slight cat pee character so I choose not to use them in something I am going to drink 5 gallons of.
I think it can be from harvest to harvest, terroir to terroir with the Citras/Simcoes. Like many, I have had beers utilizing/featuring them that are AMAZING, and beers that are borderline undrinkable.
@ delusion, yes I do find them to be pretty neutral (at least as opposed to bittering with CTZ or something). Aren’t Warrior a derivative of Saaz and Magnum a derivative of Hallertauer? I do agree with you though on Centennial. Just did an all-centennial APA dry hopped with Simcoe and it is scrumtrulescent.
I’ve really been enjoying Galaxy as a late hop addition lately. Has a bit of that typical North American citrus, along with some wonderful tropical fruit flavors. It is still a fairly new variety, so I don’t know how easy it is to find.
