I recently got wind of a new product on the market - "Hop My Beer" varietal hop oils. These are steam-distilled hop oils that do not contain the bitter or vegetal compounds in hops. These differ from a CO2 hop extract, which also contain alpha acids and are intended to be used in the boil to impart bitterness. Hop oils such as "Hop My Beer" are intended to be used on the cold side to impart aroma, similar to dry hops.
The Hop My Beer product initially made my spidey senses tingle. I initially came across the product on eBay, and it seemed to be marketed primarily towards beer drinkers rather than homebrewers as a way to doctor commercial beer. I have had poor experiences with similar products in the past. But after an email exchange with them and reading through their website, I got a much better vibe about the company and their products.
I have seen hop oils like this before, but it is rare to come across varietal-specific oils. The price was right (about $5 for a 10mL bottle, which should be enough to dose 1-2 cases of beer), so I decided to snap up a few to play around with. I ended up up ordering their Apollo, Centennial, Citra and Chinook oils, as well as an iso-AA product which can be used to add bitterness to beer post-boil.
I will post my tasting notes separately, but I will say that I was impressed with the product packaging when they arrived. Each bottle was sealed and hand-numbered. The bottles have fine dropper tips on them, which make it pretty easy to measure out the oil drop-by drop. The instructions recommend storing the bottles in the fridge as well, which I take as a sign that they have quality and freshness of their product as a top priority.
Wednesday, April 1, 2015
Tuesday, March 31, 2015
Kohatu Hops - Tasting Notes
Last, but not least, we have Kohatu. I got these pellets from Farmhouse
Brewing Supply as well. These were 2014 crop and were listed at 8.1% AA.
The aroma of the hop pellets really wowed me. There was some complex
tropical fruit, citrus and pine resin.
The aroma of the beer had some very nice complexity. I picked up citrus (grapefruit, primarily), stone fruit, some pine in the background, and some vinous notes.
The flavor was resinous with lingering pine. I also got some lemon/grapefruit citrus notes, but the flavor didn't seem as potent as the aroma. There was also some stone fruit & tropical notes. The finish saw the pine resin character linger a bit. Bittering was moderate-to-full and clinging.
My impression of Kohatu is somewhere along the lines of Nelson-meets-Mosaic. The only thing is that the hop character didn't seem as potent in this beer as I would expect from Nelson or Mosaic. As I mentioned in a previous post, I did change my recipe a bit for this batch. The increased maltiness this time around may be contributing to the somewhat muted hop flavor here.
I do think that Kohatu has a lot of potential. I think this one is perfectly suited to IPA's.The bittering and flavor are in the ballpark of something like Chinook, while the aroma is much more fruity and complex. I think dry hops are where this hop is going to shine the brightest.
The aroma of the beer had some very nice complexity. I picked up citrus (grapefruit, primarily), stone fruit, some pine in the background, and some vinous notes.
The flavor was resinous with lingering pine. I also got some lemon/grapefruit citrus notes, but the flavor didn't seem as potent as the aroma. There was also some stone fruit & tropical notes. The finish saw the pine resin character linger a bit. Bittering was moderate-to-full and clinging.
My impression of Kohatu is somewhere along the lines of Nelson-meets-Mosaic. The only thing is that the hop character didn't seem as potent in this beer as I would expect from Nelson or Mosaic. As I mentioned in a previous post, I did change my recipe a bit for this batch. The increased maltiness this time around may be contributing to the somewhat muted hop flavor here.
I do think that Kohatu has a lot of potential. I think this one is perfectly suited to IPA's.The bittering and flavor are in the ballpark of something like Chinook, while the aroma is much more fruity and complex. I think dry hops are where this hop is going to shine the brightest.
Monday, March 16, 2015
Wai-iti Hops - Tasting Notes
Next up is Wai-iti. This NZ hop has been on my wishlist for a while, and
I was finally able to find some through Farmhouse Brewing Supply. The
hops I used were pellets from the 2014 crop, and were listed at only
4.1% AA. The pellets had a potent, oily aroma that seemed to be typical
NZ-style tropical fruit.
The aroma of the beer had a massive blackcurrant note, paired up with passionfruit in a supporting role.
The flavor was very blackcurrant-forward as well. I did get some lime/lemongrass and passion fruit. There was also a bit of a resinous quality, but it made me think of concentrated currant/ribes more than the typical dank/pine resin character you find in hops like Columbus or Simcoe. As the currant fades out there are floral notes, passion fruit and some fleeting sweet cinnamon notes as well.
Bittering was mild-to-moderate and fairly clean.
I have a feeling that Wai-iti is going to be quite a polarizing hop. To me, I perceive "catty" as blackcurrant, and it is a flavor and aroma that I enjoy. To those who perceive "catty" as tomcat spray, I'd be willing to bet that this hop will not go over well. I see this being a hop that is best in a blend. While it does have some fruit undertones, the currant note is the predominant character by far. I think it would be nice in an IPA to balance some fruitier hops. It might also be nice as a dry hop in a sour, and maybe as a flavor addition in a beer that has some dark fruit character.
The aroma of the beer had a massive blackcurrant note, paired up with passionfruit in a supporting role.
The flavor was very blackcurrant-forward as well. I did get some lime/lemongrass and passion fruit. There was also a bit of a resinous quality, but it made me think of concentrated currant/ribes more than the typical dank/pine resin character you find in hops like Columbus or Simcoe. As the currant fades out there are floral notes, passion fruit and some fleeting sweet cinnamon notes as well.
Bittering was mild-to-moderate and fairly clean.
I have a feeling that Wai-iti is going to be quite a polarizing hop. To me, I perceive "catty" as blackcurrant, and it is a flavor and aroma that I enjoy. To those who perceive "catty" as tomcat spray, I'd be willing to bet that this hop will not go over well. I see this being a hop that is best in a blend. While it does have some fruit undertones, the currant note is the predominant character by far. I think it would be nice in an IPA to balance some fruitier hops. It might also be nice as a dry hop in a sour, and maybe as a flavor addition in a beer that has some dark fruit character.
Saturday, March 14, 2015
Experimental J-Lime Hops - Tasting Notes
I'll lead off with the Experimental J-Lime batch. These were whole cone
hops I got from Yakima Valley Hops, weighing in at 6.9% AA. The aroma coming off the raw hops was quite mild. I was struggling to pick up much beyond the typical grassy/herbal aroma typical of raw hops. I will say that this is pretty common in whole cone hops (at least for me), and that doesn't always translate to a mild hop once brewed. This also seemed like it came from the bottom of the bag (lots of loose bracts, not a lot of whole cones), so that may factor into my results as well.
The aroma of the beer didn't have a lot of hop punch. I picked up some citrus and berry notes, along with some stonefruit (which really reminded me more of a yeast ester than hop oil). I also noted faint vanilla and earth. I really had to fight to pick out a lot of these aromas and outside of the citrus and berry, I'm not 100% sold that these are coming from the hops rather than yeast or malt.
On the palate I got a mild, herbal hop note with a bit of tangy citrus. The finish has some lingering bitterness along with some earth/dirt/mushroom notes. Bittering seemed moderate and did linger faintly on the finish.
As I mentioned in my lead-in, I fermented this one in a HDPE water jug and I fear that may have stripped a lot of the hop character. My initial impressions really made me think of some UK hops like Fuggle and Challenger. If my flavor assessment is accurate, then this may be interesting in UK-style pale ales. I do have this hop earmarked for a rebrew some time.
The aroma of the beer didn't have a lot of hop punch. I picked up some citrus and berry notes, along with some stonefruit (which really reminded me more of a yeast ester than hop oil). I also noted faint vanilla and earth. I really had to fight to pick out a lot of these aromas and outside of the citrus and berry, I'm not 100% sold that these are coming from the hops rather than yeast or malt.
On the palate I got a mild, herbal hop note with a bit of tangy citrus. The finish has some lingering bitterness along with some earth/dirt/mushroom notes. Bittering seemed moderate and did linger faintly on the finish.
As I mentioned in my lead-in, I fermented this one in a HDPE water jug and I fear that may have stripped a lot of the hop character. My initial impressions really made me think of some UK hops like Fuggle and Challenger. If my flavor assessment is accurate, then this may be interesting in UK-style pale ales. I do have this hop earmarked for a rebrew some time.
New Round of Hop Tastings
Things have been fairly quiet on the brewing front for me for a little while now. I did manage to squeeze in a 3-pack of single-hopped brews recently and I'll be posting my tasting notes in the next few days. This time around I brewed with Wai-iti and Kohatu from New Zealand, as well as an experimental variety known as "Experimental J-Lime".
I changed up my recipe a little bit compared to my usual mix of Extra Light DME + Munich LME. This time I went with 14 oz of Light DME and 3 oz of Carahell. The CaraHell was steeped for 10 minutes as the kettle came up to temp. I stuck to my usual hopping schedule of 40-45 IBU added as soon as I pulled the grains (calculated as a 20-minute addition). This was followed by 1/4 oz at flameout and 1/2 oz as dry hops.
Generally speaking, I found that the hop character of these beers was less than my typical trial batch. I don't blame the hops for this; I blame my new recipe. These beers all turned out maltier than usual, and I think that tended to shift the balance away from the hops a bit.
For full disclosure, I also have one more caveat. I ran out of 1-gallon glass jugs, so the J-lime batch was fermented in a 1-gallon HDPE water jug. I feel like this is important to note because the J-Lime had significantly less hop character than the other beers. I do have some concerns that the HDPE container may have adsorbed some of the hop compounds leading to decreased hop character.
I changed up my recipe a little bit compared to my usual mix of Extra Light DME + Munich LME. This time I went with 14 oz of Light DME and 3 oz of Carahell. The CaraHell was steeped for 10 minutes as the kettle came up to temp. I stuck to my usual hopping schedule of 40-45 IBU added as soon as I pulled the grains (calculated as a 20-minute addition). This was followed by 1/4 oz at flameout and 1/2 oz as dry hops.
Generally speaking, I found that the hop character of these beers was less than my typical trial batch. I don't blame the hops for this; I blame my new recipe. These beers all turned out maltier than usual, and I think that tended to shift the balance away from the hops a bit.
For full disclosure, I also have one more caveat. I ran out of 1-gallon glass jugs, so the J-lime batch was fermented in a 1-gallon HDPE water jug. I feel like this is important to note because the J-Lime had significantly less hop character than the other beers. I do have some concerns that the HDPE container may have adsorbed some of the hop compounds leading to decreased hop character.
Tuesday, September 23, 2014
Aurora and Celeia Hop Tasting Notes (Link)
Food for the hopheads in the audience: Brain Sparging on Brewing has some tasting notes on a couple of lesser-known Slovenian hop varieties - Aurora and Celeia. It's nice to see some detailed info out there on some of the less-common hop varieties.
Tuesday, June 10, 2014
Giant Freaking Barleywine - Tasting Notes
I finally have my gigantic all-malt barleywine that I posted about here and here kegged, carbed and ready to bottle. The beer went from 1.142 down to 1.024, which is an astonishing 83% attenuation for a beer this big. My initial tastings prior to carbonation and cold-crashing were best summed up as "hot & harsh". But we're now 3 months in, and I have a proper chilled and carbonated sample to taste.
Appearance is a deep chestnut-brown with a thin off-white head that has been holding on surprisingly well. The nose is nutty, rich malt with noticeable booziness. There are some fruity esters that are hard to define, but seem to be in the cherry/peach range. Early samples just hit me with a blast of that Yorkshire Square strain ester profile, but that has (thankfully) mellowed significantly.
On the palate there is some caramel and toffee sweetness. More stonefruit esters are here, but they meld with the sweetness quite well. There's a touch of fig as well. I also get plenty of dark bread crust that is really characteristic of Maris Otter malt. The booze is up front, but surprisingly smooth. There is a balancing hop bitterness, but the malt sweetness definitely takes the lead. Mouthfeel is heavy and slightly viscous, but there is a nice snappy tartness that keeps it from becoming syrupy or cloying. Finish has a long interplay of dark fruit and bread crust.
I am really excited to lay this one down for a while and see how it ages. It really seems like I nailed the ballpark of Thomas Hardy Ale, which is possibly my all-time favorite beers, and ages well seemingly forever. I think after a few years when some sherry notes start to develop this is going to be insanely good.
Appearance is a deep chestnut-brown with a thin off-white head that has been holding on surprisingly well. The nose is nutty, rich malt with noticeable booziness. There are some fruity esters that are hard to define, but seem to be in the cherry/peach range. Early samples just hit me with a blast of that Yorkshire Square strain ester profile, but that has (thankfully) mellowed significantly.
On the palate there is some caramel and toffee sweetness. More stonefruit esters are here, but they meld with the sweetness quite well. There's a touch of fig as well. I also get plenty of dark bread crust that is really characteristic of Maris Otter malt. The booze is up front, but surprisingly smooth. There is a balancing hop bitterness, but the malt sweetness definitely takes the lead. Mouthfeel is heavy and slightly viscous, but there is a nice snappy tartness that keeps it from becoming syrupy or cloying. Finish has a long interplay of dark fruit and bread crust.
I am really excited to lay this one down for a while and see how it ages. It really seems like I nailed the ballpark of Thomas Hardy Ale, which is possibly my all-time favorite beers, and ages well seemingly forever. I think after a few years when some sherry notes start to develop this is going to be insanely good.
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